Has any of you appealed your property value assessment before? Tell me about it and any tips you have for doing so. It appears I have 2 options for appealing. I can appeal to the County Tax Appeal Board or I can file a request for an informal review with the Dept of Revenue. I'm not sure yet what the differences are or which one would be better to do. I do read that if I don't agree with the County Tax Appeal Board I can then appeal to a State Tax Appeal Board.
In our state the property is assessed every 2 years. They just increased our property assessment by 52%! We have done no improvements in the past 2 years. There is no way our value has increased 52% and especially not in this rural area. According to info I can find online from May of 2021 to 2022 property in our zip code increased about 29%. From May 2022 to May 2023 it decreased 1.3%. Overall increase over 2 years of 28%.
Our state has a website where you can click on any piece of property and see who owns it and all the info on it, including the prior assessed values for 2021/22 and the newly released 2023 assessment. They break it down by land and buildings. Our land went up 113% since 2021 assessment. Give me a break.
The first 6 lots here are all 2 acres and are valued the same, went up the 113%. Lot 7 is 3 acres, but for some reason it *only* went up 106%.
Lets compare lot 7. They built the same year we did. In the 2021 assessment they did not have their 2 garages added. The garages now show being added with a 2022 date. For their 2021/2022 assessment their building (just the house) was valued at $310,620. They added 2 garages which total 1772 sf (our shop is 1743sf). Their 2023 assessed building(s) value is now at $428,900, an increase of $118,280 (38%). Makes sense...it should go up based on the cost/value of the 2 garages as well as market value on their house would have went up some. Their "buildings" assessed value went up by 38%. Not sure of that 38%/$118,280 what is considered cost/value of the garages and what is increased house value, but seems somewhat reasonable. (the land at 106% increase, does not).
Our "buildings" went up 44.25%. We have done nothing additional in the past 2 years. Nothing added or improved since our 2021/22 assessment. How does ours go up 44% and lot 7 went up 38% and we didn't add a damn thing?
Mr and Mrs just have a house. Nothing has changed for them either, since last assessment and their building value only went up 29%. How does that work? (Also, how is it that they have a completely finished daylight basement of 2556 sf, yet are only taxed on the first floor of 2556 sf? Their house is 5112 sf in total)
Edit to add about Mr and Mrs place: That 29% increase is in total for land and building. Separate them out like I was doing for ours and Lot 7 - their land increased the same as the rest 113%, BUT their "building" value only increased 17%!! Why did our building value increase over 44%?! They didn't add or improve anything, we didn't add or improve anything.
There are a group of homes that are 2-5 acre lots, high bank on the river, just like ours, about half mile down river. All of those lots went up 58-64%. Their lots and location is no different than ours. Why are all our lots double that? I looked at other lots all along the river in our county. Another neighborhood was also in the 65% increase range. There are 4 1-1/4 acre lots about a mile up river. Each of those lots went up about 65%, as well.
I will be appealing. Never done it before, and was just wondering if any readers have and what their experience was.
Yikes! I haven’t gotten mine yet-will probably get it today. I don’t understand how they figure any of that. I was looking at property taxes for neighbors a couple months ago, and ours were higher than most of our neighbors which makes no sense. Our property values have doubled here the last couple years. Hoping our property taxes didn’t lol.
ReplyDeleteDiane
Here’s an example of how messed up their assessments are. Two of my kids live right next door to each. One has a 2 bedroom house that’s probably about 1000 sq ft. The other has a 3 bedroom and is probably 1300 sq feet. Both have similar yards, and both have a garage. Both houses are about the same age. The kid with the smaller house pay more in taxes than the one with the larger house. Explain that!
ReplyDeleteDiane
good grief! There is no rational explanation
DeleteYes, I did once, in another state, circa 1999. I had to go to the County Board of Appeals in person. They asked why, as in, "What did we miss in this assessment?" Well, they had it listed at 2,200 sf (similar facade as the house next door which had recently sold for quite a bit more than it had been purchased--think they based my assessment on that.) They then asked me if I had made any upgrades since the last assessment. While we DID have an in-ground pool put in, that happened prior to the previous assessment. I said, honestly, "no." They did agree to a bit of a decrease...and I tend to think it was based on the difference in sf, AND the fact that they didn't seem to realize I had an in-ground pool as well.
ReplyDeleteAdding: It was assessed at 2,200 sf, but it was only 1,900 sf.
DeleteThey have our size, etc assessed correctly. I am unable to use any comps to research because MT property sale prices are not made public. I just don't get how our house value can go up 44% with no changes and our neighbors goes up 17%
DeleteOneFamily, you can request the comps used to determine your value directly from the tax assessors office. Do that! Then you'll have access to the prices and homes they used to determine ours. We're going through this right now and the comps they used are ridiculous!!! Using a 5000sqft home for our 2000sqft home...etc! Our value went up 65%, even though all the houses for sale around us have been sitting on the market almost all year!
DeleteJane - I will have to see if I can do that. MT does not make home sale prices public so I'm wondering if they would give me that info.
DeleteOneFam - I would hope they have to! Otherwise how would you know how they determined your value? Best of luck! These assessments are wild this year!!
DeleteIs the mil rate being changed along with the assessment? Our town reevaluated everyone to make the assessments up to date, but they also lowered the mil rate. My taxes still went up, but not at the same rate as my assessment.
ReplyDeleteThat's the piece of the puzzle I don't have yet. I know our tax is based on a mil rate and "taxable value" (but the taxable value is determined by factoring in the assessed value). We haven't rec'd our new assessments in the mail yet. We found this new assessed value on the state property website, but they say they are in the mail. I don't know if this assessment notice gives our "taxable value" or if the Mil amount shows either.
DeleteOk, I was able to find our new "taxable value" It also increased the same total percentage of 52% that our assessed value did, so I'm going to assume our tax will go up 52% too
DeleteCheck to see if you erroneously lost an exemption, which lowers your tax base. Some states have homestead, senior, or military exemptions. Periodically I have affirm that the exemption still applies.
ReplyDeleteWe don't have any exemptions and as far as I know MT does not offer any
DeleteWe have an app called HouseSigma, where I can see what houses sold for in Ontario at least. Would not making home sale prices public apply on Zillow, for example??
ReplyDeleteMT passed a law at some point, I guess, that the sale prices are not public, so Zillow (and other sites) does not show what a home sold for
DeleteBooo. I hope your request for the information will be granted then.
DeleteMy tax went up exorbitantly one time. They had the sq ft listed as 2500 instead of the true 4000 sq ft. They did assume I had improved the house. NO. So, they adjusted the assessment.
ReplyDeleteI know it has been on social media that MT has been a huge draw to move to, especially since more work from home. And that prices to buy have gone outrageous. I would think if general land prices went up 20 plus percent that’s reflecting all land and prime/River would be more. Note I’m in Mn and live on a river and have a lake cabin and both my assessments/taxes went up like yours and in talking to my county nothing I can do as that is now the market value. Unsure why you and your neighbors differ in increase but probably that huge shed makes your property more prime. Who knows. I just know I have crazy increases this year and Mt is supposed to be the Mecca to move to now not Mn. Ha! It’s all regarding if you have a prime location. For example on my lake last week a two bedroom module house on 70 foot lakeshore was listed for 425,000 and it’ll go for that. Crazy! About five years ago it would have been about 250,000.
ReplyDeleteAnd just to add to my comment, five years ago that “trailer cabin” going for 250,000 would have been thought of crazy but who knew!
ReplyDeleteIt is all crazy. What I don't quite understand though is them saying their are adjusting to market value, yet a year ago a river home, just as nice as ours, but on 5 acres, sold for a million dollars. Yet their new assessed value is around $600k. Another nice house, just a mile from us that is 6000 sf (almost twice our size) with 6 bedrooms and 7 baths. I don't know for sure what it sold for but they were asking 1.325 million so I'm guessing they didn't take much less than that for it, it was only on the market 2 months. It's now assessed at $900k. Plus they have more acreage than us.
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