Marshall County tax-appeal hearings end with few assessment changes; officials cite market-driven increases

Marshall County held administrative hearings on Aug. 21, 2025, where seven property-tax appeals were heard and most assessments were sustained after county appraisers explained valuation method and recent market data. One assessment was adjusted by the assessor’s office as a result of a state ad-rate change, and several petitioners raised concerns about large percentage increases.

The appeals matter because assessed value determines property tax bills, and several homeowners said the size and speed of recent increases were unfair or did not reflect improvements they had made. County staff told the board they used state-required market-value-in-use methods and recent sales to update valuations.

Donald Raider, trustee of the McAnath Raider Family Trust, appealed the assessment for 160 Brandt Drive in Bremen, arguing the total assessed value (listed in hearing materials as 229,800) had risen far faster than any work done on the condo and that comparable units showed varied basement finishes. "That just seems a little bit excessive," Raider said, noting the improvement portion of the assessment had risen about 59% since 2021. County appraiser Peter Paul (referred to in the record as Elder Peter Paul) told the board that condominiums in that block are hard to assess because unit-level basement finishes are sometimes not reported on questionnaires and that recent nearby sales (including one at 1011 Woodies Lane) support higher market values.

At 906 South Michigan Street, petitioner Scott James McDonald Shannon contested an assessed value listed at 189,300 and said he believed the property should be assessed nearer 157,000, citing an appraisal he obtained for a home-equity loan and interior issues including an…