County to address reassessment complaints today

Some Midtown residents are asking how their homes can be worth less on the market yet reassessed at a much higher value.

Jackson County officials today will address the issue of huge increases in values in Midtown property tax reassessments.

The action comes as many homeowners grapple with enormous increases – an ugly prelude to big tax increases.

Curtis Koons, Jackson County assessment director, said last week he anticipates sending letters telling many Midtown residents their reassessments are being re-evaluated, Dona Boley, a Hyde Park resident who meet with Koons last week, reported in an email sent to neighborhoods.

Koons approved the email, she said, which states he knows of problems with the current reassessments and will explore ways to match them as closely as possible to market values.

Koons could not be reached for comment Friday. A county spokesman said he would speak to the matter at a 2:30 meeting today at the courthouse annex in Independence at 308 West Kansas.

County Legislator Scott Burnett said he arranged a meeting last week between Koons and residents of four neighborhoods.

The topic was how hard it is to reassess in Midtown, with its housing diversity and a shortage of comparable sales, Boley said.

House size may be a good measure of worth in new neighborhoods but not so much in old ones, Boley said.

“Location, surrounding environment, lot size, style, builder, quality of original build, how much of the original build still exists, and quality of current conditions” will all impact price, she said.

She said Koons told them he anticipates sending letters to residents in many neighborhoods saying reassessments are being reevaluated.

Those he listed are Coleman Highlands, Roanoke, Volker, Old Hyde Park, Southmoreland, Brookside, Hyde Park central and Hyde Park south, she said.

Not all assessments will be changed, Koons told them, but notices to those getting reassessed will be mailed in time for homeowners to appeal them.

Still, Boley said to appeal now if you think the recent reappraisal is wrong. The information that gives will help in setting the new reassessment figure, she said.

Previous posts

Comments are closed.