Property valuation and tax change notices have arrived in mail boxes around Uintah County and some were surprised to see an increase in property taxes and property values from the year before. Uintah County Clerk-Auditor Mike Wilkins explains that overall tax rates actually went down from what was needed to bring in the same revenue as last year. Uintah County took a cut of more than $2 million dollars and the Uintah School District went down $3.5 million dollars for a total tax decrease of $5.5 million dollars. Wilkins also explains that the overall value of Uintah County went down $427 million dollars which means a decrease in centrally assessed value. This creates a tax shift from centrally assessed property of big companies that used to be in Uintah County to locally assessed property of homeowners. To clarify how property values were determined, Uintah County Assessor Barbara Simper explains that their office divides Uintah County into 5 areas. One area is updated each year with a physical inspection from the outside. An assessment is made in person with pictures taken to see if anything significant has changed like having a garage added or removed. For all 5 areas, comparables from the market are pulled during the analysis to determine the current market value of a property. Simper explains that their analysis will also review the region, neighborhood or subdivision in general when considering value. Based on the happenings of 2020, it may seem that values should have gone down but Simper explains that the 2020 valuation has a data cutoff of January 1st. “Values have gone up and a lot of homes have sold,” shares Simper. “Our lien date was before the COVID pandemic so we can’t take that into account for the 2020 valuation.” Property valuation notices were mailed out on July 22nd. If you have questions concerning the market value on your 2020 notice, you can contact the Assessor’s Office at 435-781-5323. If you have not received your notice, please call the Clerk-Auditor’s Office at 435-781-5363.
