Thinking about appealing your Sedgwick County property valuation? Here’s what to know
If you’re part of the 81% of Sedgwick County homeowners with a higher county appraisal on your latest valuation notice, you might be wondering whether you should appeal.
And just how to go about doing it.
A higher valuation means you’ll pay more in property tax. But whether a jump in your home’s value is good or bad depends on your plans: If you want to sell, it might push up your listing price.
But if you don’t, you might be upset about the increased tax bill.
While views are mixed about whether challenging the county’s valuation is worth the time and effort, Sedgwick County Appraiser Mark Clark points out that appealing is an owner’s right.
“I want people to feel comfortable appealing their value,” he said. “It is their right, and they should feel comfortable doing that.”
The reasons people appeal vary. But often it’s triggered by a recent sale, property damage that’s costly to fix, private appraisals that show a significant drop or jump in value or to correct information about a home’s characteristics, Clark said.
An owner might also think the county’s opinion of value is just flat-out wrong.
“They might disagree with the square footage. Maybe we’ve got the bathroom or bedroom count incorrect,” Clark said.
“We just want to make sure that we are finding fair market values.”
Homeowners have 30 days from the date their 2020 valuation notice was mailed to file what’s called an informal equalization appeal. This year, the county mailed out about 174,000 notices to people whose valuation changed. If you didn’t get a notice or lost yours, you can find it online at ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/propertytax.
To initiate the appeal process, simply fill out the back of the valuation notice with the information requested including the reason for your dispute and what you think your home is worth. Then return the signed form to the Sedgwick County Appraiser’s Office, 271 W. Third St., Ste. 501 in Wichita.
The county will mail back a confirmation letter that lists your meeting day, time and location. You can meet with an appraiser in person or over the phone.
Meetings will be held weekdays during regular business hours and start March 17. For more information about the appeals process, go to www.sedgwickcounty.org/appraiser/appeals.
How the county figures value
The typical increase in residential property value was about 6% in Sedgwick County this year, according to the county’s annual real estate mass appraisal report. More than three-quarters of homeowners — 81% — saw an increase on their 2020 valuation notice.
About 16% of Sedgwick County homeowners had no change in value. Three percent saw a decrease, with a typical drop of 5%.
Residential properties account for about 57% of the assessed value in Sedgwick County, according to the report. Commercial properties account for about 31%. Agricultural land is less than 1%.
The county appraiser’s office updates appraisals annually. But usually appraisers physically inspect properties only once every six years, unless there’s a sale or building or demolition permits are pulled. In those cases, “a property can be looked at multiple times,” Clark said.
County appraisers only survey a property’s exterior when they conduct in-person inspections. So they won’t know about any improvements or disrepair inside of your home that might effect its value unless you tell them.
The condition of your home, though, isn’t the only factor that the county takes into account when figuring your valuation. It uses mass appraisal, which also figures in the market value and selling prices of similar houses in your neighborhood. You can find out what homes the county is comparing yours to by looking at your “Comparable Sales Report,” which is available by searching your address at ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/propertytax and clicking on the “Documents/Reports” tab on the return page.
“The current real estate market is a seller’s market. Demand far exceeds supply. And that means that your inventory of single family homes is quite low” in the area, Clark said. “That is going to push up your prices of what people are paying.”
Last year the average number of days a home stayed on the sales market was “at the lowest levels it’s been ever,” he said.
“This is not a normal real estate residential market. When you have this type of supply constraint, this is not normal.”
Clark said his office takes a conservative approach to home valuation. To stay in compliance with state laws, county appraisers across Kansas are supposed to appraise homes at between 90 and 110% of their sales price.
Clark said Sedgwick County aims for 95%.
You can find the selling price of similar properties in your neighborhood at ssc.sedgwickcounty.org/propertytax/salesauthorization.aspx.
Preparing for an appeal
Clark said appeal meetings with county appraisers are informal and non-confrontational. He suggested homeowners “do their homework” before filing for an appeal including checking what information the county has about their home by searching for their address at www.sedgwickcounty.org/appraiser, or calling the appraiser’s office at 316-660-9000.
Documents you can find online include your property record card, which shows the age, square footage and other characteristics of your home; your home’s cost valuation report; a list that shows the sales price and date of nearby properties; and a comparable sales report, which shows the characteristics and market-adjusted sales prices of homes similar to yours.
To prepare for a meeting, Clark suggests gathering up any photos of damage, cost estimates for repairs, private third-party appraisals and other documentation that might justify what you think your home is worth.
Take all it with you to your meeting and be prepared to share it with the county appraiser, he said.
Although appealing property valuation is an owner’s right, in reality few do — about 1% overall, Clark said.
Last year, 2,337 residential property owners filed an informal equalization appeal. The county adjusted the value for 58% of them, according to statistics from the county.
The numbers were similar in 2018, with the county changing valuation for about 56% of the 2,465 homeowners who filed informal equalization appeals.
If you decide to file an appeal seeking a lower valuation, don’t worry: You won’t be penalized with a higher one.
“If they come in and appeal, we’re not going to just jump their value. No, we’re not going to do that,” Clark said.
Is appealing worth it?
Opinions are mixed about whether appealing your property valuation is worth it. Some people routinely contest their county valuation. Others never bother, or feel the need to.
After area residents started receiving their 2020 valuation notices earlier this month, Sedgwick County Commissioner Michael O’Donnell in a March 3 Facebook post urged residents to file appeals.
“Many people have contacted me about an increase in their property values. I encourage you to appeal the valuation through the Appraiser’s Office. Also, I’ll be supporting a reduction in the mill levy to lower your tax burden during our budgeting process,” he wrote.
Homeowners can either appeal on their own or hire someone to handle the appeal for them.
Weigand Appraisals President Kim Braungardt says she usually advises against appealing unless there’s significant property damage or another issue the county hasn’t accounted for. She’s been working in the real estate industry for 22 years and has been an appraiser for 16 years.
“I’ve represented property owners in the past who have appealed their property taxes. Ninety-nine times out of 100, though, I usually recommend that they don’t simply because by the time they pay someone like myself to argue on their behalf or to do an appraisal to actually prove something, there has to be a pretty large discrepancy in their property value to justify” the cost, she said.
“The vast majority of people just want their taxes lowered (when they appeal). ... If you feel like — genuinely feel like — ‘Man, write me a check. This is ridiculous!’ then you might have a case for an appeal,” she said.
“But if you genuinely feel like, ‘Well, I don’t like these taxes. I don’t want to pay this. I would never sell my house for this,” then you really don’t have a basis for an appeal. And that’s where people kind of get it mixed up.”
This story was originally published March 8, 2020 at 8:00 AM.
