CONSUMER WATCH

A REAL ESTATE BOOM DOWNSIDE: Rising property values may be doing wonders for your net worth, but chances are they also mean your property tax bill is going up as well. If you believe your assessment is too high, it’s possible to have it adjusted, says SmartMoney magazine. When the assessment notice arrives--don’t wait until the bill itself shows up--first check for mistakes, such as the wrong square footage, or whether or not there’s a basement. You can also try to show that comparable houses have sales prices lower than your assessed value. But SmartMoney points out that some things, such as how nicely a house is landscaped, may affect its price but not its value in the tax assessor’s eyes.