Looking up property information in the City of Atlanta can help you check who owns a house, estimate taxes, research a neighborhood, or prepare for a purchase or renovation. Atlanta’s property records are public, but knowing where to search and what each office does saves a lot of time.
This guide walks you through how property search works specifically in Atlanta, Georgia—which tools to use, how the city and county roles fit together, and what to expect from each type of search.
Before you start searching, it helps to understand how Atlanta’s property system is organized:
Atlanta is a city, not a county.
Most official real estate records are kept at the county level, not by the City of Atlanta alone.
The City of Atlanta lies in multiple counties, mainly:
When you search for Atlanta property information, you may need to:
Understanding which office handles what will make your City of Atlanta property search much easier.
When people say “property search,” they may be looking for different things. In Atlanta, you can usually find:
Different departments and websites handle each area, so it helps to decide what you need first.
For most Atlanta properties, you begin with the county tax assessor’s property search. Because Atlanta spans Fulton and DeKalb Counties, you must know which county the property is in.
If you’re not sure:
What you can find:
Key office: Fulton County Board of Assessors
You can search by:
If you live in Atlanta neighborhoods such as Downtown, Midtown, Old Fourth Ward, Buckhead, West End, Vine City, Westview, Cascade, or most of Southwest Atlanta, you’ll usually use Fulton County’s property search.
If the Atlanta address is in DeKalb County, you’ll use DeKalb County systems instead.
What you can find:
Key office: DeKalb County Property Appraisal Department
As with Fulton, you’ll usually search by:
If you’re in neighborhoods like East Lake (DeKalb side), some parts of Kirkwood, Gresham Park area, and portions of unincorporated areas with “Atlanta” mailing addresses, DeKalb records often apply.
If you want to know what can be built on a property or whether a use is allowed (for example, short-term rental, multifamily, commercial), you’ll focus on City of Atlanta zoning and planning tools.
Primary office: Department of City Planning
Atlanta typically offers:
📝 Tip: Once you have the parcel ID or address from the county property search, use that in Atlanta’s zoning map or planning tools to confirm how the city classifies the property.
A thorough property search in Atlanta often includes permit and code information, especially if you’re concerned about:
Building permits and inspections inside city limits are generally handled by the City of Atlanta.
Key office: Office of Buildings (within Department of City Planning)
Through city permit systems, you can often search:
You typically search using:
If you want to know whether a property in Atlanta has code violations (for issues like overgrown yards, unsafe structures, or zoning violations), you can:
Code Enforcement (City of Atlanta)
Provide the exact address and ask about:
Ownership and value information come from the assessor, but legal documents like deeds, liens, plats, and security deeds are recorded with the county clerk of superior court.
Because Atlanta spans more than one county, you must check the correct county:
Office: Fulton County Clerk of Superior and Magistrate Courts – Real Estate Division
Available information usually includes:
You can typically search by:
Office: DeKalb County Clerk of Superior Court – Real Estate Division
You can access:
📝 Practical use:
If you want to verify that the person claiming to own a property in Atlanta really owns it, you’d match the owner’s name from the assessor search with the most recent deed recorded at the county clerk’s office.
Once you have property details, you might also want to check tax bills, payment status, and any past-due balances for a City of Atlanta property.
Office: Fulton County Tax Commissioner
Services typically include:
Office: DeKalb County Tax Commissioner
You can usually:
Remember that while the property is inside the City of Atlanta, the county tax commissioner still handles county and school taxes, and in many cases, city taxes are included on the same bill for Atlanta residents within that county.
Atlanta property searches can be confusing because some locations have an “Atlanta, GA” mailing address but are not technically inside the City of Atlanta limits. This matters because:
To clarify whether a property is inside the City of Atlanta:
Residents, investors, and visitors often use Atlanta property searches to:
Research a home before buying or renting
Plan remodeling or construction
Verify tax and exemption status
Understand neighborhood trends
Resolve disputes or questions
Here is a simple, generalized process you can follow for most City of Atlanta property searches:
| Step | What You Do | Who/Where You Use |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Identify the exact address of the property | Use map tools, mail, or on-site observation |
| 2 | Determine the county (Fulton or DeKalb) | Check map, tax bill, or call tax assessor |
| 3 | Use county assessor’s search to find owner, parcel ID, and value | Fulton County Board of Assessors or DeKalb Property Appraisal Dept. |
| 4 | Use city zoning/land use tools to see what’s allowed on the property | City of Atlanta Department of City Planning |
| 5 | Check building permits and inspections | City of Atlanta Office of Buildings |
| 6 | Search deeds and liens to confirm legal ownership history | Fulton or DeKalb Clerk of Superior Court (Real Estate Division) |
| 7 | Confirm tax bill and payment status | Fulton or DeKalb Tax Commissioner |
| 8 | If needed, check for code violations or complaints | City of Atlanta Code Enforcement / Atlanta 311 |
Following these steps will give you a broad, reliable picture of almost any property in the City of Atlanta or within an Atlanta mailing area.
Here is a quick reference list for commonly used offices in an Atlanta property search:
City of Atlanta – Department of City Planning
55 Trinity Avenue SW, Suite 3350, Atlanta, GA 30303
Phone: 404-330-6070
City of Atlanta – Office of Buildings (permits/inspections)
55 Trinity Avenue SW, Atlanta, GA 30303
Common main line: 404-330-6150
Atlanta 311 (City information & code enforcement requests)
Dial 3-1-1 inside the city or 404-546-0311 from outside
Fulton County Board of Assessors (property details & values)
141 Pryor Street SW, Suite 1047, Atlanta, GA 30303
Phone: 404-612-6440
Fulton County Tax Commissioner (tax bills & payments)
141 Pryor Street SW, Suite 1085, Atlanta, GA 30303
Phone: 404-613-6100
Fulton County Clerk of Superior & Magistrate Courts – Real Estate
185 Central Avenue SW, Suite TG200, Atlanta, GA 30303
Typical real estate line: 404-613-5313
DeKalb County Property Appraisal Department
1300 Commerce Drive, Decatur, GA 30030
Phone: 404-371-0841
DeKalb County Tax Commissioner
4380 Memorial Drive, Decatur, GA 30032
Phone: 404-298-4000
DeKalb County Clerk of Superior Court – Real Estate Division
556 North McDonough Street, Decatur, GA 30030
Phone: 404-371-2836
Use these contacts along with the steps above, and you’ll be able to carry out a thorough City of Atlanta property search—whether you live in Atlanta, are considering moving here, or are simply trying to understand how property information is organized in the city.
