Central Ohio has been buzzing since mid-summer about the property tax valuation increases. You may have already received a mailer informing you of your possible tax increase.
The good news is, property values are on the rise in Central Ohio! This is great for home owners, especially those who lost value during the recession.
The Franklin County real estate market has rebounded in full from this past decade’s Great Recession, Homeowners have once again begun to see a return on investment on their property’s value.” ~Franklin County Auditor Clarence Mingo
The not so good news is, soaring property values means higher property taxes for home owners.
As Realtors, our team has been getting lots of questions about property values this summer and the impending tax increase. Here are three things you need to know if your property tax is increasing.
What You Need To Know If You’re A Home Owner
1. Why Property Taxes Are Rising
Property values have risen considerably in Central Ohio, leading to higher property taxes for home owners.
The Franklin County auditor’s office found home values rose by 14% since assessed values were last updated three years ago.
The sharp rise is due to multiple factors, including the fact that property values decreased or saw only small increases during the Great Recession.
To the extent the double-digit increases are shocking to taxpayers, it’s only because we lived previously with values increasing marginally or even decreasing,” ~Franklin County Auditor Clarence Mingo
According to the Franklin County auditor’s office, the county saw home values decrease by 6.7% in 2011. That is the first time since the Great Depression that property values fell for the whole county.
2. How Much Property Taxes Will Rise
Don’t despair, property values and property taxes do not increase dollar-for-dollar. Thanks to House Bill 920 (1976), home owners are protected from large property tax increases when home values rise.
Based on preliminary property reappraisal from the Franklin County Auditor’s office, Franklin County property owners can expect an approximate increase of two percent.
However, a bigger factor for property owners will be levies, which are controlled by voters.
While the rise in value triggers a marginal increase in property taxes, the more substantive increase is always due to levies, which voters control,” ~Franklin County Auditor Clarence Mingo
Reduction factors from the above mentioned House Bill 920 help to mute the overall impact of tax valuation increases.
Using the table below we can see the Property Value Rise by School District, the Property Tax Hike percentage,and the Proposed Tax On $100,000 of Value. The lowest Property Value Rise is Dublin with an 8.5 percent rise, which is still a healthy increase. The highest Property Value Rise is Grandview Heights at a whopping 29.9 percent.
| School District |
Property Value |
Tentative Property |
Proposed Tax On |
| Bexley | 13.7% | 2.39% | $2,331 |
| Canal Winchester | 14.9% | 2% | $2,938 |
| Columbus | 15.5% | 2.57% | $2,378 |
| Dublin | 8.5% | 1.33% | $2,816 |
| Gahanna Jeferson | 13.3% | 2.07% | $2,584 |
| Grandview Heights | 29.9% | 4.15% | $2,540 |
| Groveport Madison | 15.9% | 1.86% | $2,719 |
| Hamilton Local | 17.3% | 2.57% | $2,375 |
| Hilliard | 10.5% | 1.49% | $3,069 |
| Licking Heights | 14.2% | 10.47% | $2,688 |
| New Albany-Plain Local | 11% | 1.58% | $3,005 |
| Reynoldsburg | 13.7% | 1.84% | $2,909 |
| South-Western | 14.6% | 2.17% | $2,592 |
| Upper Arlington | 13.6% | 2.33% | $2,368 |
| Westerville | 13.8% | 1.68% | $2,984 |
| Whitehall | 17.9% | 2.88% | $2,354 |
| Worthington | 12.5% | 1.96% | $2,607 |
Table Source: Columbus Dispatch
3. What To Do If You Need To Appeal
Re-valuing all of the properties in a county is no small task. In Franklin County, there are nearly 430,000 parcels being re-valued.
When updating property appraisals, a county has limited ability to carefully consider the value and challenges of each and every property.
This makes it the responsibility of the property owner and their advisers to ensure that their property is fairly assessed. Property owners need to carefully review the assessment they receive from the county.
Counties held meetings through August and/or September for property owners to informally challenge their assessment. Property values will be finalized in November.
Even if you missed the deadline in your county to informally challenge the assessment, you may still have time to challenge the new estimate.
Check your Central Ohio county auditor to see what the appeal process is for property owners dissatisfied with their property assessment.
In Franklin County, dissatisfied home owners may file a formal complaint by April 2, 2018. Franklin County has a mediation department with the goal “that your case will be resolved quicker than the standard Board of Revision process.”
Take Advantage Of Higher Property Values
If you’re one of the many home owners who’s property value is on the rise and you’ve thought about selling your home, now is a great time to cash out and sell your home.
Not only are home values on the rise, but historically low housing inventory has put Central Ohio homes for sale in high demand. In fact, the latest market report shows homes in Central Ohio spending an average of only 24 days on the market. That is the lowest on record!
Get Your Home’s Market Value
Home owners thinking about selling their home will need to know how much their home is worth on today’s real estate market. The assessed value your receive from the county IS NOT the market value of your home.
Tell me some basic facts about your home, and I can provide you with a free Comprehensive Market Analysis of your home to help you know the market value.
[gravityform id=”4″ title=”false” description=”false”]Sources:
Columbus Business First: Property Owners Should Prepare
Columbus Business First: Where Taxes Are Increasing
Columbus Business First: Challenging Tax Assessment
Franklin County OH Auditor Reappraisal FAQs