Contracted Assessing Services
Maximize your investment in a revaluation by providing for more than just annual “pick ups” in your property assessment program. Our team approach provides access a variety of expertise when it is needed, ultimately providing a cost effective approach to your municipality's assessing needs. Appropriate staff is available for the tasks at hand, allowing you to draw on our senior staff for appeals, expert testimony and guidance on unique or complex property reviews when needed.
Annual Pick-ups - Annual inspection of those properties that have undergone some form of change (addition, new construction, demolition, renovation, construction completed from prior years, etc.). This information is generally gathered from permits or inventory forms. Our assessor visits the property and updates the property record card with new information as it exists on April 1st of the current year. Our services can complement or supplement in-house staff, and help with surge periods.
Sale Property Verification - Send out written surveys and requests for inspection to owners of all sold properties to ensure accurate assessing information as of the date of sale. This is especially important since sales properties are used to establish baselines for assessments of all properties.
Current Use - Review of current use records to ensure proper documentation is on file and the placement in current use meets Department of Revenue Administration (DRA) assessment review guidelines. Review of new applications to ensure proper information is submitted and make recommendations to Town assessing officials. Review of properties in current use that have sold or on which construction has occurred to ensure proper calculation of the qualifying and non qualifying areas, and issue the correct land use change tax.
Exemptions - Review of current records to ensure proper documentation is on file and meets the Department of Revenue Administration assessment review guidelines. Review of new applications to ensure qualifying information is submitted and make recommendations to Town assessing officials.
Defense of Values and Expert Witness - Process abatement requests at the local level beginning with an inspection of the property to ensure the physical data is accurate. After reviewing data submitted with the application, recommendations are made to Town assessing officials. In appeals above the local level, we review all pertinent information and represent the Town as an expert witness if assessment is found to equitable. If our review shows that the assessment appears to be incorrect, a recommendation for correction will be made to the Town assessing officials.
Timber (Yield) Taxes - Review intents and reports of cut to ensure proper documentation is provided and correct yield tax amounts are assessed.
Map Updating - Making ink changes to the maps as a result of subdivisions, surveys, deeds, etc. Checking the revised maps from the community’s mapping company to ensure that all changes were made correctly.