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Why did the
Assessor’s Office have an outside company value the county when they have
Appraisers?
It was a management decision. Most of the
recent problems occur when an Assessor does not fully
participate in the appraisal process, underutilizes staff, or does not have
the technical skills required for the job.
How much did the
incumbent pay the Littleton Consulting firm?
Public record shows
that Mr. Johnson paid $156,000 for the 2005 work done by this
consultant. No matter how you want to split it that is not good value.
Electing an assessor without the core knowledge required puts the county in a
position to have consultants running the show.
Are Commercial
properties and Residential properties valued the same way?
No, they are not.
Residential property is valued using only the market approach to value.
Commercial properties are valued by looking at the cost, market and income
approaches to arrive at a value. The two classifications are also assessed at
different rates, residential is currently assessed at 7.96% of actual value
and commercial is assessed at 29% of actual value.
How
is agricultural and vacant land valued and assessed?
Agricultural land
is valued by the productivity, use of the land, and soil type. Grazing land,
dry farmland, pastureland, and irrigated farmland are all valued by their
productivity and averaged over a 10 year period according to each counties
base crop. The final value on agricultural land is not market value and is
lower to promote the agricultural industry. Non agricultural land is valued at
market value and may be discounted if it is vacant to account for developer
holding costs and time to market. Both are assessed at 29% of actual value.
Where
in the county were most protests filed?
Is there any news on changes with the Senior Exemption Program?
The 2006 legislative session ended May 8th, and under current law, funding
for the senior citizen property tax exemption program returns for tax year
2006, payable in 2007. If a property owner has not been previously approved
they will need to have a completed application to the Assessor's office
before July 15th.
Voters should also note that the Legislature passed a ballot question that,
if approved, will expand the program to include disabled veterans. SCR
06-001 asks voters to approve an amendment extending the exemption to
veterans who are 100 percent disabled from a service-connected disability.
The veteran must own and occupy the property on January 1 of the exemption
year, but the provision does not include a 10-year ownership/occupancy
requirement. If passed by voters, the amendment is effective for tax year
2007.
If you have not been previously
approved be sure to have your completed
application
to the Assessor's office before July 15th.
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