STONE MOUNTAIN, Ga. — Some DeKalb county homeowners were shocked to find exactly how low their property assessments have fallen.
The county's assessments -- which are used to calculate the property tax bill -- have been arriving in homeowners' mailboxes over the last two weeks.
"Ours has been dropping over the last three or four years, but just gradually," said Joe Arrington of Stone Mountain. "This was the biggest drop -- roughly 50 percent," he told Channel 2 Action News Reporter Manuel Bojorquez.
Arrington is part of neighborhood group PRISM, Pride Rings in Stone Mountain, and said he understands why the values took such a dramatic turn this year and wants to help others who are frustrated.
"It looks like it's hitting at one time, when actually it's an accumulation effect that's been happening over a four-year period, that just crested this year when they got those assessments," Arrington said.
DeKalb County's Chief Appraiser, Calvin C. Hicks, agrees.
Hicks said a new law took effect this year, which requires his office to include the sales of distressed properties - foreclosures - in the formula used to come up with an area's assessed value.
"Looking at the values and looking at how the various distressed sales are figuring into that scenario, we think, overall, the values are where they should be now," Hicks said.
That means areas with fewer foreclosures are seeing a smaller drop, while those in the southern part of the county are seeing the biggest change.
It could also mean homeowners will pay less on their property taxes.
Arrington has arranged a meeting for residents in the Stone Mountain area to learn more about the assessment process Thursday night.
He said some might be concerned that the lower values could hurt if they try to sell in the near future, while others feel the values are finally where they need to be.