Agricultural land valuations go down in Kansas

WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) – Farmers in Sedgwick County and statewide will likely see decreases in their property taxes this year. It’s because their assessed property values are down.

Property values used for taxation purposes for agricultural land are calculated based on land use, not market value.

Years of lower crop yields have led to lower taxes, even if land is more expensive to buy. Farmers said having lower property values this year is helpful in light of recent market instability.

The last few years have been challenging for Kansas farmers.

“We’ve been in two years of drought,” said farmer and Kansas Farm Bureau District 4 Director Steven McCloud. “I mean, our crop production the past couple of years has been very difficult.”

Lower production also means lower property taxes.

“It’s certainly welcome,” said South Haven farm owner Tim Turek. “I think they’ve always been too high, so every time they go down, that’s greatly appreciated.”

Where farmer Tim Turek lives, agricultural property valuations are down 19%, according to the state department of revenue.

“Property taxes are a big expense,” Turek said.

In the state as a whole, they’re down roughly 10%. The decrease in taxes frees up some cash.

For Turek, the plan is to put most of those dollars into planting more crops and buying herbicides.

“It will get spent somewhere,” Turek said. “That’s part of what we do. Money management is probably the biggest thing we do out here.”

Both farmers said their crops are looking pretty good this year, better than in years past. If crop production continues to improve, agricultural land values will also slowly rise up with those improved outlooks.

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