Residents and supervisors press county over property reassessment; informal review deadline set

Missy Hockman, Shenandoah County Commissioner of the Revenue, told the Board that “a general reassessment is a mass appraisal of all real estate in a locality with the purpose of bringing assessed values of all property as close to 100% of market value as possible.” She said Vision Government Solutions was selected to perform the reassessment, that the County reviewed about 2,000 qualified sales from 2023–2025, and that the county has an estimated 33,000 parcels. Hockman said informal reviews are currently being conducted and the deadline to schedule an informal review is January 23; Board of Equalization hearings are expected to begin in March.

Supervisor David Ferguson told Hockman he has received concerns that reassessed values are not uniform across similar properties and asked whether records were being kept from informal reviews. Hockman said informal reviews are the time when mistakes are found and corrected but added she had not yet received parcel‑specific update information. During public comment, Tina Williams of Edinburg said she found the informal review “frustrating” after her property increased despite no improvements; Brad Pollack questioned the reassessment firm’s methods and said the reassessment “cost too much,” suggesting budget cuts as an alternative. The Board encouraged residents to use the GIS website, gather documentation, and schedule informal reviews.

The Commissioner emphasized that under Virginia law the tax rate must be equalized so that the new assessed values produce roughly the same total revenue; the Board said it will work on equalizing the rate. The County provided contact information for scheduling informal reviews and expects the Board of Equalization to hear appeals beginning in March. The Board asked staff to consider providing a summary of informal review outcomes if available.