CLEVELAND — On average, property values in Cuyahoga County experienced a significant 32% increase with the latest round of reappraisals.
State law prevents taxes from increasing by the same proportion, but residents are still raising concerns about steep jumps in value.
The county has a calculator on their website that residents can use to estimate how much their taxes may go up, and this week, leaders are hosting a series of community meetings to help educate residents about the appraisal process and its impact.
“Taxes are a result of a state law that requires real property tax to be charged against 35% of your assessed value,” Lisa Rocco, the Director of Operations in the county’s fiscal department, said. “Now, there is something that the legislature did pass in 1976 that is called House Bill 920. It redistributes who pays what in each community based on where your value is, comparative to the average increase in your community.”
Inner-ring suburbs saw the highest jumps in valuation, with cities like East Cleveland and Newburgh Heights increasing over 65%.
Rocco said that is because sales have gone up in those neighborhoods, and out-of-state investors are setting the market rates.
One Cleveland resident, Brenda T. Marshall, said her home’s value nearly doubled.
A cancer survivor, Marshall says her medical debt is a heavy burden, and she’s scared this appraisal could cost her the home she worked so hard to get.
“I’m very afraid,” she said. “I’ve been through some very, very difficult times. I didn’t go to the government begging for anything. I worked hard and we pay our debts the best that we can.”
The county was required by state law to conduct their six-year reappraisal for over 500,000 parcels this year.
Rather than going inside all of those homes, they base values on sales over the past three years and an evaluation of the exterior of the property from the street.
If you don’t feel you could sell your home for the value the county has proposed, there is a process to file a complaint.
You can do that by tearing off the bottom of the notice and dropping it off at county headquarters or mailing it in, or you can file a complaint through their website.
“We’re looking at something that we may have overlooked,” Rocco said. “Again, we don’t know what’s happening inside the house. We don’t know if there’s water damage. And, you know, if you don’t feel you can sell your house for what we proposed. Those are the issues we want to hear about. We don’t want to hear, well, my neighbors this and I’m this.”
For more information on the county resources available for residents and community meetings scheduled through the end of the week, click here.