In some states, consumers can expect to pay property taxes on their homes, as well as on their personal vehicles. That’s right, your 2004 BMW 760i is a taxable item in some areas and it could be more tax than you would have to pay. Are you paying the right amount of tax on your vehicle, or are you paying too much? Read on and we’ll see how you can reduce your auto tax bite.

State law will differ, but if your state is one that taxes autos, you can expect a significant impact each year, especially if the actual value of your vehicle is high. There are two types of property taxes: real property, which includes houses, land, and the like, and personal property, which includes your car, truck, van, and SUV. In some states, trailers and boats are also considered taxable real property, so your annual bite could be even higher.

Again, you should learn how your state decides the tax rate on your vehicle, as it could mean the difference in what you pay each year. While his BMW may be valued at $33,550, he knows the real value of it is much less since he used his car a lot for business trips. With 167,000 miles on the odometer, his BMW is probably worth close to $18,000 considering that high mileage.

Although real property tax assessments are not updated annually, your personal property tax assessment should be updated. So, every year you own your car, trailer or boat, its value will go down. Therefore, unless a tax assessment has been done at the state or county level, you can expect your taxes to decrease each year on your existing personal property.

You can save money in your jurisdiction if the state determines that your personal property is assessed at “actual money value.” This means that if you were to sell your car, you would get “X” amount on the market.

So if this were the case where you live, can you reduce your BMW personal property tax burden? Based on local law, you should be able to. Therefore, find out how you can appeal your taxes and what you must do to obtain a reduction. It may involve simply taking your car to the tax office and letting a tax representative check your odometer. If it’s as easy as that, you can expect to receive a nice cut in personal property taxes on the spot.