Board of Equalization upholds 2025 assessed value for North Pole house after appeal

The Fairbanks North Star Borough Board of Equalization voted 5-0 on April 11 to uphold the assessor’s adjusted 2025 assessed value of $154,661 for a single‑family home in the 6 Mile Village subdivision in North Pole after a hearing on case number 29.

Appellant Kathy Jo Erwin asked the board to consider a local realtor’s market estimate of $131,000 for the house and lot, saying she had initially reported $104,500 on her appeal form because she was uncertain how to calculate market value. "I'm asking you to consider their figure of 131,000 instead of what I put on my form," Erwin told the board.

The board’s decision followed a presentation by the borough appraiser, who said the assessor inspected the property on March 5, found deferred maintenance, made downward adjustments and nonetheless concluded the subject was equitably assessed. "It is the opinion of the assessor that the property is fairly and equitably assessed," the appraiser said during the hearing.

Erwin told the board she bought the property at auction in February 2019 for about $45,000. The house is a 846‑square‑foot residence built in 1957 with an unfinished basement; the appellant said the basement and garage have water intrusion. She said her realtor provided comparables by text and an opinion letter estimating total market value at about $131,000, which the appellant asked the board to adopt instead of her original form estimate.

The appraiser told the board the assessor reviewed nearby sales and assessed the subject at about $177 per square foot after inspection and adjustments for deferred maintenance; the assessor’s range of comparable price‑per‑square‑foot sales ran roughly from $1.32 to $2.15 per square foot. The assessor also placed modest values on outbuildings and unfinished areas: the basement was assessed as unfinished at $12,000 and the garage at $6,000, the appraiser said.

Board members pressed Erwin on prior assessments and comparable evidence. Erwin said she had not pursued earlier appeals because she did not live locally and had been ill; she also said she had not obtained formal repair cost estimates and that some of the realtor’s comparables were delivered only by text. In explaining the vote, board member Miss Fouldeau said the appellant bore the burden of proof and had not provided the specific comparables or documentation needed to overturn the assessor’s adjusted value. Miss Fouldeau noted the assessor had already reduced the assessment from the original notice and that no additional, definitive evidence of excessive valuation was in the record.

The board’s motion to uphold the assessor’s adjusted 2025 value — moved by Miss Fouldeau and seconded by Miss Ferguson — passed on a roll call vote of 5‑0. The clerk said the board will issue written findings and mail them to the appellant and the assessor’s office.

The hearing record shows the appellant may return with more documentation; several board members suggested that engineering reports, written comparable sales or lender documentation about financeability could support a future appeal.