Cuyahoga County has recently sent property owners their reappraisals on their property. Notices were mailed to more than 489,000 properties in Cuyahoga County. As in many cases in Cuyahoga County, North Royalton property has seen an increase.
According to the Cuyahoga County Fiscal Office, “Under Ohio Law, (ORC 5713 and 5713.33) the County Fiscal Officer is responsible for the valuation of all real estate. There are two cycles performed to complete this task. One is the sexennial reappraisal (every six years) and the other is a triennial update (every third year between reappraisals). 2018 was the reappraisal and 2021 is a triennial update.”
The difference between a sexennial reappraisal and a triennial update is that the sexennial reappraisal requires the property to be personally viewed. “Once viewed and the data is verified, an analysis of recent comparable sales is utilized to set market value on a parcel-by-parcel basis,” according to Fiscal Office officials. A triennial update does not require a physical viewing of the property. “Its purpose is to ‘update’ the values that were set during the prior sexennial reappraisal. Valid arms-length sales are analyzed to determine the ratio between the sale amount and the certified value. Once determined, this ‘factor’ is applied to all residential parcels for each distinct Municipality (or market area).”
In this case, the “triennial update relies on an analysis of sales that have taken place in the past three years to determine whether a change in market value has occurred since the last reappraisal, which was conducted in 2018,” according to the Cuyahoga County website. “The county-wide residential value has increased by 16 percent, county-wide commercial value has increased by 4.8 percent, county-wide industrial value has increased by 8.7 percent, and the county-wide total for all classes has increased by 12.8 percent.”
North Royalton residential and commercial property values increased up to 19.9%, which is about mid-range for Cuyahoga County overall. While some cities did not change at all, most increases ranged up to 29.9%. A few cities also increased at least 30%. “While the latest values released by the county mostly go up and down at the same rate by neighborhood, not every property in any neighborhood is the same. You can use this information to start judging whether this is the time to prepare an appeal in an attempt to lower your county-determined value,” according to the Cuyahoga County website.
These new appraisals will dictate the new real estate tax for each of these properties. Those tax bills should be received by property owners by the end of the year. The payments will be due in January and July, 2022. Those who disagree with the proposed valuation can file a formal complaint with the Cuyahoga County Board of Revisions between January 1 and March 31, 2022. Those filing a formal complaint still need to pay their tax bill on time. If the complaint is filed and a reduction in the tax bill is decided, a refund or credit will be instituted.
For more information, visit the Cuyahoga County Board of Revision website at bor.cuyahogacounty.us for more details on filing a dispute. There is also a short video on how a hearing is conducted. For instructions on a hearing, contact their office at 216-443-7195 or borinfo@cuyahogacounty.us.
By GLORIA PLEVA KACIK
Contributing Writer