Major Duties

Discover

To ensure that all property that should legally be on the county assessment roll is properly listed, classified and valued, it must first be located and identified. This task of discovery is a constant attempt to capture all new construction, additions and demolition of existing improvements, as well as changes to land use and configuration. To accomplish this, assessment personnel track items for information about property status:

• Building permits
• Completion notices
• Property sales
• Zoning changes
• A host of other sources

Field inspections of all subdivisions and rural sectors of the county on a regular basis help the Assessor keep records as up-to-date as possible with regard to property changes. Discovery of personal property is accomplished through a reporting schedule that businesses are required to file each year by March 1, listing all personal property or updating those schedules already on file.

List

After locating property, assessing personnel must accurately record and list all of that property's characteristics to properly value the land and all improvements. All structures and extra features are measured, and amenities or features that affect the market value of the improvements such as bathrooms, interior and exterior trim, floors finish, roofing type, etc. are noted for quantity and quality. After all data has been collected on a property, the information is compared to all similar properties using a computer-assisted mass appraisal (CAMA) system that contains the property characteristics of all land and buildings in the county.

Classify

Along with assigning a value to the property, the Assessor also establishes the classification or "use category" for each property, which determines the assessment level that will be used in taxation for that property. Tennessee law establishes the following assessment levels for different property classes:

Value

The rules governing the tax appraisal process in Tennessee are based upon the same principles and procedures that are used throughout the appraisal profession. There are three basic approaches to the valuation of real property:

1. The market approach involves a comparison of a property to other properties with similar characteristics that have recently been sold.
2. The cost approach involves estimating the replacement cost of a structure and adjusting that estimate to account for depreciation.
3. The income approach is an analysis of a property's value based on its capacity to generate revenue for the owner.

The goal of the Assessor is to estimate fair market value for all property in the county. Fair market value is defined as how much a property would sell for, in an open market, under normal conditions. To determine market values, the assessor must be familiar with all aspects of the local real estate market, such as: what different types of properties are selling for, local construction and repair costs, normal operating expenses, typical rents, and current financing charges for borrowing money to build or buy property.

Map

For the Assessor, maps are a means to inventory all real property within the jurisdiction. The Assessor is required to maintain an up-to-date set of maps that display all of the parcels in the county, detailing their locations and physical characteristics. In Washington County, this is accomplished through the use of a CAD-based geographic information system (GIS). Master digital maps are updated to reflect new subdivisions, surveys, property splits and the combining of parcels as they occur, and then paper maps are printed and placed in cabinets for reference and public viewing.


Appeals & Tax Rolls

Each year, the assessor is required to create and maintain an assessment roll detailing all county property, its owner, and its value. This roll, with preliminary, or tentative assessments, is made available for public inspection in May. Property owners whose properties have changed in value are notified by mail of those changes and are given an opportunity to appeal any values they feel are inconsistent with the fair market value of their property. The County Board of Equalization, after hearing owners' appeals and ordering any changes they feel are warranted, makes the assessment roll final for the year. The Assessor of Property then turns the rollover to local taxing authorities.