Ada property assessments are out. See how homes in your neighborhood are affected
After two years of large fluctuations in property values in Ada County, most residential properties this year saw modest increases in what County Assessor Rebecca Arnold called a “return to more ‘normal’ market activity.”
“For 2024, assessed value changes … were more modest as the 2023 market normalized and the erratic value swings experienced in prior years smoothed out,” she told the Idaho Statesman in an email.
Most residential property types saw increases between 5% and 8%, though luxury homes, waterfront properties and homes with large lots saw greater increases. Garden City saw a 2.5% median increase in residential property values, the lowest in Ada County. On the other end of the spectrum, property values rose over 7% in Star.
Most commercial property values, meanwhile, were “relatively flat to modestly increasing.” This was “a big change” from 2023, when commercial values rose steeply because of 2022 market activity, she said.
Higher property values don’t necessarily mean owners will pay higher taxes, because taxes rates are determined primarily by how much money taxing jurisdictions — cities, counties and school districts, for example — need to pay for the projects and staffing they have budgeted. The budgeting process is ongoing now for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1. Property owners will receive tax bills in November, with taxes due in December.
State law limits the amount that local taxing jurisdictions can raise taxes in a single year. Taxing districts can also reduce their levy rates (the percentage of a property’s value that the local government will tax) to offset property value increases.
To assess property values, the county assessor’s office considers median home sales prices in a given area, which it then applies to all homes in that area. These assessments are rooted in the previous year’s market activity, Arnold said.
Last year, residential property values decreased for the first time since 2012, by about 15% on average. At the same time, commercial values increased significantly.
Huge increases in property values in 2022 led to a corresponding increase in appeals in Ada County, with twice as many appeals filed as in 2021, the Idaho Capital Sun reported.
For a breakdown on how much assessments changed this year by neighborhood, visit the Ada County Assessor’s data dashboard on the county website.
Individual homeowners should have received their property assessments in the mail starting Memorial Day weekend. They can also look them up at adacounty.id.gov/assessor.
This story was originally published June 10, 2024 at 12:00 AM.
