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City assessor reports modest overall reassessment increase; appeals period set for mid-April
Summary
Newport News’ proposed FY2026 reassessment shows a 3.76% overall increase in total assessed value, with residential parcels accounting for roughly 59% of value; informal hearings are scheduled April 14–18 and board-of-equalization applications are due Sept. 1, 2025.
City Assessor John Fountain and appraisal supervisors briefed council on the FY2026 reassessment and the appeals process at the April 8 work session.
Fountain said reassessments are required by Virginia law and that the FY2026 proposed reassessment represents an overall increase of 3.76% in total assessed value. He said residential parcels represent about 59% of the valuation mix while commercial parcels account for approximately 41%.
Fountain said the office used the three standard approaches to value — cost, sales-comparison and income — and that the market study timeframe for valuation was January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024. He announced informal office hearings for residents from April 14 to April 18 and said applications for formal hearings before the board of equalization are due September 1, 2025.
Residential supervisor Mark Beasley gave additional detail: the city has about 49,100 residential parcels, including roughly 44,114 single-family units, 4,659 condos and 327 small multifamily properties. Beasley said average increases were 4.84% for single-family units, 6.21% for condos and 6.08% for multifamily 2–4 unit properties. He reported the median assessed value rising from $259,100 (2025) to $272,300 (FY2026), a $13,200 increase.
Beasley said the largest neighborhood increase was in Jennifer Square (about 28.4%) and that the appraisal staff recorded 1,722 arm’s-length residential transactions during the market year. He said the city’s assessment ratio — the ratio of assessed value to sales — is approximately 99.63%, close to the statutory 100% of market value.
Commercial appraisal supervisor Mike Edwards summarized commercial trends: apartments increased about 2.5% and represent roughly 14.2% of the overall assessment base; industrial values rose about 4.5%; commercial office values were largely affected by vacancies and rent pressures.
Fountain described the informal appeals process: property owners may call or visit the assessor’s office, request an on-site inspection at no cost and review sales and appraisal statistics with staff; staff said many inquiries resolve after discussion and a small portion proceed to formal appeals.
No council action on the reassessment was taken at the session; the presentation was informational and set the schedule for appeals.
