Homeowners in Jackson County, Missouri, may be in for a nice payday after a 2023 class action lawsuit has finally reached a settlement. According to FOX4 News Kansas City, the suit was filed over concerns about Jackson County’s property taxes, after around 207,800 homeowners saw back-to-back tax increases.
The homeowners claim that they were forced to overpay during those years, and were owed a credit as a result. The publication says that the amount each affected homeowner will receive will vary based on different qualifications. As long as they were part of the class action suit and owned a property in Jackson County in 2023 and 2024, they should get their money back.
Some homeowners may get more than just their overpaid taxes back, too. That’s because one of the stipulations of the settlement involves reimbursing folks for other charges they faced as a result of those inaccurate tax bills.
While the settlement isn’t a sure thing yet—the terms of the deal will need to be reviewed by a judge, as will any legal fees that are being requested by the lawyers—the news has given a lot of people in the community hope for the future.
The Court Found the County Charged Property Owners Too Much
Some home and business owners received property tax bills that increased by more than 15 percent in 2023 and 2024, something that violates county regulations. However, homeowners who tried to push back against the higher bills didn’t find any help at the county office, and they were forced to either pay up or move out.
One family in Blue Springs told KCTV 5 News that their property taxes doubled during those two years, which forced them to reconsider their time in Jackson County. “A lot of hard talks about, are we going to be able to afford this? Because we had to cut back on the budget so much just to afford living here,” Jason Wood recalled.
Others hired appraisers and lawyers to try and fight the new tax amounts, forcing them to pay out of pocket for relief that never came. Fortunately, the settlement will also help those property owners get restitution, and there will be a $6 million “special circumstances fund” set aside for those types of reimbursements.
Most People Will Get Their Money as a Credit Over Three Years
To avoid shorting the county budget and putting a strain on the schools and agencies that need that money to operate, the settlement will likely see the money refunded to homeowners as a credit on their 2026, 2027, and 2028 tax bills.
Those who moved away and are no longer in Jackson County will get their money sent to them as a straight refund instead.
Being faced with a more than 15 percent tax increase would be devastating for many people. And while most tax increases aren’t that big, even little bumps in the payment can force some families to struggle. If you’re having trouble paying your taxes, Kiplinger says you can try to appeal your property tax bill.
Since different municipalities have different rules, regulations, and deadlines, you’ll need to check directly with your taxing authority to find out what the process is.
If you appeal your tax bill and get denied, you may be able to try some other ways to cut your tax bill, like applying for exemptions (homestead and veteran exemptions are some common options) or seeing if you qualify for any type of financial assistance.