Have you received your county’s Property Tax Re-Evaluation? Delaware County has been sending them out the past week. I believe Franklin County sent theirs a little earlier. Most values are expected to decline based on the housing market declines the past three years. I received my letter yesterday which had a “tentative” decline.
So how do you feel about the new valuation?
Since I’m not planning to sell, I don’t care about the value so much and am willing to hopefully lower my property taxes. I also know that the floor plan being used by the Auditor understates the sq ft because it doesn’t reflect two 2-ft bump-outs along the side and entire back of the home. I’ve refi’d once and am in the process of doing so again, so I have the more correct measurement from those appraisers that I can use if/when I sell. The appraisal that was done for my current refi was on target and 6% higher than the Auditor’s new assessed value.
Market Value Really Reflects Assessed Value
What bothers me most is that Auditors tend to use the term “market value”. When we’ve had meetings with Auditors at the Columbus Board, we challenged them on the use of that term because it has no bearing on what a buyer would pay for the home. It’s merely a value used to assess taxes. Let’s face it, two homes can look very similar from the outside and be entirely different on the inside for condition and amenities offered.
When You Might Want A Lowered Value
There is a possibility that a homeowner might want their value to be even lower. Auditors do not use short sales or foreclosures when calculating the reassessed values. Some newer subdivisions have been hit hard with these type of sales because those new-build buyers often paid top dollar with little money down. Having too many of those sales can bring down the selling price of “regular” homes. It’s possible that the Auditor’s value might need to be reduced further to reflect the short sales/foreclosures if there have been a lot of them.
Hire An Appraiser Or Realtor® For Help
If you need to gather specific housing stats to challenge your assessment, you can hire an appraiser or ask your favorite Realtor®. Both have access to the MLS and can identify which homes were “arms length” transactions and which were short sales or foreclosures. Plus, the MLS data allows you to compare the inside of the homes, assuming the listing agent took interior photos.
Schools Can Challenge Your Value
Did you know school districts can challenge your lower value? The lower home values may result in fewer tax revenues for the schools. Schools are allowed to challenge the value, although I’m told they “tend” to do that more so for commercial property rather than residential because homeowners are voters.
So, will you be challenging your new assessed value?
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