More reappraisals

I've previously blogged about the recent reappraisals here in Miller County and in Benton County. Here's an article from today's SW Times Record in Fort Smith about the increased assessed values in Sebastian County due to the reappraisals there.

I've received some calls about this, and here is some helpful information:

(1) Amendment 79 to the Arkansas Constitution dictates that the taxable assessed value of a property can’t increase more than 5% a year on a primary residence and 10% for other properties;

(2) Assessments are frozen at the former, lower taxable value for property owners 65 years of age or older (and for disabled property owners);

(3) Act 142 of 2007 increased the homestead property tax exemption, effective Jan. 1, 2008, from $300 to $350; and

(4) You can appeal the new valuation to the Board of Equalization with or without an informal review with the appraisers (Important: refer to the back of the Notice of Change in Assessment for the deadline to appeal; you can additionally appeal that decision to County Court then to Circuit Court with the high burden of proving the assessment as "clearly erroneous" considering a couple of factors: comparison with land similarly situated and whether the assessment is "manifestly excessive").

If you live in Miller County, you can find anything you want about your real estate records, values (both market and assessed value), millage rates, and transfers online here.