SUFFOLK
A months-long review of real estate assessments culminated Wednesday with the announcement that the city has slashed more than $75 million in assessed value from about 700 properties.
Hundreds of homeowners will receive notices this week about the changes. Many will see tax savings of $1,000 or more. The adjustments would result in about $450,000 in lost tax revenue to the city, but that is expected to be offset by tax gains from new commercial construction.
Interim Assessor Sid Daughtrey released the bulk of the new numbers before a presentation to the City Council. He took over the office in May after the council fired his predecessor, Maria Kattmann, amid complaints from residents about assessments this spring.
"This was an educational summer, to say the least," Daughtrey said.
Daughtrey told council members that he found several areas in which his office can improve its work, both in customer service and in the accuracy of its assessments.
For example, he said, his staff will try to improve the way it evaluates properties to prevent assessments from rising 20 percent in one neighborhood while staying flat in an adjacent one - "unless there is overwhelming evidence saying that's the way it should be."
The Board of Equalization, an independent body that reviews complaints about assessments, received 523 appeals this year. That's about 10 times the number the board normally receives, he said.
The city lowered assessments in 387 of the appeal cases. It also lowered assessments on 325 properties that were not appealed but were similar enough to the challenged parcels to warrant an adjustment, Daughtrey said.
Some residents began receiving their new figures earlier this week.
Oscar Mullican, a retired shipyard worker, saw his assessment fall by about $140,000, enough for a $1,300 drop in what he'll pay in taxes this year.
"I was hoping more than that," he said.
Like many people who challenged their assessments, Mullican lives near water, on the James River. But his pier isn't close to deep water, as the assessor's office initially contended, he said.
Frank James lives on the Nansemond River. His assessment dropped by about $130,000.
"Anything would have been an improvement, naturally," he said. "But I feel much better about it."
When Kattmann released her preliminary assessments this spring, her figures showed reduced assessments on dozens of neighborhoods in the city. Overall, residential assessments rose about 4.4 percent.
But the assessments on many waterfront properties spiked. When people complained, Kattmann told the council that she focused on waterfront properties because their valuations were lagging behind where they should have been.
Kattmann said that if she didn't adjust the assessments, those properties wouldn't be carrying their fair share of the tax burden.
She sued the city after her firing. The city recently settled the case out of court, no terms have been released.
Mayor Linda Johnson praised Daughtrey's work over the past several months.
"You've done a behemoth job," she said. "I'm not sure how you did it."
Dave Forster, (757) 222-5563, dave.forster@pilotonline.com
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Full disclosure
Mr. Leonard,
The most important thing you leave out of your signature on each comment is that you are running for mayor of Suffolk. All I would like to see is that if you are going to make comments against any other candidate, accurate or inaccurate, that you identify yourself as a mayoral candidate.
As far as Mrs. Johnson taking credit for the assessment situation being corrected, I haven't heard or seen anything of her taking credit for it, but she deserves the credit. I haven't really paid much attention to it since the assessor was dismissed so if there was an article where she personally took credit for it, so be it. I highly doubt it however. Regardless, I don't really care who takes credit for it, nobody has lead that council as well as she has, bucking the good ole boys and doing what was right for the people whether it was the popular thing to do or not.
Great idea Sara...
Great idea SARAP08, but I don't think Linda will go for it... The reason that so much of this is directed at Linda Johnson, is simply because she is the Mayor of Suffolk and is responsible for much of the policy that leads us to these problems. I get the feeling that you hold the view that we all should just set down and be quiet and not disturb Linda. While I am sure she would like that, to what real purpose does it serve? The most compelling right that we have in this country, is the right to critique our public leaders. If they can’t take the heat then they need to be replaced by more effective leaders, than we now have.
There are five debates on the books for Suffolk over the next 45 days and I look forward to engaging Linda Johnson on each event, on the issues… I also hope that Linda responds to the comments herein, to defend her side as you have defined it...
Roger A. Leonard, MPA
Suffolk…
assessments
Since Roger Leonard is himself a candidate for Suffolk mayor, it is time the PilotOnline started examining the intent behind Roger Leonard's continuous battering of Linda Johnson via comments to articles. Perhaps it would be better if the Pilot created a forum for him to debate Mrs. Johnson where she could defend herself against his inflamed remarks.
Once again...
This issue is totally of Mayor Johnson's making and it is distasteful to see her claiming credit for fixing it! There is no doubt that much of the blame must be directed at the Assessor. However we also know of the Mayor’s meeting with Ms. Kattman in November of 2007 to discuss the strategies on “Waterfront Properties”, as the causal effect that ignited this blaze. For the Mayor to ride in now and claim victory over the evils of rising assessment, is like Hannibal telling bedtime stories to Roman Children 2500 years ago. Over the eight year term Linda Johnson has sat on Suffolk Council, she has never missed a chance to raise our taxes and to hick spending. Good examples of this is her strong support of the boondoggles like: the Hotel/Marina/Conference Center and the Cultural Center which both now cost us well over $1,000,000 a year in subsidized waste for the Citizens of Suffolk. Just ask yourself what could be done if we reduced such wasteful spending? Might we just reduce local taxes and be able to afford to pay for real needs…???
Roger A. Leonard, MPA
Suffolk…
Where's the Money?
Since, Suffolk city officials are lowering assessments and writing "Fat Checks" for refunds and to "Pay-Off" fired/resigned city employees. Where is this money coming from? How is the City going to cope with the reduced assessments? Suffolk's bond rating is low. Where is all this going to lead? In all the articles published in the Pilot. There has been no Suffolk City Official to answer the above questions.
It's time for some straight answers!
"It's NOT a good time to be in Suffolk!"
Assessment went UP!!
I contested the Suffolk Assesment and was rewarded with an INCREASED assessment of $8400! I am so glad that election day is coming up!
Assessments
Congratulations to Mayor Linda Johnson and the rest of council for getting it right!
Fair is Fair
I reside in Isle of Wight County and just appealed my assessment about 3 weeks ago. Sure I have a nice place on 3-1/2 acres with a barn but the localities have to get real! My assessment went up by 18% and we have been in a falling market for at least 3 years now. I have not yet heard back from the County to see what if any changes are being made on my assessment but I am hoping for the best. When the housing market takes a nose dive and housing prices nationwide fall by as much as 15%-20% these localities have to follow suit. Instead they hire some assessment firm to do their "dirty work" and gouge the home owner. Then when you go to the Board of Equalization, the first thing they tell you is "we are homeowners in the County just like you, here to listen and take notes, not here for you to holler and scream at". I built my home 12 years ago so I am not one of those who bought when the narket was booming and now whining because I can't afford my mortagage. How can our City/County leaders be so bold as to raise our taxes on an ailing market?
swd2k....
Exactly my point...but you made it first. Unfortunately I don't live on waterfront property where all the people with "the juice" live who can call out for change and actually have City Council listen. Fire the lady for doing what they probably ask her to do, then bow down to the big shots (I just miss-hit the ket next to the "o" when I typed big shot,but would have been closer to the truth). Hopefully they will re-visit my property which is only waterfront when it rains real hard!!!!
Doesn't really matter much
Doesn't really matter a whole lot, since they can just increase the rate to cover the difference.
The story all along
Assessments drop, home prices drop, people and the banking industry take a hit on the devaluations, market goes down, we go into recession, fed bails out institutions so we don't go into a depression,.....yet.
Amazing that profits are privatized, but losses are socialized.
Lower Property Assessments in Suffolk
Your story consurning the taxpayer outrage and eventual firing of the Suffolk city Assessor for the excessive property assessments in that city was great. Perhaps that is what it will take to have the same result in Virginia Beach. Hopefully the taxpayers are also voters and will use their votes to remove the mayor, assessor or anyone else that keeps our taxes unrealistically high.
It is real, folk.
It is real. Prices of property and housing are going to drop like 50%... all the cities are going to have to give up property taxes, since they were based on values from the mania. Each year it will go down, until prices are in line with what incomes can truly justify without lenders handing out 103% combined loan to value - no income, job or asset verification - 1% teaser rate negative amortizing loans. *shrug* It's just the market. The demand wasn't legitimate. There are builders in Suffolk dropping prices on new spec homes by $200,000.
Suffolk's Golden Rule....
Those in the City of Suffolk with the "Gold" Rule!
You read the article wrong...
The article states that the assessed values of the properties will decrease by $66,500,000. But the actual amount of taxes that the city is forfeiting is $605,000. That is still a lot for a city like Suffolk, but a decrease of $66M is way overstated.
I find it interesting that the people who comment on these articles first argued that the city was incorrect in their over-assessments, and then when they reduce the assessments people comment that it is only rich people getting richer.
My guess is that the original assessments were probably correct but I do not see anything wrong with citizens fighting the city over property assessments if they believe they are incorrect.
Nice work
It must be nice to live in a community that has leaders that actually care about their citizens. Think Va Beach will consider lowering assessments (over-assessments) any time soon??? Of course not! That would just make too much sense and get the tax revenue back in line with actual values...
I do think, however, that Suffolk, like all Hampton Roads communities, needs to review ALL the properties it has over-assessed in the last few years! Now that would be a truly amazing thing to see.
Get real folks
You can't expect the wealthy to pay their share of the taxes, besides, Suffolk really didn't need their $66.5 million. One woman already lost her job over trying to do what was right
Lower Assessments
The lowering of assessments on waterfront property is running on the keels of the "Fat Check" written to Rubicon for over-assessed properties in the Northern area of Suffolk. With a decrease of $66.5 million in the City Budget. Will this stop the Mayor and City Council from writing "Fat Checks" to anyone else who has a complaint about assessments or is asked to resign from the City?
Even with lower property assessments in Suffolk. It's the residents and businesses of Suffolk who will continue to "Pay-the-Price?"
"It's Not a good time to be in Suffolk!"