Understanding your tax assessment- And what to do if you have questions or objections to it

Wright County Assessor Shari Plagge says a large part of her office’s role is helping educate property owners on their assessments. This is especially true at this time of year, since assessments or ‘notices of value’ were sent out a couple weeks ago. People often have questions on how their assessment was determined or what they can do if they disagree with it. Plagge addressed many of those questions recently.

According to Plagge, by state code, assessments are mailed out no later than April 1^st. They are sent to property owners, essentially deed holders of properties. That means a renter would not get an assessment. These assessments can change from year to year.

Plagge said assessments change because they are based on what property is selling for in a given area. She explains the numbers revolve around “the estimate of fair market value” or in other words, the value that someone would purchase a certain property for. This is true for assessing residential and commercial properties. (Agricultural assessments are a different ball of wax entirely.)

Plagge also reminded people that assessments do not determine tax rate and that her office does not calculate or collect taxes. Taxes are determined by the budgets of taxing bodies such as counties, towns and schools. A publication from the Iowa State Association of Assessors explained, “Your taxes are in proportion to the value of your property compared to the total value of the taxing district where your property is located.” Plagge added that this means that even though your assessed value on a property may go up, taxes could go down depending on local budgets in a given year.

As the assessor, Plagge makes her determinations by looking at declarations of values for recent property sales. Her office even drives by or visits properties quite often. Residential properties are on a six-year rotation which means every six years, a data collector will review the property on-site to check for any changes that would affect market value. Properties are reviewed more often if there is something that has changed like a garage has been built. 

As of the recent mailing of notices, assessed value throughout the county increased overall largely due to the current market conditions and updated construction costs. Residential valuations increased by a whopping 16.55% while commercial valuations increased by 2.76%.

Resultingly, with some increases throughout the county, people have been calling into the Assessor’s Office with questions. Plagge said there is a process if people choose to dispute or disagree with their assessment. Now until April 25, there is an ‘informal review’ process that can take place where an agreement on value can be made between the assessor and the taxpayer.

Plagge emphasized that people should be prepared when they protest their assessment. “The first thing we ask is ‘what do you think your market value should be and why?,’” she said. People need to be prepared with reasons and evidence of why an assessment should be changed. This includes knowing what comparable properties have sold for, which is all public information, reminded the assessor. They may also want to know about your property’s insured value, any recent repairs, and about instances of depreciation.

If the assessor and taxpayer do not come to an agreement after the informal period, the assessment may be protested before the county Board of Review. This is a quasi-judicial body that has the ability to make changes to assessments. The taxpayer must submit to the Board of Review a formal protest no later than April 30. They then meet in May and have to decide on changes by the end of that month at which time a taxpayer is sent a final notice.

If the Board of Review finds against the taxpayer, they may move up to the Property Assessment Appeal Board (PAAB). This is a state agency that handles the Iowa assessment appeal process. PAAB is not affiliated with local assessor's offices or boards of review. Past this point, Plagge said that people still disagreeing with their assessments can engage the regular court system.

In the end, Assessor Plagge said her office is always willing to take the time to help people understand their assessments. She stressed that assessed values are reached with the utmost diligence and care, but they are happy to answer any questions taxpayers have. The Assessor’s Office can be reached by calling 515-532-3737. People can also find helpful information on the Assessor’s page at www.wrightcounty.iowa.gov.