THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, February 12, 1997 TAG: 9702120453
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TERRI WILLIAMS, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: SUFFOLK LENGTH: 39 lines
The city will hold a public hearing next week to inform citizens about coming increases in real estate tax bills - despite a nominal proposed drop in the property tax rate.
The hearing will be held at 7 p.m. next Wednesday at 441 Market Street. Localities are required by state law to hold a public hearing if the city's real property taxes increase by more than one percent.
This year, the city's total real estate assessments and growth increased by 4.86 percent, a preliminary report by the real estate assessor's office shows.
``The assessor's report tells me we had a healthy rate of growth due to new development,'' said City Manager Myles E. Standish.
An individual's property assessments vary depending on the location of his property and improvements that have been made.
Citizens are receiving their assessments in the mail now. Tax bills are sent out later in the year.
The base citywide tax rate is $1.03 per $100 assessed value - or $1,030 a year for a $100,000 home.
The state law that triggers the meeting also would change the city's base rate to $1.0297 per $100 of assessed value - a savings of 30 cents per year for owners of $100,000 homes. The council can vote to retain existing tax rates or to change them after the hearing.
Citizens in the Suffolk taxing district pay an additional 18 cents per $100 for public services. There's also a special taxing district in the Harbourview area that pays $1.22 per $100.
The total assessed value citywide was $2.2 billion, according to city figures - an increase of $100 million.
The Nansemond taxing district has a total assessed value of $1.98 billion - up from $1.8 billion last year.
The Suffolk district has a total assessed value of $250 million, a drop of $1 million since last year.
KEYWORDS: REAL ESTATE TAX INCREASE SUFFOLK CITY COUNCIL