Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, November 22, 1994 TAG: 9411220098
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: STEPHEN FOSTER STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
The assessment, required once every four years, includes revisions on the values of nontaxable and taxable property.
The county's taxable property has been estimated at $2.139 million, about an 8 percent increase over estimated value of county property last year.
That means property owners, who will begin receiving notices of the assessment changes early next week, will probably find the value of their properties has changed. Whether taxes will be higher or lower depends
While the tax base of property in the county - measured at $1.971 billion in January - has increased by $168 million, state law requires that the county lower the real estate tax rate to prevent a locality from receiving increased taxes simply because of the higher property values. The current tax rate stands at 72 1/2 cents per $100 of assessed value.
When the last reassessment was done in 1991, the value of taxable property was estimated at $1.871 billion, an increase of about 25 percent from its pre-assessment value. Real estate taxes dropped from 81 cents to 68 1/2 cents.
But the 7 percent revision adjustment in property values this year is a far cry from that, and may mean that the tax rate won't have to be adjusted much.
"The tax base is not greatly expanded. The total change is not going to be what it was," after past assessments, said County Assessor Ed Combs. "Inflation's just not been in it."
He said, generally, property owners shouldn't have to fear large increases in the amount of tax they'll have to pay, although that's an overall statement. "You just don't have the double digit increases, generally," in assessed values like past reassessments, he said.
If the land surrounding a property has been developed, home improvements have been added or surrounding sales prices have risen over the past four years, then one might be paying a higher tax bill next year. Conversely, if a home has gone untended or similar properties have not sold as well as expected, then the value and tax burden might decrease.
Property owners who disagree with their assessments can appeal during a series of hearings to be held between Dec. 5 and Dec. 15. And County Administrator Betty Thomas said the final value estimate will undoubtedly change by the time the Board of Supervisors sets the tax rates next spring.
"I have never known an assessment that didn't have adjustments," she said.
Property owners may be frustrated at a higher-than-previously-thought assessed value because it could cost more in real estate taxes. Or they may be disappointed at a lower estimation if they were trying to sell a property or planning to use it as collateral for a loan.
An appeal must have some solid basis for argument, said Harold Wingate, whose company was paid $237,000 to complete the assessment. "There has got to be something other than, 'It's just too high,'" he said.
The $3 billion figure includes nontaxable property assessed at about $975 million, a jump of about 23 percent. That includes land owned by nonprofit institutions and the federal and state government such as churches, Virginia Tech and the Radford Army Ammunition Plant.
To complete the assessment, Wingate's team worked for more than a year reviewing the county's real estate market, talking with property owners and examing their land and buildings, and comparing similar properties with others located nearby, he said.
Sales which are higher or lower than typical area sales - such as low price transactions between family members - were not considered.
Factors such as location, utilities, access to highways and shopping centers and the condition and use of buildings are taken into account.
"What we're interested in is what the general market is doing," Wingate said.
by CNB