Wayne County commissioners confirm $171,730 appraisal for Mount Olive homeowner after appeal

Wayne County commissioners voted 5–2 on Aug. 5 to confirm a tax office appraisal that set the 2025 market value of a Mount Olive-area house owned by Joanne Grenady at $171,730.

The hearing gave Grenady an opportunity to contest the new valuation, which the county tax office said reflected comparable sales and an updated schedule of values. Tax office evaluation coordinator TJ Smothers told commissioners the office used four comparable sales within five miles, adjusted for differences in square footage, year built, land and rooms, and produced a final value that validated the $171,730 figure.

Grenady told the board she received a mailed notice showing a higher number initially and said the house was never a three‑bedroom home as recorded earlier. She said she bought the home in 2005 and had made only modest repairs, and questioned how the value rose by about $50,000 since 2019. Smothers said staff corrected the bedroom count to two during an informal appeal and that the appraisal is intended to set 100% market value as of Jan. 1, 2025.

Commissioners debated whether to reduce the value slightly to $171,600 based on the comparables and the corrected bedroom count. A motion to decrease the appraisal to $171,600 failed on a first vote. A second motion to confirm the tax office value of $171,730 passed 5–2. The board chair instructed staff to send Grenady written notice of the outcome and information on how to appeal the decision to the state.

County staff also encouraged Grenady to discuss possible tax exemptions with the tax office; the exemption programs are administratively separate from the appraisal hearing and, if applicable, could reduce the taxpayer’s bill.

At the hearing the tax office gave the board additional context: the home is a brick ranch built in 1982, about 1,784 square feet with two bedrooms and two bathrooms; the 2019 tax value on record was $126,460, and county records show a 2005 purchase price of roughly $109,000. Commissioners noted the county can refund overpayments up to five years if documentation shows taxes were paid in error.

The board left the door open for Grenady to pursue further review after meeting with tax staff about exemptions and said it could revisit the appraisal if new, admissible evidence is presented at a later meeting.