The Orleans Parish Assessor’s Office and the city’s Office of Inspector General found hundreds of improper homestead exemptions and removed them from the property tax rolls last year, Assessor Erroll Williams announced Wednesday.
The clean-up included the discovery of numerous properties receiving the exemption even though the owner had died, according to Williams’ office. In dozens of cases, homestead exemptions were removed from properties that were being used full-time as short-term rentals or where the owners had similar exemptions in another state.
“We’re especially proud of the work we’ve done cracking down on cases of homestead exemption fraud related to an individual’s short-term rental license,” Williams said in a statement. “Our own anonymous tip line, in concert with the leads we receive regularly from Safety and Permits, has allowed us to keep a very watchful eye on these properties and move swiftly in instances of suspected fraud.”