Clatsop County is in fundraising mode.
This week the Assessment and Taxation Department is doing it's part by launching an unusual door-to-door campaign to figure out how much the county could tax you if the moves Democrats are making toward taxing real market value come to fruition.
Right now your property taxes are figured based on assessed value not real market value. Limitation measures prevent increases of more than 3% annually but if the base figure changes that 3% could be a significantly higher number for you. The County points out in a news release this week that because of budget limitations the A&T department since the 1990's has been figuring real property values based on a few site inspections but generally pegged the price of homes in a particular neighborhood on how much a house would sell for in that neighborhood.
That system, they say, isn't very accurate because houses sitting on properties next to each other can be of widely varied quality. To get a more accurate picture a house by house assessment becomes necessary. The problem with this, of course, is that a property is only worth what a buyer will pay not what an expert estimates it's value might be in a free market with optimum conditions. In other words, the assessment system for real market value is flawed from the very start.
It is important to note that you are not required by law to allow access to your property. You are not required to grant access to the inside of your home or any other building on your property. That does not mean an assessment won't take place but it does mean the inspector will have to do it from the nearest public right of way if you ask them to leave your property.
You can expect to hear a lot of support for this return to on site assessments from the usual suspects who would love to see an overall increase in taxable value. They will say that it makes sense to know exactly what your property is worth and it is possible your real property valuation could drop. That doesn't mean you'll pay less tax because the county automatically increases property taxes 3% each year on the assessed value and this little exercise is aimed at real market which (up to this point) have been two separate things. If the tax and spend crowd gets their way Clatsop County will be at the forefront of places in Oregon no one but the rich can afford. For many we are there already.
