Asheville Vice Mayor Claimed Georgia Tax Exemption While Voting Locally

Public records indicate that for at least seven years Antanette Mosley, vice mayor of Asheville, claimed a Georgia homestead tax exemption while registered and voting in Asheville. Mosley is registered to vote at 3 Devonshire Place in the Kenilworth neighborhood and has cast ballots in Buncombe County elections every year since 2012. At the same time she owned a house at 1168 Warfield Street Northwest in Atlanta that was purchased in 2001 and that Fulton County records show received a Georgia homestead exemption each year available online since 2018.

Georgia law makes the homestead exemption available only for property actually occupied as the applicant s permanent residence and place of abode. The exemption reduces taxable value by at least thirty thousand dollars and, because of a floating exemption tied to purchase price, produced a larger benefit in recent years. A calculation of this year s exemption shows a tax reduction of about three thousand one hundred fifty dollars for the Atlanta property.

Mosley told reporters that her permanent residence is in Asheville and that the Georgia exemption "automatically renews each year." She did not provide further details about when she moved to Asheville full time or address follow up questions about Georgia s occupancy requirement. She also works as an attorney for a law firm based in Atlanta.

North Carolina law requires elected local officials to be qualified electors. Election records and property records show Mosley was listed as a co tenant of the Devonshire Place property with her late father beginning in 2007 and took sole ownership in 2021. Older voting records further show Mosley cast ballots in both Georgia and North Carolina in some election years, notably 2008 and 2012, which highlights the complex interplay of residency and voter registration rules when a person maintains ties to two states.

Buncombe County Election Services officials say they were not previously aware of the matter and that no formal challenges or complaints had been filed as of publication. City officials and the city attorney said they had not been previously aware and would monitor the situation. Mosley said she confirmed her eligibility with a member of the Buncombe County Board of Elections.

The issue matters to residents because questions about an official s declared residence affect legal eligibility to hold local office and public confidence in municipal governance. County and city review processes and any formal complaints will determine whether further action is warranted. An update to this report adds information about Mosley s voting record and the residency and voter registration rules that bear on where a person may lawfully vote.