Is your property reassessment report accurate?
When a Bear resident received their Wortham Lane home reassessment report at the end of August, they quickly noticed “egregious errors.”
Tyler Technologies, the consultant for each of the three Delaware counties hired to conduct statewide reassessments of properties, had overstated the amount of living space in the single-family home by 30.5%.
The homeowner determined the consultant had included the square footage of their home’s garage and pool in the “total living area” – tacking on nearly 1,000 square feet more.
The report, provided by the resident to Delaware Online/The News Journal, also described the Bear property as having a “prefabricated vinyl pool,” which the homeowner noted on the report dated Aug. 7 was a “concrete/granite swimming pool.”
While the report does not give a monetary value or assessment estimate of the property, the errors, if left unaddressed, could impact the Bear property’s tax bill come 2025.
It’s also a problem that Tyler Technologies, a Texas-based public sector software provider, is familiar with.
"It's commonplace for Tyler to make an error or omission during their physical inspection of any improved parcel,” said Michael McFarlane, appraisal senior project supervisor for Tyler Technologies.
The Texas-based company has also faced lawsuits over its reassessment efforts, among other services Tyler Technologies provides.
This is why New Castle County officials and Tyler employees are encouraging residents to send back reassessment reports with any corrections to ensure accurate valuations ahead of the new property tax bills come 2025.
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New Castle County spokesperson Brian Cunningham said given the magnitude of the work and scope of the contract, which allows for exterior inspection only, “there will naturally be mistakes made throughout Tyler’s process."
“This is exactly why participating in the reassessment process as a taxpayer – at the moment, via marking up and returning the data mailer if mistakes or omissions are discovered – is critically important to establishing a fair and accurate reassessment for the benefit of all taxpayers throughout New Castle County,” he said.
How to fix errors
Tyler employees and New Castle County officials encourage all homeowners to review the reassessment reports that have been mailed to homes for accuracy.
Both the county and McFarlane said they’ve received calls from residents wanting to know how the square footage is calculated, seeking confirmation that Tyler Technologies is a legitimate business and alerting officials to “material errors” in the reports.
Any necessary changes can be noted in the report itself and mailed back to the local address on the report. You can also hand-deliver or email the changes to newcastlecounty@tylertech.com.
McFarlane said the best way to get confirmation that your changes have been received is via email.
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New Castle County homeowners can also call (302) 395-3620 with questions or issues.
For the most part, reassessment efforts in Kent County have concluded, and new tax rates took effect this year.
New Castle and Sussex reassessments, however, are still being finalized, McFarlane said.
Sussex County homeowners can email Sussexcountyde@tylertech.com.
Next step in reassessment process
McFarlane said there are still about 60,000 reassessment reports that need to go out in New Castle County. He expects the remainder to be released by the end of September.
“The participation and data mailer is the first bite of the apple for the public to participate,” McFarlane said.
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Once those reports are reviewed and finalized, taxpayers will then receive a “tentative assessed value notice,” which is expected to be sent out in New Castle County in early November.
That will be the second bite of public participation, McFarlane said, and taxpayers will be able to contest those values in a “one-on-one meeting” with Tyler Technologies before the value is certified by the county Board of Assessment Review.
“Tyler will administrate the informal appeal of the tentative assessed value,” McFarlane said. “Even if they are dissatisfied with that outcome, they can appeal in a more formal capacity before the Board of Assessment Review.”
When will new valuations take effect?
While Kent County reassessment values have already hit property tax bills, New Castle and Sussex counties won’t see the new valuations take effect until next year.
The updated tax bills for New Castle County will be released in July 2025. Learn more about New Castle County's reassessment process on its website .
The new tax bills will be released in August 2025 for Sussex County. Learn more about the county's reassessment process on Tyler's website .
Got a tip? Contact Amanda Fries at afries@delawareonline.com. Follow her on X at @mandy_fries.
This article originally appeared on Delaware News Journal: Have you checked your Delaware property reassessment report? How to get errors fixed
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