If you own a home in L.A. County, you just may not be happy about Rick Auerbach’s decision. On the other hand, you might be! The L.A. County Assessor’s review determined that 333,000 single-family homes and condominiums will have lower taxes this year due to lowered assessed values.

How much lower? Well, in the ball park of $126,000 less than your home’s previously assessed value. That translates into about $1,400 less that you’ll owe in property tax for a single-family home, but you lose that $126,000 in value. That’s $1,100 less in annual property taxes for condos, and a reduction in value of $96,000. This could result in lower insurance costs to you, if you lower the insurance coverage of your home to meet current assessed values.

The up side to the lower assessments is that you pay fewer taxes. The down side, however, is that if you want to sell your home, you may have to sell it for much less than you anticipated. That is, unless you and your neighbors are able to have your assessments appealed.

It’s the first time in several years that the county has experienced a drop in tax revenue. The county’s property tax revenue will drop by an estimated $440 million. County officials were troubled by the 1% decrease; although, they feared it would be much worse due to the economy.

If you live in older communities of the county, you may be happy to note that these homes are holding their values. It’s the new communities that were hardest hit by the reduced values, like Santa Clarita and Antelope Valley. The county’s eastern areas were also impacted, like Pomona and Walnut Valley.

If you want to know if your home was reviewed, check the county assessor’s website sometime in early July. That’s when assessments will be posted on the Internet.

If your home was not automatically up for review this year, you can file for a free review through December 31. Either call the assessor’s office at (888) 807-2111, or get forms online from their website.

If you were reviewed, but did not receive a reduction, you may also appeal to the county’s appeals board through November 30. Keep in mind that, by law, the appeals board is allowed up to two years to address appeals.