With the value messages sent, the owners have the remainder of the month to appeal against these messages. These complaints can be filed online, mailed, or dropped on drop boxes in Avon, Edwards, Eagle, and El Jebel.
Especially for the daily newspaper
Eagle County’s real estate valuation notices have been sent. The values have risen for the most part, but do not reflect the price increase the county has seen since summer 2020.
In Colorado, the county assessors offices determine the value of all taxable real estate every two years. This valuation is based on the sale of comparable properties. According to state law, months of research into values starting June 30th will be combined into a “snapshot” of values. The taxation of districts from schools to cities to cemetery districts then uses these values to determine their mill dues, which set the tax rate.
The values set on the 2020 snapshot date apply to taxes levied in 2021 and payable in 2022.
While the current values do not take into account current inflation in the market, Eagle County Assessor Mark Chapin said values rose an average of 0.5% to 1% per month over the measurement period.
However, increases in value depend largely on the location.
“We saw a range from unchanged to (significant),” said Chapin.
One of the bigger unknowns is the construction and remodeling of real estate. Some of these values could jump up to 60%, which is not common.
Chapin said the owners have the remainder of the month to appeal these notices. These complaints can be filed online, mailed, or dropped on drop boxes in Avon, Edwards, Eagle, and El Jebel.
Once the appeals are resolved by the Assessor’s Office, property owners will be able to appeal to the Eagle County Board of Assessment Appeals in August.
The tax implications are still unclear
The exact effects of these increases in value depend on how the counties set their milling levies or tax rates towards the end of this year. There are more than 80 counties in the county that collect property taxes, but no one pays taxes in any of these counties. These districts can range from school districts that virtually everyone pays to to cities and more specialized districts that use tax revenues for everything from local cemeteries to recreation to individual city districts.
Eagle County Schools make up the majority of the valley residents’ property tax dollars at nearly 39%. The Eagle County’s general fund takes just under 7% of the collections. Cities take on average just over 5% of a property tax dollar.
Still, many will pay slightly more taxes in 2021.
Chapin used the example of a plaster of paris townhouse valued at around $ 300,000 in the 2020 valuation. The value of that home rose a little more than 12% between the 2018 and 2020 announcements. If the property tax mill dues of this home stay constant, the owner of this home will pay about $ 150 more property tax in 2021 than in 2020.
These increases will come because voters in a number of local tax counties, including the school district, agreed to remove those counties from the income limits set by the 1992 Taxpayers Bill of Rights amending the Colorado Constitution were. The 2020 state voters also lifted some of the restrictions imposed by the state’s Gallagher Amendment passed by state voters in 1982.
Legislative changes
Given these changes, longtime local real estate agent Mike Budd expects future property tax rates and collections to be more proportional to increases in value.
Budd, who lives in Singletree, said the value of his home has increased significantly since his purchase in 1997. But the values have also gone down and up in view of the economic situation in the valley.
Still, Budd said, people descending from traditional feeder markets in Texas and Florida might not be bothered by Colorado tax rates.
While Texas and Florida don’t have state income taxes, they have relatively high property tax rates. This also applies to other feeder states such as California, Illinois, and New York.
“All of these are terrible tax states,” said Budd.
While tax burdens are expected to increase somewhat this year, Budd said, “The good news I have two more years of reasonable taxes before (the next appreciation) occurs,” said Budd.