County property taxes drastically increase

Property owners in Carbon County received their tax statements for 2023 last month. According to County Assessor Renee Snider, on average there was an increase of 18-20% in property taxes for the county.

Unfortunately, there seems to be little relief for taxpayers as the Wyoming State Legislature managed to pass just two bills out of 16 regarding property taxes in 2023.

Market Inflation

According to Snider, there were two major factors in the “substantial increase” seen in property taxes this year: inflation and market forces.

“Inflation over this last year drove values up quite a bit,” said Snider. “Look at what it costs to even go buy a two-by-four now versus what it cost a couple of years ago.”

Indeed, the cost of construction materials jumped by 20% from January 2021 to January 2022 according to a data analysis by the Associated General Contractors of America. Lumber and plywood, in fact, saw a 21.1% increase year-over-year. Other significant increases, according to the analysis, included a 112.7% increase for steel mill products, a 24.3% increase for products such as paint and a 56.5% increase in diesel prices.

The housing market, meanwhile, also drastically increased. According to Realtor, the median home price in September 2020 was $237,000 with a peak in April 2022 of $350,000. As of August 2023, the median home price had dropped, slightly, to $347,500.

“Part of my job is I have to look at all of the sales that happen in Carbon County for property and then—when houses are consistently selling—the department of revenue says I have to be in the range of what houses are consistently selling for,” said Snider. “What the real estate market is doing drives the values up also.”

In the Platte Valley, properties have been limited since the COVID-19 pandemic. According to Realtor, the median time a property was on the market was 34 days. In April 2022, the median amount of time property was listed as 17 days. This limited inventory, at least anecdotally, led to some houses being involved in bidding wars or potential buyers offering up to twice the asking price. In instances where there were bidding wars, Snider says that doesn’t factor into property tax increases.

“We look at each sale individually and we determine whether it’s a valid sale, which is truly reflective of the market,” said Snider. “If somebody got into a bidding war for a property, that would not be a valid sale because you had more than one person driving that value up trying to get that home.”

Still, the demand for homes in Carbon County—and especially the Platte Valley—isn’t taking place in a vacuum.

“We’ve had all of these out-of-state people gradually coming into Carbon County and that influences everything because they’re willing to pay more,” said Snider. “They’re consistently paying more and the realtors are listing houses for what they feel they can sell them for.”

No April Fools

If the increase in property taxes comes as a shock, said Snider, it’s likely due to people not looking at their Notices of Valuation which are mailed in April.

“When we mail out Notice of Assessments, that opens up a 30 day window where people can call—and should call—and question their value,” said Snider. “Some people call, a lot of people just kind of ignore them because it says ‘This is not a bill.’ When people get their bills in September, they get the shock of their life.”

Unfortunately, said Snider, by the time people receive their property tax statements it is too late to make any changes. The best her office can do is update their information for the next year. According to Snider, changes to a property which could affect taxes would include both exterior and interior changes.

“If we have interior characteristics of the home incorrect. A big one is basement finishes,” said Snider. “If somewhere along the lines, my office got the information that the basement was fully finished and there was a water break or something where they had to tear out part of the finish on that basement, if we don’t know about it we can’t correct it.”

No Relief in Sight?

With such a drastic increase in property tax values, it is likely taxpayers are looking anywhere for relief. However, the only relief they would be able to find, comes in the form of amendments to the property tax refund program which passed the Senate 18-13 and the House 50-12. Such refunds, said Snider, are handled by the treasurer’s office and the Wyoming Department of Revenue.

During the general session, held earlier this year, a total of 16 bills and resolutions were introduced in both the House and the Senate. A number of bills would have provided exemptions for elderly and veterans, homeowners and childcare facilities. The bill for elderly and veterans died in the house committee while the bill for homeowners died in the senate committee. The exemption for childcare facilities, meanwhile, failed 15-47.

House Bill 125 would have exempted the primary residence of either a resident over 65 years old or a veteran from taxation if they had lived in that residence for more than 15 years. To obtain the exemption, the resident would have had to sign a sworn statement on or before March 1 of each year.

House Bill 98 would have exempted a portion of property used as a primary residence from taxation. A homeowner could only claim one exemption per year, which would be up to $50,000 of the fair market value providing it did not exceed 25% of the total fair market value of the property. To claim the exemption, a homeowner would have needed to be a resident of the state for five years or more.

House Bill 151 would have exempted all childcare facilities, either governmental or non-profit, from taxation.

Open Door Policy

Though there may be little relief for such drastic increases, Snider said her office has an “open door policy” for the taxpayers of Carbon County. Though there may be some shock among taxpayers when it comes to their annual levy, much of what her office does is regulated by the State of Wyoming.

“We are governed by the department of revenue and the state board of equalization. The legislature sets our rules and regulations and then the department of revenue and the state board of equalization make sure I’m in compliance,” said Snider. “We have rules to follow when we’re setting values and if we don’t stay in compliance, they will come in and do our job for us.”

Though there may not be much her office can do about the numbers generated when it comes to property taxes, Snider said she’d like the public to come to her office with questions.

“We’re more than happy to explain where we came up with that number,” said Snider.