Rehabilitated Historic Property
(Statewide Ref. Ga Code Ann. 48-5-7.2)

1. Rehabilitated Historic property is tangible real property which qualifies for listing on the Georgia Register of Historic Places; is in the process of or has been substantially rehabilitated as defined by statue; the rehabilitation meets the rehabilitation standards provided in regulations promulgated by the Department of Natural Resources and has been certified by the Department of Natural Resources as rehabilitated historic property eligible for preferential assessment.
    
2. The preferential classification and assessment of rehabilitated historic property shall apply to the building or structure which is the subject of the rehabilitation, the real property on which the building or structure is located, and not more than two acres of real property surrounding the building or structure.
    
3. Rehabilitation of the property must have begun after January 1, 1989 and must have been certified by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources after July 1, 1989 to qualify for preferential assessment.
    
4. To qualify for rehabilitated preferential assessment, the property owner must submit a copy of preliminary certification that has been approved by the Department of Natural Resources and must complete the rehabilitation of the property within 24 months of the date of receipt of preliminary certification. After receiving the preliminary certification from the property owner, the Board of Assessors shall not increase the assessed value of such property during the period of rehabilitation of such property, not to exceed 2 years.
    
5. Upon completion of the rehabilitation of such property, the property owner shall submit a request in writing for final certification to the Department of Natural Resources. The Department of Natural Resources shall determine whether such property as rehabilitated constitutes historic property which will be listed on the Georgia Register of Historic Places and which qualifies for preferential assessment. The Department of Natural Resources shall issue to the property owner a final certification if such property qualifies.
    
6. Upon receipt of final certification from the Department of Natural Resources, a property owner desiring classification of any such historic property as rehabilitated historic property in order to receive the preferential assessment shall make application to the Board of Assessors and include the order of final certification with such application. The Board of Assessors shall determine if the value of the buildings or structure has been increased in accordance with the provisions of subparagraph (a)(1)(B) of this Code section or as specified in (a)(3)(e). Upon approval by the Board of Assessors, the value of the rehabilitated historic property shall be equal to the greater of the acquisition cost of the property or the assessment of the fair market value of the property as recorded in the county tax digest at the time preliminary certification on
   such property was received by the Board of Assessors. Rehabilitated historic property preferential assessment shall be for a period of nine years, with the first year of eligibility being the tax year following the year in which the preliminary certification was filed with the Board of Assessors. In the ninth year, the property that is classified as rehabilitated historic property will have one half of the difference between the rehabilitated value and the current fair market value be added to the rehabilitated value to determine the property value for the year.
    
7. A property owner who fails to have property classified as rehabilitated historic property and listed on the Georgia Register of Historic Places for the preferential assessment shall be required to pay the difference between the amount of taxes on the property during the period that the assessment was frozen pursuant to the provision of subsection (c) of this Code section and the amount of taxes which would have been due had the property been assessed at the regular fair market value, plus interest at the rate prescribed in Code section 48-2-40.