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Swain County tax office outlines revaluation plans; boathouse checks added to assessment work
Summary
County tax and mapping staff reviewed staffing changes, a recent boathouse reevaluation and plans to commission a full revaluation; officials said an external contractor is the only vendor able to meet the schedule for the next mandatory revaluation cycle.
Swain County tax office staff told commissioners on April 1 that the office is preparing for a countywide property revaluation and reported on a recent boathouse reevaluation that increased tax values.
The tax office said staff began a focused review of boathouses in 2024 and detected more than $7 million in additional assessed value, which the presenter said translated to about $28,000 in additional taxes. The presenter said the boathouse inspection involved about 60 boathouses and generated relatively few complaints because staff photographed and documented each structure.
Officials also described staffing changes in mapping and the assessor’s office after a retirement. The tax presenter said the county does not have the staff capacity to carry out a full field revaluation in-house and has solicited third-party providers. In the meeting packet, staff included a draft contract for a full list-and-measure revaluation; the packet quoted a per-parcel rate of $43 and an estimated parcel count of 12,628, giving a full-contract price shown as $543,000. The presenter told the board the contractor would need to begin planning this summer (July–August) to meet the schedule so the revaluation would be ready for the next mandated cycle.
Commissioners and staff debated timing and community notice. One commissioner asked that residents be prepared for field staff going door-to-door so homeowners would not mistake revaluation work for a scam. The presenter said staff planned outreach and that the contractor would perform most field work with limited county-staff involvement.
No formal vote on the revaluation contract occurred at the meeting; commissioners were briefed and asked questions about schedule, outreach and budget timing.
