Oklahoma County BOE hears multiple valuation appeals from northwest neighborhood; most cases continued to decision day

Eleanor Thompson, presiding member of the Oklahoma County Board of Equalization, opened a hearing on March 19 where owners of more than a half-dozen residential parcels in a northwest neighborhood pressed for lower valuations set by the county assessor.

Thompson told appellants, “We do not concern ourselves with taxable value. We only concern ourselves with a fair market value,” and explained the board’s process: the panel would hear owners, hear assessor staff, and then reach a decision at a later session. “We do not decide today. We decide on Friday,” she said.

Why it matters: The appeals target assessed values that owners say exceed marketable sale prices for properties that many described as vacant, dilapidated or in need of major repairs. Owners repeatedly told the board about roof leaks, failed furnaces, broken windows and missing driveways that they say reduce marketability and rentability; assessor appraisers said those condition issues were not documented in the informal appeals and therefore were not reflected in the comps used to set values.

Discussion and evidence: Multiple appellants described long ownership and a lack of recent sales, or transfers within families, that make comparable sales sparse. Owners repeatedly said they had not provided repair lists, photos or other documentation during informal meetings with assessor staff. The assessor’s representative, Theresa, said she used nearby sales as comparables and that many of the parcels considered are duplexes or one-story ranch houses, which restricts the pool of comparable sales. She told the board: “We did not have any of this information that there were issues with the property, or we didn't have any comps or anything like that provided at the time of the informal.”

Outcomes and next steps: The board took one immediate formal vote. For BOE item 38 (2012 Northwest 20 Third, account 062220420) a board member moved and another seconded a motion to accept the assessor’s adjusted value of $262,200; the motion carried by voice vote. For the remaining items, the board closed hearings without issuing final decisions and said it will make rulings at its scheduled decision meeting on Friday; owners will receive written notices next week. Thompson advised appellants to present photos and repair documentation at the assessor’s informal meeting next year: “Bring the pictures of the driveway, of the leaking roofs, of the damaged floors. Take pictures of all of that and bring it to them when you meet with them the first time.”

Votes at a glance: - BOE 38 — 2012 Northwest 20 Third (Acct. 062220420): Board accepted assessor’s adjusted value of $262,200 (voice vote). No roll-call names were recorded in the transcript. - Motion to adjourn: carried by voice vote at the end of the session.

Context and process notes: Board members repeatedly said they cannot consider evidence raised for the first time during the hearing if it was not provided at the informal appeal; assessor staff confirmed the office’s informal review files did not contain many of the repair lists owners referenced. The board emphasized that it will issue written decisions after members review the record and deliberate at the Friday decision session.

The board heard a total of 12 agenda items for residential properties clustered around Northwest 20 Second and Northwest 20 Third streets; many appellants asked that values be reduced substantially (examples ranged from assessed values in the $150,000–$290,000 range to requested values as low as $60,000–$110,000). Assessor staff said they used recent sales (noted as 2023–2024 comps) and adjusted several accounts downward at the informal stage where supported by sales data.