Oklahoma County BOE Hears Appeal Over Valuation of Neighborhood Walmart on South Seymour Road

The Board of Equalization of Oklahoma County heard an appeal June 23 over the assessed value of a neighborhood Walmart at 4900 S. Seymour Road, account R154243. The assessor reduced the valuation during informal review from $5,265,121 to $4,860,360; the property owner asked the board to lower it to $3,600,000 based on sales and equity comparables.

The matter matters because neighborhood retail assessments set tax bills for large commercial parcels and because the appellant argued the property is being treated inconsistently with similar neighborhood markets in the county. The owner’s representative said comparable neighborhood markets in Oklahoma County are being assessed at about $74 per square foot on average and that, “if you look at an equitable assessment … the value would come out to a little above $3,000,000.”

In oral presentation the appellant’s representative told the board they relied on two approaches: an equity‑comparison set of eight neighborhood markets in Oklahoma County and sales comps included with their filing. The representative emphasized that the subject is leased by Walmart rather than owner‑occupied, and argued lease terms and tenant credit are personal property or contract rights that should not inflate the real‑property assessment: “you can’t look to the tenant Any value that’s attributed to the the lease itself is a tangible personal property. So if we’re just assessing the real property itself, this should be assessed identically To the end To all the others.”

County staff and assessor’s office witnesses responded that the assessor had reviewed renovations and sale history, had initially increased value based on a building permit and subsequent improvements but later reverted to last year’s value after further review. The assessor’s representative said the office found evidence of a long‑term, 20‑year absolute triple‑net lease and that sale prices tied to such leases must be discounted in their analysis: “it was a long term triple net lease … but, again, we discounted that, to, quite a degree.” The assessor also noted there was a 2021–22 sale and that the office treats triple‑net sale information “with a grain of salt” unless annual rent information can be backed out and converted to an income capitalization analysis.

Board members asked whether prior litigation or court rulings involving similar Walmart properties affected the office’s approach; staff replied most litigation involved Sam’s Clubs and Supercenters rather than neighborhood markets. The parties disputed adjustments for age and size among comparables; the appellant said the property, built in 2015, should align near the upper end of peer neighborhood markets even at the appellant’s proposed value.

No formal decision was made at the hearing. The board said it intended to issue a decision soon but left the timing open, telling parties it might meet Thursday or Friday to decide and that the appellant would be notified by mail.