MARSHALL - One of the positives of the 2024 Madison County property tax revaluation process being performed in a four-year as opposed to an eight-year cycle was it would potentially reduce some of the "sticker shock" on the valuation of properties for county residents.
But with the new appraisals being sent out to property owners, many Madison County residents are expressing their concerns with the updated statistics.
As a result, Madison County may potentially be staring down a long summer of fielding appeals from residents.
Chair Matt Wechtel addressed the property assessment notices in the Board of Commissioners July 9 meeting.
"For the purpose of helping to try to get the word out to all of our residents, if there's any kind of a discrepancy, if you believe there's an error or a discrepancy in your tax bill, there is a process in place. You need to contact the tax office, and they will work through whatever discrepancy you think you have. They'll work through that with you, and they will try to resolve that situation."
The revaluation notices also contain specific details regarding when and who to contact to schedule an appeal, if warranted.
If an appeal is requested by the property owner, the first step is to appeal to County Tax Assessor Diana Norton.
If the appeal is unable to be resolved by Norton, an appeal to the Madison County Board of Equalization and Review would then be made.
According to County Manager Rod Honeycutt, the county Equalization and Review Board is composed of the county commissioners.
If the appeal is not resolved by the Madison County Board of Equalization and Review, it would go to the North Carolina Property Tax Commission.
A change in value can only be considered if the real property owner can provide appropriate documentation or evidence that the appraised value is substantially higher or lower than market value.
The county held a series of town halls beginning in January to inform homeowners on the process involving the 2024 home property revaluation, the first revaluation post-COVID.
Background
In the 2020 appraisal, property values rose 46% from the prior assessment in 2012.
Some residents have seen their property values rise that much or higher since 2020.
David Freeman, an Angus farmer in the county, appeared before the Madison County Board of Commissioners in its July 9 meeting.
"I grew up down here on the river, in a house that was built around 1917," Freeman said. "It has no water, no heat and no other facilities you would normally have in a home."
According to Freeman, the most recent valuation on the home appraised the property at $424,000, up from $157,000.
"I have a hard time adjusting to that," Freeman said. "That's why I ask, where did these people come from? Did they come from some place that every square foot is evaluated?"
Roger Kelley is a program manager with Tyler Technologies, the organization that has been contracted by the county to perform the appraisals.
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Kelley said Tyler Technologies, in collaboration with the county tax office, is using data from 2022-23.
"We've analyzed the sales, and we've made market adjustments for those," Kelley said.
The team uses available data and property types in three appraisal methods, the most common of which is the sales comparison approach, which compares similar properties. The cost approach determines how much it would cost to replace a homeowner's property with a similar one, minus any depreciation.
Lastly, the income approach determines the value of income producing properties, such as apartments, based upon the amount of income the property generates.
While the county revaluation team makes its determinations, there are some properties where the team is unable to make a "physical touch" to appraise the property. In these cases, the team leaves a form for the property owner to fill out, detailing the number of bathrooms, type of heat, basements, fireplaces, or other "parts of the home that would attribute more value to the home," according to Kelley.
Supported appeal justifications include:
- The new value is significantly higher or lower than the actual fair market value.
- The new value is inconsistent with the values of similar properties.
Unsupported appeal justifications include:
- A percentage increase or decrease from previous assessed value.
- A percentage increase or decrease as compared to any area's average increase or decrease.
- One's financial ability to pay any anticipated tax.
Wechtel encouraged residents to be patient with the process, adding "obviously there are other people that are concerned."
"We do recommend that you do reach out directly to the tax office, if you have any questions, concerns or protests," Wechtel said. "They will get to each and every one of you, and we won't move on and leave you behind."
If you have additional property revaluation questions, call the Madison County Tax Office at 828-649-0765. For more information, visit https://www.madisoncountync.gov/.
Johnny Casey has covered Madison County for The Citizen Times and The News-Record & Sentinel for three years. He earned a first-place award in beat news reporting in the 2023 North Carolina Press Association awards. He can be reached at 828-210-6074 or jcasey@citizentimes.com.
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