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What does the county Assessor’s office do?
The assessor is required by Utah Law to list and value all property for "ad valorem" ("according to value") taxation on an assessment roll each year.
The Lien Date or date of value is January 1. This means that what the property looks like on January 1 is how the property is valued for that tax year.
For example, if a house is under construction and is 50% complete on January 1, the tax amount would be 50% of the
total market value.
The assessor’s office is responsible for valuing real property, ensuring the equity of real property values,
reviewing Board of Equalization appeals, valuing personal property, and greenbelt
What does the county Assessor’s office NOT do?
The Assessor’s Office does not set the tax rate or collect taxes that are due.
Tax rates are set by taxing entities within each tax district (ie, city, county, school district, water district, etc).
The Davis County Treasurer’s Office collects and disperses real and personal property taxes.
What is "Truth in Taxation"?
Utah has a law called Truth in Taxation. This law is revenue-driven, not rate-driven.
When property values rise property tax rates fall. The adjusted rate each year is called the Certified Tax Rate.
Certified Tax Rate is that rate which will yield the taxing entity the same property tax revenue that it budgeted
in the previous year, excluding new growth. When a taxing entity (city, county, school district, water district,
etc.) proposes to increase its property tax revenues above what was budgeted the previous year a public hearing
and public notice is required by law. A Truth-in-Taxation hearing allows tax entities to explain reason for
the proposed increase and allows the citizens to comment on the proposed increase.
Do I pay taxes on 100% of market value?
State law required that county assessor’s value all taxable properties at market value. Market value is the amount of money that a willing and not obligated buyer is willing to pay a willing and not obligated seller. This type
of sale between not obligated buyers and sellers is also called an arm’s length
transaction.
The tax value is a percentage of "fair market value" or "use value" as prescribed by law. Property is
assessed as follows:
LAND – 100% of its "fair market value" or "use value"
COMMERCIAL PROPERTY – 100% of "fair market value"
RESIDENTIAL PROPERTY (excluding personal property) – 100% of "fair market value".
However, the Utah Constitution allows a residential exemption or reduction in taxable value of 45%.
The residential exemption is limited to one primary residence per household.
This exception applies to the first acre of land in addition to the residence in the case of a single
family property.
First the county makes a site visit to each property. This is typically done when a home is being built, or there is a change to the existing structure. The county also regularly re-inspects existing properties throughout the county.
There are three approaches to value: Sales Comparison, Cost Approach and Income Approach.
SALES COMPARISON: The most common approach to valuing residential properties is the sales comparison approach. This method compares your house to others that have sold recently. The appraiser makes adjustments to the sale prices of comparable properties for different variables including but not limited to date of sale, location, size, quality, condition and amenities.
The lien date is January 1, so home sales from the previous year are analyzed. The sales are carefully analyzed to determine if they were arms length
transactions. An arms length transaction defined as "A sale between a willing buyer and a willing seller that are
unrelated and are not acting under duress, abnormal pressure or undue influences, both seeking to maximize their
positions from the transaction".
COST APPROACH: This method is based on how much money it would take, at current material and labor costs, to
replace your property with one similar, plus the cost of the land. Then the appraiser needs to determine how much
value has been lost due to depreciation. There are three forms of depreciation: physical depreciation, functional
obsolescence, and external obsolescence.
INCOME APPROACH : This method uses industry-derived typical market income figures to determine how much income a
property should generate and how much it should cost to maintain and operate that particular property. When these
values are considered and a net operating income is derived, that figure is then capitalized at a rate based on
market data in order to determine the market value for the property being analyzed.
Do I have to let the County appraiser come into my house or onto my property?
It is probably in the best interest of property owners to allow the appraiser to inspect the exterior and interior of their property and buildings.
This will ensure the accuracy of the property assessment and the fairness of any resulting property taxes.
Of course property owners have the right to refuse access to Assessor Office personnel. If access is refused,
the appraiser will estimate the value of the property using whatever information they have available.
The newspaper recently had a report on market values in my zip code, will these
percent changes equal the percent change for my assessment?
Newspapers often publish sales data in a summary format for large areas, such as
by zip code, by city or by county. This information can show general trends in
the market. However, these trends should not be compared to the percentage change
in your January 1 assessed value. One reason for this is that the time period can fluctuate for the
reporting of the data. The assessment office primarily relies on sales during the past calendar year within
precise areas and of properties that are more similar in nature to your property.
What do I do if I find incorrect data on the website for my property?
How do I ensure that this data is corrected?
The Davis County Assessor’s Office prides itself on maintaining accurate real estate data as the basis
of the assessments for all property owners. Please notify us immediately if you note an error in our
description of your property by sending an Email
or by calling 801-451-3250.
What if I don’t agree with my assessment?
Valuation notices are mailed out to property owners on approximately July 23rd. If you do not
receive yours, please call the Davis County Auditor’s Office at 801-451-3329. The deadline to file
an appeal is either 45 days after the notice is mailed or September 15th, whichever is later. The
deadline is displayed on the valuation notice.
