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Caldwell County tax administrator outlines 2025 revaluation; commissioners pledge to lower rate as appeals begin
Summary
County tax administrator Josh Engel told commissioners that a 2025 countywide revaluation reflects sharp market gains and legal requirements; residents raised concerns during public comment about sticker shock and fixed incomes. The board said it will seek to lower the tax rate while appeals proceed.
At the February 2025 meeting of the Caldwell County Board of Commissioners, tax administrator Josh Engel presented the county's 2025 revaluation process, the market data that drove it and next steps for property owners who wish to appeal.
Engel told the board the county has 52,568 parcels, of which 49,547 are residential, 2,850 commercial and 171 industrial. He said data from the multiple listing service showed the county's average sale price rose from about $188,005 in August 2020 to about $319,389 in August 2024; median sale price climbed from $160,000 to $255,000 over the same span. Engel said North Carolina law requires counties to maintain assessments at market value and explained the sales-ratio rules that push many counties to do revaluations more frequently.
"All property, real and personal, shall as far as practicable be appraised or valued at its true value in money," Engel said, reading the statute's market-value definition to the board. He said counties with populations over 75,000 must reappraise sooner if their sales ratio exceeds statutory thresholds and reported Caldwell's assessment…
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