ownership certificates for Charleston County homes

Charleston County News Release
MEDIA CONTACT
Name: Jennie Davis, Charleston County Public Information Officer
Phone: 843.958.4012
Email: jdavis@charlestoncounty.org
Release Number: 2888
Date: June 13, 2008
View Annual Ownership Certificate:http://www.charlestoncounty.org/pdfs/ATI-Certificate-Charleston-Draft-final-May2008.pdf
View SC Code of Laws 12-37-3110:http://www.charlestoncounty.org/pdfs/ARTICLE-25-only.pdf
Annual Ownership Certificates to be Mailed on Friday, June 27
SC Code of Laws 12-37-3160 (B) requires the County Assessor to annually mail an ownership certificate to certain property owners.
The Charleston County Assessor’s Office will mail Annual Ownership Certificates on Friday, June 27, to certain property owners in the County.
This mailing is a result of the legislation that occurred after the South Carolina Property Tax Reform Act of 2006 was enacted. This the first time Charleston County has been required to do such a mailing, which is due to the change in state law.
Approximately 31,000 certificates will be mailed. They will be sent to primarily property owners who are defined by law as “not natural persons,” meaning they will be mailed to those people who own real estate through a legal entity. A “legal entity” means a corporation, partnership, limited liability company, unincorporated association, trust, etc.
The purpose of the certificate is to determine whether an Assessable Transfer of Interest has occurred. If it has, then the real property is subject to reappraisal the following year, beginning in 2008, for transfers that occurred in 2007.
In addition, a limited number of certificates will be sent to owners who may have transferred properties within their family.
About 80 percent of property owners in Charleston County will not receive a certificate. Anyone who does not receive a certificate does not need to be concerned with this notice.
According to current S.C. law, an Assessable Transfer of Interest (ATI) subjects the property that was transferred to reappraisal at current market value the year following the transfer. In other words, properties that were transferred in 2007 may be subject to reappraisal in 2008.
Prior to this law, properties were generally reappraised every five years in cyclical countywide reassessments. The last countywide reassessment in Charleston County occurred in 2005.
Failure to return the form and/or provide the information required may result in an unnecessary reappraisal of the property. Therefore, property owners who receive the form in the mail are strongly encouraged to return the form and provide the required information. Property owners are encouraged to include attached documents to the form that explain the circumstances of a transaction.
Substantial civil penalties apply if information is falsified. Some owners may want to consult their attorneys or accountants about specific provisions of the law or to confirm that a transfer is or is not an ATI.
If you receive a certificate and have any questions, contact:
Between June 30and July 25:
Call the Charleston County Assessor’s Hotline at (843) 958-4144 between Monday, June 30, and Friday July 25. This phone number is a temporary hotline that will connect you to appraisal staff who can answer your questions.
After July 25:
Call the Charleston County Assessor’s main line at (843) 958-4100 (the hotline will be disconnected after July 25).
To view the applicable portion of SC Code of Laws, and view the Annual Ownership Certificate, go to www.charlestoncounty.org.
SIDEBAR
Assessable Transfers of Interest (ATI’s) are not always obvious, and include many transactions that many people would not normally consider sales.
The following are a few examples of Assessable Transfers of Interest from SC 12-37-3150 (A):
Conveyances by deed or land contract
Conveyances to and distributions from trusts, and changes in the sole present beneficiary of trusts
Distribution of property (real estate/real property) under a will or by intestate succession
Conveyances by some leases
Partial interest sale of more than 50% ownership interest in a corporation, partnership, sole proprietorship, LLC, LLP or other legal entity
Change in use of agricultural real property, which subjects the property to roll back tax
Change in use of real property resulting from a zoning change
In addition, the following trading or stock transactions may result in an ATI:
Merger of two of more companies or the acquisition of company by another company or individual
The initial public offering (IPO) of the stock of a company, or the secondary public offering of a company
Transfer from one entity to another entity
Trading of stock of a privately held company
Public offer to purchase stock from present stockholders to gain control of a company