Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Property Assessment topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Pewaukee Board of Review upholds Rocky Point assessment after homeowner appeal
Summary
The Pewaukee Board of Review on Monday upheld the assessor’s 2025 valuation for John Labonte’s Rocky Point property after the owner presented comparables and the city rebutted with front-foot sales, cost figures and the Markarian hierarchy. The board found the assessor’s valuation presumptively correct.
John Labonte appealed his 2025 property assessment for his Rocky Point home, telling the Pewaukee Board of Review that the city’s valuation was out of line with nearby homes and omitted removed features such as an oversized pool and pond.
Labonte said he had assembled lot and home comparables and calculated that his property’s assessed total should be roughly $4,000,006.85 rather than the assessor’s $5,489,300. “I believe my assessment is inaccurate based on the review of other homes on Rocky Point,” Labonte said while presenting lot-per-acre and per‑square‑foot comparisons.
City Assessor Rhett Tough responded that the city followed the Markarian hierarchy—recent sales of the subject property, sale comparables, then other valuation methods—and that the 2025 revaluation reflected a strong market. “The level of assessment is a 100%,” Tough said, adding that the city values lake lots on a front‑foot basis rather than by acre and uses national cost tables to value improvements.
Board members questioned both sides about time adjustments, condition gradings, and how the assessor adjusted comparables for front footage and remodeling. Labonte disputed some large positive adjustments the assessor applied to several sales, arguing the comparables had been gutted and rebuilt. The assessor maintained their methodology and showed adjusted sales, realtor photos, and a summary of paired sales supporting recent market appreciation.
After deliberation the Board of Review found the assessor had presented tier‑1 and tier‑2 evidence consistent with Wisconsin assessment law and the Property Assessment Manual and that Labonte had not overcome the statutory presumption of correctness afforded the assessor. On a roll call the board voted to sustain the assessment; the clerk will provide the homeowner with the written determination and appeal instructions.
The decision preserves the assessor’s 2025 assessment for the Rocky Point parcel; the Board noted the owner retains the right to further appeal under state law.
