Assessment notices coming

Assessment notices are in the mail telling Carson City home and business owners their property is worth up 30 percent or more than last year. But Assessor Dave Dawley says not to panic: It's a notice designed to inform people what their new assessed value is, not a tax bill.

The most any homeowner's tax bill can go up is 3 percent. That is the cap the 2005 Legislature created for owner-occupied homes.

"It's an assessment notice, not a bill," he said.

He said the west side and the northeast part of downtown are being physically reappraised this year and values there will increase significantly. For the rest of the capital city, he said, land values are being raised a flat 30 percent.

"That's actually far less than the market value went up," he said.

Dawley said land values went up as much as 95 percent this past year in some parts of Carson City.

"Even parcels that were affected by the fire are going to be raised significantly because the market did not decrease after the fire," he said.

In addition to land values, he said, the assessed value of improvements will be increased by 12 percent - a factor set statewide by the Tax Commission.

He said that too is far less than the real increases. He said the company that estimates replacement costs reports the costs to rebuild a home in the Carson City area went up 22 percent this past year.

"Yes, the assessed values are going up, but the tax rates are capped so your tax bill will be no more than 3 percent higher for owner-occupied houses," he said.

For rentals and business properties, the annual tax increase could be up to 8 percent. Dawley said in Carson City it will probably be less than that this year.

Carson City's property tax rate is $2.64 per $100 of assessed valuation - about $1 less than property owners in Reno pay.

- Contact reporter Geoff Dornan at gdornan@nevadaappeal.com or 687-8750.