I am begging the City not to implement the new City property tax. This tax, combined with the horrible assessment standards, will result in myself and others not being able to make their house payments. I am on a fixed income and get a partial rebate for disability. Still, there are no programs /discounts available for our working poor under age 65, so this tax will result in making people homeless/default on their mortgages. [There are some state tax relief programs available to low-income households, seniors and other vulnerable demographics. The Moab City Council also budgeted funds for local tax relief program. Staff are currently developing that program. -ed.]
By now most everyone in the County has received their Notice of Property Valuation and Tax change notice. Many are wondering why their properties are being assessed every year, instead of every two to no more than five year intervals. The Assessor’s Office informed me the new change comes from upstate from Senate Bill 182, which was supposed to help rural communities and property owners faced with unfair assessments. Line One of the bill states, “will provide additional remedies for a property owner who experiences an increase in valuation over a certain threshold solely due to valuation when there are no significant changes to the property.” The threshold was a 150% increase, which everyone experienced, or more, in 2022/23.
But the bill, instead of helping, also added language that requires the assessor to conduct mandatory cyclical appraisals and “use a “computer assisted mass appraisal system that has the ability to update all parcels of real property located within the county each year” AND the State Tax Commission “shall take corrective action if the commission determines that a county assessor has not satisfactorily followed the current mass appraisal standards.” (59-2-303.1)
This means someone from upstate reviews our local assessments and forces our local assessor to place a different (higher) value on our property than what was determined locally. Then they add on something called a sales ratio factor order which can only look at properties that sold AND the new owner submitted paperwork stating what they paid for the property.
So it gives an inaccurate picture of what properties are selling for because only some people will return this form. There is a lot more to the bill, none of it good.
Everyone is rightly in an uproar regarding assessments that are NOT fair market, they are excessive market pricing based on “what you might sell for” and we are told to talk to a realtor and get their statement on what our home would sell for. And none of it changes the absurdity of valuations based on “if you sell you might get $$.”
Unbelievable that at this point in our lives, the homes we have lived in for many years will be lost because of taxation. I had affordable housing; My payments were low due to the loan being nearly paid off. 2022 forced a $200.00 payment increase; in 2024 the library increase adds another $100.00 and most have also had property insurance increases. Grand County adds 52K onto my “valuation.” The City tax will add another $600.00 to the burden.
Please, this is the only tax we could NOT have! I think most of us would rather keep our homes, and keep our lower payments than pay for “dark sky programs,” flood abatement that should be coming through FEMA and Army Corps of Engineers, and there is federal money available for roads and bridges/infrastructure. We don’t need a complete redo of roads that result in emergency vehicles, RVs and even large trucks not being able to turn onto the newly redone streets. Just stop spending and actually make and follow a responsible budget.
Kathy McGill
Moab, Utah
