Property values upped by (at least) 3 percent
By Suzanne Werre, BHG News Service
After the April 16 tax equalization meeting in Underwood, it’s likely most Underwood home and/or property owners are glad their property is in Underwood rather than Garrison, at least as far as property taxes go, as Garrison’s property values were increased by the Board of Equalization by 12 percent, whereas Underwood’s went up an across-the-board minimum of 3 percent following recent assessments required by state law. Some property owners, who had either made significant improvements to their properties or had severely previously under-valued properties, saw greater increases in their property values. In effect, for every $1,000 of value the property increases, owners can expect to add around $11 or $12 to their tax bill, according to information provided by the BOE’s Ryan Oberg. Oberg noted that there were about 30 Underwood properties that had an additional adjustment beyond the 3 percent tacked on to their valuations. Only two Underwood property owners/residents, Melvin Berg and Joe Fleischman, were in attendance at the April 16 equalization meeting to question their recent assessments, both of which had gone up much more than the minimum 3 percent. Since Fleischmann and Berg were in attendance at the city BOE meeting, they have earned the right to protest their assessments at the county BOE in June, and ultimately, the state BOE in August.
