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Resident challenges assessment saying heavy traffic, easements and lack of county water reduce value
Summary
Timothy Thomas told Union County’s Board of Equalization and Review that cut-through traffic, multiple septic easements and lack of county water have reduced marketability and should lower his property’s 2025 assessment; county staff said comparable sales and standard practice did not support an adjustment, and the board upheld the county value.
Timothy Thomas appealed his 2025 assessment to the Board of Equalization and Review for Union County, telling the board that heavy cut-through traffic on Ennis Road, sewer easements across and adjacent to his lot, and the absence of county water and sewer reduce his property's marketability.
"There was over 300 cars passed in an hour's time," Thomas said, describing Ennis Road as a commuter cut-through where speeds and noise increased after repaving. He described four incidents of vehicles leaving the road and the property’s proximity to neighbors’ septic drain fields; he told the board he believes those factors reduce his property's value by up to 10%.
County appraisers responded that Union County has not observed a measurable, market-wide difference in sale prices attributable to being on a busy rural road and that the easements Thomas reported are located along property lines and are common in local rural development. The county presented two analyses: sales from nearby subdivisions and a separate set of rural comparables; the rural comparables produced a higher indicated value, but the county recommended staying with the subdivision-based analysis that produced the county value presented to the taxpayer.
After discussion the board voted to accept the county’s assessed value as presented. The county noted that Mr. Thomas could pursue further administrative remedies, such as appeals to higher tribunals, if he supplied additional evidence. The county also said it will keep the rural-comparable analysis in the record.
