Equalization Boards preparing property value notices
By Lee Coleman
In 2010, Vanguard Appraisals came to the county and reappraised houses in Hazen and Beulah establishing new property values.
Now, home sales have outpaced what Hazen and Mercer County have on the books from those appraisals.
Accordingly, the 2013 home sales versus the previous values on the books indicate these values are at 74.06 percent.
According to state law, houses are supposed to be assessed at 100 percent of their values so an increase is needed, officials said.
By law, if property values increase by 10 percent or $3,000, a notice must be sent to homeowners advising of the changes. Those notices are to be mailed on Tuesday, Mar. 25 from the Equalization Boards of Hazen and Mercer County.
Steve Frovarp of the City of Hazen emphasized the notices would only show the increases in property values and any taxation issues would be resolved in the budget process later in the year when levies and mills are established.
“If a house is valued at $100,000 and it increases to $200,000, that doesn’t mean your taxes are going to double,” Frovarp said. “Just because the value is going up by 22 to 25 percent does not mean your taxes are going up. The mill levy will drop and your taxes could remain the same.
