Latest news with #AssessorOffice
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Land, mobile homes, city center condos see largest increases in value in Spokane County this year
Jun. 6—Vacant land and mobile homes are hot commodities, according to the latest data from the Spokane County Assessor's Office. Property owners across the county began receiving their property assessments for 2026 taxes this week that serve as the county's estimates as of Jan. 1. They tend to be lower than what a property would fetch on the market, and year-over-year increases and decreases usually vary neighborhood to neighborhood. Spokane County Assessor Tom Konis said that of the nearly 215,000 properties appraised by his office this year, rural lands, manufactured homes and condos at the city's core saw the largest increases in value for residential properties. The value of the average Spokane County home climbed from $428,617 to $435,028 this year, a 1.5% increase following the county's first decrease last year after a decade on the rise. Spokane County home values have more than doubled in the last seven years, growing from an average of $209,659 in 2018 to around $430,000 for the past three years. "The residential real estate market appears to have calmed down in most areas," Konis said in a written statement. "Additionally, land is in high demand and prices continue to rise." Southern Spokane County properties near Spangle, Fairfield, Rockford and south of Cheney saw the biggest increase, with residential properties to the east of U.S. Highway 195 growing in value at an average of 5.9%, and properties to the west of the thoroughfare slightly behind at a rate of 4.5%. The growing allure of rural lands is consistent across the county, Spokane County Deputy Assessor Joe Hollenback said. Vacant land, whether zoned for commercial or residential use, saw an average increase countywide of around 10%, according to Assessor's Office data. Manufactured homes on leased land grew in value by a whopping 13%, which Konis said he believes is because of their affordability. Demand is growing as other entry-level housing becomes more unaffordable. Recent legislation limiting rent increases of the land and mobile home parks the structures sit on could further fuel their popularity. Rounding out the increases this year are the residential units in downtown Spokane and Kendall Yards, which saw an average increase of nearly 9%. That's despite commercial office buildings seeing a decline of 6% and losing tens of millions in assessed value over the past five years, as previously reported by The Spokesman-Review. Konis said homeowners can use the assessments they have, or are soon to receive, to get an idea of what their 2026 tax bill will be by using the estimator tool available on the county's website. Launched in 2022, the tax estimator tool provides a ballpark of what homeowners can expect; it is not a comprehensive prediction. That's largely because the assessor's office can't calculate tax bills until late December. County staff can only set levy rates once they know every local government budget and every voter-approved levy and bond issue. The largest chunk of a homeowner's taxes — often more than 50% — goes to schools. About 15% of Spokane County property taxes go to cities and towns. Fire districts get about 12% of the pie, and the county government receives 8%. Smaller pieces go toward road funds, libraries, cemeteries and parks.
Yahoo
28-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Thousands of wildfire victims are having tax refunds sent back - Here's how to get your money
The Brief Thousands of victims of January's Palisades and Eaton fires are entitled to some money from Los Angeles County. County officials have started mailing checks, but many are getting sent back, because the mailing addresses are for destroyed buildings. Anyone who's eligible for money from the county should update their address on the LA County Assessor's website. LOS ANGELES COUNTY, Calif. - If you lost your home in the Palisades or Eaton fires earlier this year, Los Angeles County may owe you some money. The county has started sending out checks, but thousands are being sent back. FOX 11 spoke with LA County Assessor Jeff Prang about how you can make sure you get your money. The backstory The Palisades and Eaton fires destroyed more than 16,000 structures between the Pacific Palisades, Pasadena and Altadena communities. After the fires, the Assessor's Office re-evaluated the value of properties in the disaster zones. Many properties saw their value lowered, entitling owners to tax refunds. SUGGESTED: California lawmakers announce new legislation supporting inmate firefighters Thousands of checks have already gone out, but fire victims can also apply for relief on the Assessor's website, Dig deeper The County Auditor-Controller has already sent out thousands of checks to those who are entitled to some money, but there's one big problem. In many cases, the address of record is the destroyed property, so the Post Office is sending the checks back, marking them undeliverable. SUGGESTED: PCH is back open, and Malibu businesses couldn't be happier Prang says they've already gotten some of the checks back, and he expects thousands more to follow. The fix is simple. All you have to do is update your mailing address on the Assessor's Office website at The Source Information in this story is from an interview with Los Angeles County Assessor Jeff Prang, the county Assessor's website, and City News Service.
