Life Lesson #41: Fifteen minutes could save you 15% or more.

Actually, I’m not talking about Geico, and I’m not totally sure of the savings amount. But, I do know that if you live in a locale where the state government has decided to steal your money based on the value of the vehicle you park on your private property, you should pay close attention to the value for which the taxes are assessed. Especially if you have high-mileage vehicles – the taxes assessed typically have no adjustment for the mileage or condition of the car. A 4 year old Honda Civic with 20,000 miles and a similar car with 60,000 will have the same tax value.

The figure used should be listed on the statement as well as information on how to dispute the value. You can typically send in a recent receipt from something like an inspection. We put close to 20,000 miles per year on our cars so I always dispute the tax value and save quite a bit. Just be sure to act quickly to ensure you meet the deadline for the dispute.