Chapin: How assessors handle reappraisals
Eagle County Assessor
As the Eagle County assessor, I am mandated by Colorado law to reappraise property every other year. Mass appraisal is a process that allows for the valuation of all types of properties to produce uniform, fair, and equitable values. 2023 is a reappraisal year, and you can expect your valuation notice in the mail after May 1.
This reappraisal is based on sales data collected 18 to 24 months prior to June 30, 2022. The sales data is grouped first by regional location or economic/neighborhood areas; then by property types such as vacant land, single-family residential, condos, and townhomes or by the various commercial property types like retail, office or lodging, etc. Valuation models are developed for each property type within each respective economic/neighborhood area.
The 2023 reappraisal median increase for vacant land was 50%, residential property 63% and commercial property 40%. This market-determined increase has been driven largely by low supply and high demand following the pandemic. The median is the middle of any data set. Each property may experience an increase that might be lower or higher than the median.
Because of the soaring rise in property values that attends a hot real-estate market, such as our local markets, the Colorado Legislature has approved a value reduction that will be subtracted from residential and commercial property. Residential property will be reduced by $15,000 and commercial will be reduced by $30,000 for 2023. While these reductions will not show up on your notice, they will be subtracted at the end of the year.
We send notices to property owners when value changes. If any owner feels the value or classification placed on their property is in error, they may file an appeal. 2023 appeals begin May 1 through June 8. Property owners cannot appeal their taxes, only their value.
Property assessed value and taxes are determined as follows.
The assessed value of your property is calculated as a percentage of the market value of each property. This year, the state has lowered the assessment percentage rates to help ease tax burdens in this inflationary time. All residential property was lowered from 6.95% to 6.765%, Agricultural from 29% to 26.4%. All other types of property including vacant land, commercial and industrial, were lowered from 29% to 27.9%.
Assessor doesn’t set taxes
Tax authorities determine property tax. Each year, the assessor notifies each of the 367 taxing authorities of the total assessed value of all properties within the authority’s boundaries. Tax authorities are governmental bodies, which provide services to taxpayers and operate in whole or part from the collection of property taxes. Examples include: county, cities and towns, schools, metropolitan and recreation districts, libraries, as well as fire and water districts.
These authorities provide the services people expect. Each taxing authority determines their respective revenue needs (budget) annually and then calculates their mill levy based on revenues needed for the following year. The county is comprised of a mix of 87 taxing districts, which is a combination of various authorities which use assessed value to determine their mill levies.
For example: A single-family home with a value of $750,000 will have an assessed value of $50,740. $750,000 (Actual Value) x .06765 (Residential Assessment Rate) = $50,740 Assessed Value.
The assessed value is then multiplied by the cumulative mill levies within the tax district. In our example, assume a total mill levy of 65.00, broken out below:
County: 9.0 mills x $50,740 = $ 456.66
School District: 30.0 mills x $50,740 = $1,522.20
Town: 2.0 mills x $50,740 = $ 101.48
Recreation District: 2.5 mills x $50,740 = $ 126.85
Fire District: 10.0 mills x $50,740 = $ 507.40
Cemetery: 1.0 mills x $50,740 = $ 50.74
Metro District: 10.5 mills x $50,740 = $ 532.77
TOTAL TAX 65.00 mills x $50,740 = $3,298.10
$50,740 x .06500 (65.00 Mill Levy) = $3,298.10 total tax due. The property owner will see this type of breakdown on their Tax Bill, which is mailed by the county treasurer each January. You can go to the Eagle County treasurer’s web page to determine the property tax you pay to each jurisdiction.
For more information about how the assessment process works, please visit our website at eaglecounty.us/departments___services/departments___services/assessor/index.php.
Mark Chapin is the Eagle County assessor.
