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Union County board upholds $491,900 assessment for Hubbard home after owner's comparables challenge
Summary
Thomas Hubbard disputed a $491,900 assessment for his Indian Trail home; county appraisers used nearby comps and adjustments and the board upheld the county value.
Union County's Board of Equalization and Review voted to uphold the county's assessed value for the property owned by Thomas and Diane Hubbard in Indian Trail, rejecting a homeowner's request for a lower valuation based on recently sold comparables.
Thomas Hubbard told the board the county's new assessed value of $491,900 was higher than recent nearby sales he identified and said a more realistic value would be between $400,000 and $425,000. "I would revise that, and say between 400 and $425," Hubbard said when asked his opinion of value.
Jay Acton, an appraiser for Union County, reviewed neighborhood sales the county used in its market analysis, noting most of the homeowner's supplied comps were from 2023 and that the county relied on sales prior to the effective revaluation date of Jan. 1, 2025. Acton told the board one recent sale the homeowner cited was a corporate sale recorded with a special warranty deed and sold for significantly less, and he said he had included a mix of neighborhood sales to reach an adjusted, weighted value. "It was sold with a special warranty deed, and it was also a corporate sale. So it sold for significantly less than all our other properties," Acton said.
Acton described his adjusted-sales analysis for the most relevant recent comp as about $514,105 and said the weighted average of five sales the county used came to about $496,600, which the appraiser said exceeds the county's estimated market value for the subject property.
Board members examined timing of sales, proximity and features (noting the subject property has a pool and some used comps did not) and discussed the limits on using sales after the revaluation effective date. The county encouraged Hubbard to meet with appraisers after the hearing for a detailed walk-through of the calculations and noted his further remedy would be an appeal to the Property Tax Commission in Raleigh.
After discussion the board voted to accept the county's valuation for the Hubbard parcel. The chair announced, "The motion's carried for the value to remain at $4.91 900." The board advised the Hubbards they will receive written notice of the decision and can pursue subsequent appeals under state procedures.
