Agent: With Real Estate, in Sammamish and King County, Assessments Based on Previous Year

Jan. 1 may be a day to celebrate the New Year, but it is also the day over 535,000 homes and commercial buildings are assessed by the King County Assessor. Through a complicated and detailed process, the state of Washington tries to establish the full market value of the land and the improvements on it.

Homeowners frustrated by the fact that home prices are falling but taxes are not following this trend must understand the fact that the bill you receive for taxes in 2011 is based on assessments on January 2010, a full year behind present market value.

The appraisal methods in King County follow three basic approaches: Market Data and Cost to Reproduce or Replace for residential properties and Income or Capitalization for commercial or industrial properties.

A fair and equitable evaluation is the goal of the assessor. Presently, over 182 different markers are used to establish value. Twelve cities in the county have established on-line methods for reporting yearly changes in value. Sammamish still must submit a hard copy. A physical inspection of the property is required only once every six years.

The evaluation process begins with establishing a value for the vacant land. This is determined by the sale of similar vacant properties. Then a comparable market analysis is done including the structure and improvements. Tax bills then deduct the land value to get a separate value for the land and the structure. 

Many homeowners do not get the required permits to do improvements on their property, preventing a true equitable evaluation across all properties. Since the county does not know about the improvements, the home is assessed at a lower rate.

A process is underway to try and streamline reporting and give property owners the ability to access information about their property, including history of evaluation and online maps to make the process more transparent. New to the system is the ability to view actual pictures of the property and to search "solds" customized by geographical area, tax year and specific attributes. Property owners now have the ability to see firsthand the progression of increase or decrease in value of their property. Information can be found online.

The rates in Sammamish are determined by different factors depending on where the property is located in the city. The school district is the biggest factor in determining the rate a homeowner must pay. There are also differences in water and sewer district, fire district and several other issues that can change rates from one side of the street to the other. You as the homeowner can determine rate increases by your vote at the ballot box. Call the King County assessor’s office to verify the makeup of your bill.

Do you really think that your tax bill will go down if the value of your home goes down? Unfortunately, that is not true. The assessor does not determine the tax amount. Tax is computed on the approved levy amounts. If the voters approve a $50 million levy, $50 million must be collected. So, if the evaluation goes down, there is no recourse but to have the levy rate go up.

Commercial properties are experiencing a downward trend to a greater extent than residential. Since they are evaluated based on an economic basis, they could conceivably affect the rate paid by owners of residential properties.

According to Lloyd Hara, King County Assessor, King County values have increase 1.7 percent. How this will affect prices will be clear on the next tax assessment in January 2012.

Contacts for information about taxes and the tax collection process:

Joan Probala is the managing broker for Issaquah Windermere (Windermere Real Estate/East Inc.). She has 30 years of experience in real estate, construction and sales.