Hamilton County assessor presents four-year reappraisal plan; notices to be mailed to about 85,000 parcels

Marty Haynes, Hamilton County assessor of property, told commissioners on March 25 that the county is conducting its statutorily required four-year reappraisal for 2025 and that the first notices will be mailed to property owners in the coming weeks.

Haynes said about 85,000 parcels will receive new value notices this year and that the office divides residential work into five geographic areas, each containing roughly 30,000 homes for listing and measurement. "It's a four-year reappraisal," Haynes said. "The value the new values that are coming out to the public that'll be mailed out ... that's a four-year period." He added the office is already tracking sales and new construction and that residential values as of Jan. 1, 2025 were about 3% behind recent sales through February.

Why it matters: Reappraisals redraw assessed values from which tax bills are calculated; Haynes reminded the commission that changes in assessed value do not directly translate to higher taxes because the certified tax rate will be adjusted and certified in mid-July. "Those certified new certified lower tax rates will be out and available to you all and the public," Haynes said.

Details Haynes gave to the commission included: - The county will mail notices to about 85,000 parcels during the reappraisal year. - The assessor's office provided a rough net construction figure: about 1,600 new single-family homes annually on average, and roughly 13,000 new homes since 2016. - The county has about 133 hotels and multiple new hotel projects underway; apartments are a major growth driver, with about 70 complexes added since 2017 and 40 added since 2021. - Residential properties are assessed at 25% of value for tax purposes; income-producing property (for example, apartment complexes) is assessed at 40% of value.

Commissioner Sharp asked for clearer public messaging on what "up, down, or sideways" means in notices. Haynes explained roughly one-third of notices typically show a decrease in value, one-third show no substantial change and one-third show an increase; he stressed that property-tax effects depend on the certified tax rate the county sets later in the budget process.

Next steps: The commission will take up the reappraisal plan at its next meeting. The assessor said the plan has already been reviewed by the state comptroller and will be presented to the State Board of Equalization on April 14 for approval. Haynes invited commissioners to contact his office with questions before the vote.