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The assessor is a State certified individual whose duties are to discover, list, and place a value on all taxable real and personal property in the municipality, in a uniform manner.  The assessor is not involved in the collection of property taxes.

To make a proper assessment on a building, it is desirable for the assessor to see the inside and the outside of the property.

The law requires that property be valued from actual view or the best information available.  The assessor keeps records on the physical characteristics of each property in the municipality.  Even though the assessor may have been unable to go through your property, the assessment will still be reviewed, based on the existing records and the sales of similar properties.

When an interior inspection is not allowed, the assessor will attempt to update the records by looking at the property from the outside and using any other available information.  To ensure an accurate assessment, it is to your advantage to allow the assessor inside your property when an inspection is requested.  

Your construction cost is an historical figure, which may or may not reflect the current market value of your property.  It is only one element that will be considered.

Generally speaking, improvements that increase the market value of a property will increase the assessed value.  The following are typical items that will increase the assessed value of your property:

Added rooms or garages

Replacing older siding with aluminum or vinyl siding

Substantial modernization of kitchens or baths

Central air conditioning

Fireplaces

Extensive remodeling

Good maintenance will help retain the market value of your property.  Generally, your assessment will not be increased for individual minor repairs such as those that follow; however, a combination of several of these items could result in an increased assessment.

Repairing concrete walks and driveways

Replacing gutters and downspouts

Replacing water heater

Repairing or replacing roof

Repairing porches and steps

Repairing original siding

Patching or repairing interior walls and ceilings

Exterior painting

Replacing electrical fixtures

Replacing furnace

Exterior awnings and shutters

Weather stripping, screens, storm windows, doors

Exterior landscaping including lawns, shrubbery, trees, flowers

General economic conditions such as interest rates, inflation rates, supply and demand, and changes in tax laws, will influence the value of real estate.  As property values change in the market place, those changes must be reflected on the assessment roll.

There are differences between individual properties and between neighborhoods. In one area the sales may indicate a substantial increase in value in a given year.  In another neighborhood there may be no change in value, or even a decrease in property values.

Different types of properties within the same neighborhood may also show different value changes.  For example, one-story houses may be more in demand than two-story houses, or vice-versa.  Older homes in the same area may be rising in value more slowly than newer homes.

There are numerous factors to be considered in each property, which will cause the values to differ.  Some of the factors, which can affect value, are location, condition, size, quality, number of baths, basement finish, garages, and many others. 

Wisconsin law requires that whenever an assessment changes, the owner must be notified.

Talk with the assessor.  During this informal session you can learn how your assessment was made.

You should arrange to appear at the Board of Review.  The municipal clerk will provide you with an objection form that you must complete.  You will then be scheduled for a hearing at the Board of Review.

When you receive your tax bill in December, it is too late to file an objection.  Paying your taxes under protest does not constitute an assessment objection unless you have first filed an appeal with the Board of Review.

The Board of Review is made up of either local officials or citizens appointed by the governing body.  It is the Board's duty to hear evidence by the taxpayer and the assessor and to decide if the assessment is correct.

State law puts the burden of proof on the property owner to show that the assessment is incorrect.

Keep in mind that your evidence must be strong enough to prove that the assessor's value is incorrect.  The Board will consider only relevant testimony given at the hearing.  STATING THAT PROPERTY TAXES ARE TOO HIGH IS NOT RELEVANT TESTIMONY.  You should establish in your own mind what you think your property is worth.

The best evidence for this would be recent sale prices for properties similar to yours. The closer in proximity and similarity the comparable properties are the better the evidence.  Another type of evidence is oral testimony from a witness who has made a recent appraisal of your property.

The Board will either give or mail your notice of its decision.  The notice will contain information on how you may appeal the Board's decision if you do not agree with the Board's determination.

Though the value of your property affects your share of taxes, the actual amount you pay is determined by the budget needs of the schools, city, county, sewer district, technical college, and state reforestation.

All of these taxing units decide what services they will provide in the coming year and how much money they will need to provide those services.  Once this decision is made, a tax rate is adopted that will generate the needed dollars.

Your property taxes are then determined by multiplying the tax rate by your assessment.

(Tax Rate 1000) X Assessed Value = Taxes

Although your tax payments are made to the Treasurer, a large share of your tax dollars are turned over to other governmental units such as the schools, county, sewer district, and the state.

ASSESSED VALUE: An estimate of value assigned to taxable property by the assessor for purposes of taxation.

MARKET VALUE: The amount a typical well-informed purchaser would be willing to pay for a property.  For a sale to represent market value the seller and buyer must be unrelated, the seller must be willing (but not under pressure) to sell and the buyer must be willing (but not under any obligation) to buy.  The property must be on the market for a reasonable length of time, the payment must be in cash or its equivalent, and the financing must be typical for the type of property.  If all of these conditions were present, this would be a market value, arm's length sale.

REVALUATION: A revaluation is a complete and thorough review of all assessments.  During a revaluation, all assessments are examined and adjustments are made where necessary to guarantee that all property is assessed at market value.  This is done to assure that taxes are distributed equitably and uniformly.

TAX BASE: The total assessed value of all assessments in the municipality.

TAX LEVY: The total amount of property tax money that a taxing unit (such as the schools, city, county, etc.) needs to raise, to provide services. 

TAX RATE: The tax levy divided by the tax base.  It is often expressed in terms of dollars per hundred or dollars per thousand. The tax rate is multiplied by the assessed value to determine the amount of tax that each property must pay.