PARKERSBURG - Wood County commissioners, meeting as the Board of Equalization and Review, listened to the first residential property appeal on Thursday.
The commission is required to sit as the board in February to hear taxpayer appeals. Property owners who do not file an appeal with the board when it meets in February forfeit the right of appeal.
Carl Wilson filed an appeal on his property at 274 Cutlip Lane, which is currently appraised at $183,300, the assessed value is $109,980. The previous appraised value on the property was $58,500.
"We appraised the property based on a mobile home that was on the property they were living in at the time until their house was completed, a garage and land. Now the home is completed, the new appraisal includes the new house, trailer, outbuilding and land," said Dean Cottrell, chief field appraiser. "The trailer is being rented."
Wilson provided photos of his property and showed values for other homes he said were comparable to his own on neighboring streets off Dutch Ridge Road. He said one of the homes is appraised at $109,200, and other one "was assessed at $112,500," Wilson said.
Wilson said he built his own home and it was completed about a year ago.
"I have still have some finishing work to do," he said. He estimated he had about $60,000 worth of materials invested in the house. He estimated he could possibly get $20,000 out of the trailer.
"I feel my house is overassessed and with the economy the way it is. I can't sell my trailer for what they claim somebody has bought trailers for. I can't get $26,000 out of it," Wilson said.
The trailer is appraised at $26,000 with the decking, he noted. "The value is higher than I think it should be," Wilson said.
He told the commissioners he had not recently had the property independently appraised and did not know the replacement value on his insurance, but could provide that information to the board. He told the commissioners he wanted the value down to $150,000 or less. "It is new, but these other properties looking at their values, I think it's overvalued," Wilson noted.
"We have to have clear and convincing evidence, photos, appraisals, insurance values that kind of thing," commission President Blair Couch said.
According to the assessor's files, there is a total of 7.47 acres of property. "The property is hillside, there is no saleable timber," Wilson said.
Cottrell said the total appraised value on the land is $29,000, with the woodland area assigned a value of $4,380. The place where the trailer is listed as a homesite, and valued slightly more at $10,560 on the 1-acre site, but the rest is just classified as woodlands. "It's steeper in the area where the woodland is," Cottrell said.
Cottrell said recent sales of comparable properties the assessor's office pulled from the files were for $168,500 in Steele District; another home sold in 2008 for $211,000 in Clay District.
"We tour the properties that are appealed and look over comparable properties before we make a final ruling, then you will be notified in writing of our decision," Couch said.
To schedule an informal hearing for a review of your property appraisal and discuss concerns, call the assessor's office real property division at 304-424-1842. To schedule an appointment for a hearing before the board, call the county administrator's office at 304-424-1976. For those filing an appeal, it is recommended a professional appraisal, comparative neighborhood values, and or recent photographs showing the condition of the property be provided.
The commission will meet as the board of review Feb. 6, 9, and 13, from 10 a.m. to noon, and if needed, appointments will be scheduled from 1-3 p.m. Hearings will be available Feb. 6 from 5-7 p.m. by appointment only. Appointments also will be available, if needed, for residential property only Feb. 16 on regular business days beginning at 10 a.m. until noon and 1-3 p.m. and will conclude at 3 p.m., on Feb. 23. Any appeals on commercial properties must be filed before Feb. 16. County offices will be closed on Feb. 21, which is President's Day. The board will finalize its work on Feb. 27.
The board makes its rulings at the conclusion of hearings and taxpayers are notified in writing of the outcome of their appeal. If dissatisfied with the board's rulings, appellants can file an appeal with the Wood County Circuit Court.
