DO NOT CONFUSE AN ASSESSMENT WITH AN APPRAISAL

It is not necessary for a tax payer to hire an attorney or an appraiser to obtain information when requesting a review for an assessment reduction.    A major departure from typical appraisal practice is the market time frame under study.  The assessor analyzes all sales occurring during a three-year period immediately preceding the assessment date.  By contrast, an appraiser will generally not use sales that occurred more than six to nine months prior to the date of valuation without a detailed explanation as to why such dated sales were used.

In addition, assessments are established by using state mandated uniformity requirements that can conflict with marketing values and the subjective nature of adjustments used by fee appraisal.  Assessed values are not a reliable indicator of market value while the goal of an appraiser is to estimate the true market value of a property, so that the lender can make an informed decision when providing a loan.

With current market conditions tax payers are being marketed that their taxes can be reduced.  The evidence prepared by these marketers is typically evidence that is too current for assessment purposes making an assessment reduction request premature.

The end result in many cases is the tax payer ends up paying an unnecessary fee.

Please contact my office to discuss your assessment before you hire a market evaluation professional.

Thank you,

Tammy J. Kavanaugh, Assessor