Officials: Property tax may rise
Taxable
value of homes not necessarily tied to county's falling real estate market values
By MELISSA FOLLOWELL
MANATEE
- Even if the market value of local real estate depreciates,
homeowners shouldn't expect to see a savings when it comes to taxes, experts say.
While the market value
of a home may stay the same or even fall slightly, the taxable value of a home may still increase, said Manatee County Property
Appraiser Charles Hackney.
While there is a belief that homes are losing their value, it is really just
the stabilizing of a market that experienced skyrocketing gains for several years.
"What is happening
is a lot of unrealistic gain is going away. We're getting back down to 8 percent appreciation a year," Hackney said.
The Manatee County Property Appraiser's Office reviews
home values each year based on geographic locations. Almost halfway through its review of 2006, values seem to be holding
steady or showing some appreciation. The appreciation is nowhere near the level seen during the real estate boom, but Dale
Friedley, of the Property Appraiser's Office, predicts there will be an 8 to 14 percent appreciation across the board.
"Next year is a whole other story," Friedley added.
If there is to be a slip in
the market value of homes, Friedley and Hackney expect it will show up in 2007.
"The real correction and the pain
is just getting started," Hackney said.
Joyce Smith and her family have lived in Creekwood for nine
years and have watched the cost of homes rise and fall.
"There are 20 to 30 homes for sale here and they've
been sitting for a year. When they do sell, they're not getting what they got five years ago," Smith said.
Even so, Smith knows if they move into a home comparable to the one they are currently in, their property taxes would increase
dramatically.
Under the Save Our Homes cap, otherwise known as Amendment 10, the cap values can continue
to rise 3 percent annually until they reach market value.
"We're at a standstill," Smith said.
If - and experts say that's a mighty big if - the market value of homes falls considerably, those without
homestead exemption status may see the biggest tax benefit.
"If they have a homestead and they've
been saving under Amendment 10, their taxes will still go up 2.4 percent next year," Friedley said.
Patrick
McGuire, sales manager of Buccaneer Realty, said he has never seen anybody's assessed value rolled back. "You would
have to have a longer-term sustained depressed market."
Both Hackney and McGuire agree that the county
would find a way somehow to collect the taxes they need.
"It's up to the county to set the millage
rate," Hackney said, adding that they are "addicted to" the level of taxes they are receiving.
McGuire agrees.
"The county will find the money somewhere," he said.
