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As Marin property prices fall, the homeowners in Marin County are requesting their home to be reassessed, hoping to lower their property tax.

Assitant Assessor-Recorder Rich Benson said most homeowners seeking reassessments should receive assessor's office response by July 1, 2008.  The office is getting requests from across Marin that involve all values from condos to luxury homes. 

The county assessors' office expects to received 1,000 requests, which is about 1 percent of all homes and condos. 

State law requires county assessors to roll back assessments if tax values of real estate - those printed on property tax bills - are lower than the current market value. As real estate prices have been sliding, assessors in some counties have ordered reassessments without waiting for homeowners to file requests.

Joan Thayer, Marin County assessor said that the likely candidates for re-assessment are homes purchased after January 2006, when most local prices peaked. 

Richard Benson, Marin County's assistant assessor, estimated that more than 1,000 homeowners will have requested reductions in their assessed valuations - and thus their property taxes - by the end of June, the deadline for making such requests.

HOW TO DO IT: For questions, call county Assessor-Recorder Joan Thayer, an elected official, at 499-7215, or go to Room 208 of the county Civic Center in Sa-n Rafael on weekdays between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.

Information and a form are posted at www.co.marin.ca.us/depts/AR/main/real_property.cfm under "Valuation Review.