Property Tax Relief Due to Fire or Act of God

Property Tax Relief Due to Fire or Act of God

Oregon law (ORS) 308.425 provides tax relief for property that is damaged or destroyed because of fire or an Act of God. This relief is given to a qualifying person through proration of the taxes for the tax year in which the damage or destruction occurred.

The owner of property damaged or destroyed may apply to the Deschutes County Tax Collector for this proration.  Applications can be mailed to Deschutes County Tax Collector, 1300 NW Wall Street, Ste 203, Bend, OR 97703 or submitted electronically to taxoffice@deschutes.org Applications must be made by June 30 of the fiscal year in which the damage occurs or 60 days after the date the property was damaged or destroyed, whichever is later.

After an application is received, the Assessor’s Office will determine a percentage of damage.  The reduction in tax is directly related to the reduction in real market value caused by the Act of God.  Refunds or cancellations will be made as soon as the appraisal staff verifies the destruction and amount of loss. Please have copies of the fire reports, records, photos and any other documentation available for appraisal staff.

Additionally, because the assessment date of all property is January 1st, owners of property that is damaged or destroyed on or after January 1st and  before July 1st , may consider filing with the Assessor’s office an Application for Reassessment form. This application changes the assessment date for your property to July 1st for this year only.  If you plan to make major improvements to your property before July 1st, you may want to keep your assessment date on January 1st . This application must be filed with the Deschutes County Assessor’s office within 60 days of the damage or by August 1, whichever is later. Later filing is allowed if filed by December 31st of the current assessment year and accompanied by a late filing fee.