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ABOUT
US
Real
Estate – Appraiser, Consultant & Expert Witness
Over
25 years experience in real estate sales, development,
mortgage banking & appraisals
Qualified and Available to practice throughout South
Carolina
Real
Estate Tax Associates (RETA) was established in 2006
by Henry Copeland in order to provide quick and
affordable professional assistance to local property
owners, taxpayers and real estate investors as they
increasingly face rising property taxes and changes to
state laws relating to real estate ownership. The
primary objective of RETA is to help local property
owners find and choose appropriate strategies to protect
their real estate assets. Among these strategies are
property tax and assessment appeals.
Henry deSaussure Copeland is an experienced real estate
appraiser who has specialized in the appraisal and
evaluation of historic buildings and properties. He is
licensed by the State of South Carolina as a Certified
General Real Estate Appraiser (CG # 1869). With over 25
years of solid real estate experience, he has spent the
last 10 years appraising or assessing real estate for
tax purposes, primarily in the Charleston area for the
Charleston County Assessor.
Recognized in State Courts as an expert witness he
has testified and submitted evidence on the appraisal of
historic properties in South Carolina and about the
values of other properties located within recognized
historic districts. Henry brings a wealth of experience
forward as your advocate throughout the process of your
appeal.
Now
working on behalf of individual property owners, he uses
valuable experience gained while working within and for
local governments for almost 15 years. As an
appraiser with the Assessor’s Office for 10 of those
years, he has worked extensively with the very same data
used in the current assessment cycle. Based on a
computer assisted mass appraisal (CAMA) program, the
County Assessor attempts to reflect fairness and equity,
if not always total accuracy, among the tens of
thousands of properties that it must regularly assess.
Henry Copeland knows and understands how this system
works. Along with his experience with the CAMA appraisal
system, Henry successfully worked to develop personal
lines of communication with individual property owners
during past reassessments and appeals. He recognizes
that property owners are important participants in the
process that monitors the accuracy of these assessments.
He brings together this experience and knowledge to
better prepare your appeal and ultimately lower your
property taxes.
Over
the last decade Henry has reviewed and valued thousands
of properties in downtown Charleston. He has also
successfully handled hundreds of appeals involving some
of the city’s most notable landmarks. Henry knows the
importance of recognizing and understanding the proper
use of accurate descriptions and comparisons that
correctly indicate values for older properties,
including non-historic properties located within
historic districts. Henry can recognize unique
characteristics of older buildings. With practiced
precision he knows how to properly appraise them.
Experienced in handling hundreds of assessment and tax
appeals on behalf of the Charleston County Assessor’s
Office, Henry’s reputation has consistently
reflected courtesy toward all involved in the appeals he
was assigned and a high level of integrity for his
appraisals with the supporting facts. He can also be a
passionate advocate on behalf of those who have been
unfairly taxed if the system is found to be wrong.
During his tenure with the Assessor’s Office many
property owners asked Henry following the resolution
their own assessment appeals if he would be willing to
use his knowledge to help others like them. His working
knowledge of tax assessments and his ability to bring
clarity to the appeals process also caused real estate
brokers and investors to ask him to consider advising
them. He decided to become an advocate and is working on
behalf of individual property owners, many of whom have
felt overwhelmed by what often appears to be a very
complex appeals process.
He
has special knowledge of historic conservation policies
and their effects on urban real estate markets. He
has experience developing budgets that depended on local
property taxes. This additional perspective has made him
much more aware of the many different sides to the
property tax equation. There are advocates with
arguments in support of almost every facet of property
taxes, but it is the individual property owner or
taxpayer who is often the last to be informed of how the
assessment process really works. Henry is committed to
being an advocate for the property owner on the front
end by seeking to make corrections as quickly as
possible. Why should a property owner continue to pay
higher taxes for a mistake in the assessment that can be
corrected?
He
brings a "360 degree" perspective on property taxes
and assessment challenges that must be considered by
individual property owners and real estate investors.
From the client’s perspective, it is important that
Henry’s experience has included 5 years in general
practice as a real estate appraiser and consultant with
an independent appraisal firm located in Columbia.
Additional experience covers commercial property
development with successful investor oriented projects
completed in North and South Carolina, commercial
mortgage banking and residential sales.
Henry Copeland knows Charleston. His
knowledge about property values here is based on a
thorough understanding of the local market. He uses all
the facts at his disposal on behalf of his clients. As a
native of the city, as a licensed South Carolina Real
Estate Broker/Agent and as a Certified General Real
Estate Appraiser with years of hands-on experience, he
has gathered and combined knowledge from around the
state and beyond. He brings both professional confidence
to each client he represents and focused direction to
each tax assessment appeal he prepares.
Regardless of the need for real estate services
relating an appraisal or professional consultation – be
it an assessment appeal to lower real estate taxes, an
investment analysis, or to document current market
values and trends – Henry Copeland combines the
requisite knowledge, experience, and expertise in a way
that provides his clients with a higher level of
service, success and satisfaction that they have come to
expect.
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