Politics & Government
County Experiences High Rate of Home Value Appeals
St. Louis County needs more money allocated to pay for an increase in office hours during appeals hearings, County Executive Charlie Dooley said.
St. Louis County is experiencing more appeals than expected on its property assessments, a development prompting a need for additional money.
In a letter to the St. Louis County Council, St. Louis County Executive Charlie Dooley wrote that Eugene Leung, director of the county's department of revenue, requested legislation asking for an additional $63,000 for appeals to the Board of Equalization.
That body determines the “correct value of real and personal property for individuals, businesses and manufacturers.”
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Dooley wrote that the 2011 budget was compiled with the idea that 14,000 property assessment appeals would occur. But instead, he wrote, that the number has reached 18,000.
“Consequently, it is necessary to increase the number of hours budgeted for the Board of Equalization hearing officers to hear all the appeals and to increase the budget for temporary clerical assistance,” Dooley wrote.
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Dooley added that $55,000 would be needed for compensation for the board hearing officers, while $8,000 would be required for temporary clerical assistance.
Leung told reporters after Tuesday’s county council meeting that there are a couple of reasons for the rise in appeals. The first reason, he said, is that the county made it easier to appeal by placing the application online. He also pointed to the economy.
“Property values are supposed to be set for Jan. 1,” Leung said. “But by the time the notices come out, it’s about mid-year in May. And so property values continue to decline. I think people thought that their values are still lower, and not many people realize that the value is set starting Jan. 1. So I think people thought that their property values should have gone down a bit more.”
Leung added he has “no idea” if the appeals are going to go up going forward.
“If I did (know), I would be in a different business,” he said. “You saw what’s happening in the economy the last few days with the stock market and what’s happening with financing rates and interest rates. It’s hard to tell.”
The St. Louis Beacon reported that St. Louis County Assessor Jake Zimmerman said the assessments were performed before he took office in April.
The council still needs to pass an ordinance to allocate the additional money.