The Assessment Process
The Township Assessor could more accurately be called an appraiser. The Township Assessor’s duty is to establish an estimated market value on all property within his/her jurisdiction. The Township Assessor does not levy taxes.
The first step in arriving at that value is to know where the property is located and how large the property is, including the land and any improvements. Determination of how the property is being used such as farm, residential or commercial must be made. Up-to-date maps help with this. Secondly, each property needs to be physically measured and checked for characteristics that can increase or decrease the value such as number bathrooms, fireplaces, porches, garage, etc. One of the most important characteristic is the quality of construction used in the improvement. It is possible for a home to be smaller than their neighbors but because of the quality, the value may be higher.
The other critical aspect of arriving at your market value is the records of sales detailing the price, terms and conditions of the sales on properties located in the surrounding area.
The Assessor determines your property’s estimated market value from all available sales sources and the property’s characteristics. The assessed valuation represents approximately 33.33% of the estimated market value.
The ultimate purpose of the assessed value is to proportion the tax burden, as established by the taxing bodies, over all property in a fair and equitable manner based on the value of real estate.