rea l talk -...
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REALTALKFROM THE POLK COUNTY ASSESSOR www.assess.co.polk.ia.us WINTER 2017
2017 ASSESSMENTS EXPECTED TO RISE
The Polk County Assessor’s Office revalues all properties inthe county every odd year.
If you’re a property owner, what can you expect in terms ofyour 2017 assessment?
Randy Ripperger, Polk County Assessor, says many propertyowners will likely see increases in their assessments ranginganywhere from 5–15 percent this year.
Preliminary estimates show increases of:
• 10 percent for residential
• 10–13 percent for commercial properties
• 5–10 percent for multiresidential properties
Keep in mind any changes will vary depending on thelocation of your property and a variety of other factors.
Three different methods are used for determining property values:
1. The sales comparison approach or market approach— this compares properties to the sales of similar properties.
2. The income approach— with this approach, propertyvalue is determined based on its income-generatingpotential.
3. The cost approach — this approach is best used for newproperties. It sets the property value at the cost of land plusthe cost of construction, minus depreciation.
Most residential properties are assessed using a market-adjusted cost approach. Other properties may beassessed using any of the three methods. Agriculturalproperties are the exception, as they’re assessed using aproductivity formula.
MANY PROPERTY OWNERS WILL
LIKELY SEE INCREASES IN THEIR
ASSESSMENTS RANGING ANYWHERE
FROM 5–15 PERCENT THIS YEAR.
HOW ARE TAXES DETERMINED?One of the most common questions the Polk CountyAssessor’s Office receives relates to taxes.
It’s important to note the Assessor doesn’t determine taxrates or calculate or collect taxes.
You can learn more about how taxes are determined and howthe assessed value of your property comes into play on theAssessor’s site. Search for Property Tax Cycle on the web site.
Watch for actual assessments to be mailed in late March.See the timeline in this issue for more details.
Every county and city with anassessor in the state of Iowa also
has a Conference Board — whichserves as its governing board.
Here are answers to some questionsyou may have about the ConferenceBoard.
Q: How large is the Conference Boardand who serves as its members?A: The Polk County Conference Boardcurrently consists of 37 members.Members of the Polk County Board ofSupervisors constitute one voting unit,the representatives from each highschool district of the county constituteone voting unit and the mayors of allthe incorporated cities within PolkCounty constitute one voting unit. Thechairperson of the Board ofSupervisors shall act as thechairperson of the Conference Boardand the County Assessor as clerk.
MEMBERS FOR 2016:
MayorsCarmella Jones, AllemanJ.M. Skip Conkling, AltoonaGary Lorenz, AnkenyCurt Sullivan, BondurantRuth Randleman, CarlisleScott Cirksena, CliveFrank Cownie, Des MoinesBrandon Snyder, ElkhartCathy Fuson, GrangerThomas Armstrong, GrimesPaula Dierenfeld, JohnsonJon Woods, MitchelvilleTom Phillips, NorwalkSara Kurovski, Pleasant HillJason Morse, Polk CityGerald Lane, RunnellsDon Towers, SheldahlBob Andeweg, UrbandaleSteven Gaer, West Des MoinesDiana Willits, Windsor Heights
Board of SupervisorsRobert BrownellAngela ConnollyTom HockensmithJohn MauroSteven Van Oort
Board of Education Todd Shafer, AnkenyChris Freese, Bondurant-FarrarJenny Foster, CarlisleScott Brown, Dallas Center-GrimesConnie Boesen, Des MoinesGreg Dockum, JohnstonBrett Bruggeman, North PolkBrian Bowman, SaydelLori Slings, S.E. PolkGraham Giles, UrbandaleDr. Vicky Poole, West Des MoinesDerek Petry, Woodward-Granger
Q: What does the Conference Board do? A: The board has severalresponsibilities, including: • Appointing members of the Board of Review, the Assessor andmembers of the Examining Board
• Establishing an annual budget forthe Assessor’s office
• Authorizing the number of DeputyAssessors and other personnel
• Approving the compensation for the Assessor and other staff
• Employing appraisers and othertechnical help
Q: How does the Conference Board identify members of the Boardof Review?A: In Polk County, the Board of Reviewconsists of 10 members, eachappointed by the Conference Board for a six-year term on a staggered basis.As nearly as possible, members of theBoard of Review shall consist of one
licensed real estate broker and oneregistered architect or person withexperience in building or construction.And for all county Boards of Review, at least one member must be a farmer. No more than two membersshall be of the same profession. The Board of Review must also begender balanced; the Conference Boardneeds to make a good faith effort toachieve this whenever filling a vacancyon the board.
Q: How does the Conference Board appoint members of theExamining Board?A: Each voting unit of the ConferenceBoard independently appoints oneperson, who is a resident of PolkCounty, to serve on the ExaminingBoard. Members of the ExaminingBoard are appointed for six years andserve without compensation.
Q: How does the Conference Boardappoint the county Assessor?A: The Conference Board partners withthe Examining Board for this process.The Examining Board membersidentify the names of people who areeligible to be appointed as Assessorfrom the Director of Revenue.Candidates must have passed anassessor examination administered bythe Department of Revenue.
Examining Board members mayinterview candidates and administeradditional examinations before theyprepare a written report to theConference Board with theirrecommendation.
The Conference Board will then meetto vote and appoint an Assessor to asix-year term.
UNDERSTANDING THE CONFERENCE BOARD
Q: How does voting take place on theConference Board?A: Each unit (mayors, Board ofSupervisors and the designated schoolboard representatives) has one vote.Actions will only be valid if at least twoof the three units vote in support. Andat least two members of each votingunit must be present for the unit tocast a vote. The majority vote withineach unit determines its vote.
Q: What about the budget?A: The Conference Board establishesan annual budget for all assessmentactivities. By Jan. 1 of each year, the
Assessor, Examining Board and Boardof Review each prepare a proposedbudget for the upcoming fiscal year. The Assessor consolidates these threebudgets and itemizes the operationalexpenses for the Assessor’s Office.This includes expenses incurred by theExamining Board and salaries forBoard of Review members.
The Conference Board must meet toconsider and formally adopt thebudget for the forthcoming year.Budget estimates, levies and notice ofthe time and place of the publichearing shall be published at least 10days before the hearing. The approved
budget must be certified to the CountyAuditor no later than March 15.
Q: Could I attend a Conference Board meeting?A: Yes. The Conference Board issubject to the provisions of the IowaOpen Meeting Law. Public notice isprovided for all meetings, and theminutes are considered public record.(Closed sessions are allowed. To holdone, it must be voted on during anopen session.)
If you’re interested in learning more about the Conference Board, see Code of Iowa, Sections 441.2through 441.16.
KEY DATES – 2017 PROPERTY TAX TIMELINE
If you own property, it’s always a good idea to confirm that the details of your property are accurate on the Polk County Assessor’s website.
Appraisal date for
assessments.
Applicationsfor exemptions
due.
Property ownersmay appealassessments to local boardsof review.
Board of Review insession toconsider
appeals. Thistime may
be extended to July 15.
First half of taxes due.
Second half of taxes due.
Assessorscompleteassessmentsand notifytaxpayers.
Property owners canrequest an informalhearing with the Assessor. Property
owner and Assessor canenter into a writtenagreement to change the assessment.
The deadlinefor filing your2016 Iowa
taxes is April 30, 2017. Why nottry e-filing this year if you haven’tused it before? You’ll receive yourIowa income tax refund in 10 days or less — an it’s safe andsimple to do.
See the Iowa Department ofRevenue website for moreinformation. You may even qualifyto eFile for free.
eFILE FOR AFAST INCOMETAX REFUND
With assessments underway for2017, the Polk County
Assessor’s Office encourages youto get to know your appraiser.You’ll find his/her name on theweb site.
If you have any questions/concerns about your assessment,we encourage you to contact your appraiser to discuss this. You may be able to avoid the need to submit an official appeal.
GET TO KNOW YOURAPPRAISER
Tammy Berenguelhas been
promoted to the new Administrative/Support Director atthe Polk County
Assessor’s Office.
Tammy started with the Polk County Assessor’s Office in 1981and most recently served as Support Supervisor. She’s a memberof the International Association ofAssessing Officers.
TAMMYBERENGUELPROMOTED
Jan. 1 Feb. 1 Apr. 1 Apr. 2–25 April 2–30 May 1–31 Sept. 30, 2018 Mar. 31, 2019
QUESTIONS?
We hope you’ve found this issue of RealTalk to beinformative. We’d like to knowwhat you think. For moreinformation on any of thesetopics, please contact us. Wewant to be your resource forproperty assessment issues.
Previous issues of RealTalk arearchived on the Polk CountyAssessor’s website atwww.assess.co.polk.ia.us.
Randy RippergerPolk County [email protected]
Rod HerveyChief Deputy [email protected]
OUR MISSION
The mission of the Polk CountyAssessor is to estimate the fairmarket value of residential andcommercial property. TheAssessor doesn’t determine taxrates or calculate or collect taxes.If you have questions or wantmore information about what wedo, please let me know.
Randy RippergerPolk County Assessor
TOTAL VALUATION BY CLASSThe 2016 total assessed valuation for Polk County is $35,642,461,110. The chart below shows the distribution of this valuation by class of property.
INDUSTRIAL$608,248,910
2%
RESIDENTIAL$25,140,907,990
70%
AGRICULTURAL$304,051,920
1%
COMMERCIAL$8,524,955,240
24%
MULTIRESIDENTIAL$1,064,297,050
3%
TAXABLE VALUATION AFTER ROLLBACKBY CLASS
The rollback affects how the property tax burden is distributed among thevarious classes. As shown below, residential properties currently account for62% of the tax base. Six years ago residential properties accounted for 53%of the tax base. The shifting of the tax burden to residential property ownersshould continue for many years into the future.
INDUSTRIAL$487,148,274
2%
RESIDENTIAL$14,068,755,045
62%
AGRICULTURAL$142,685,756
1%
COMMERCIAL$7,294,789,777
32%
MULTIRESIDENTIAL$801,273,044
3%