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Recession complicates property reappraisals in Mahoning County

Published: Sun, October 18, 2009 @ 3:45 p.m.

By Peter H. Milliken

The county’s last complete appraisal was done six years ago.

YOUNGSTOWN — Mahoning County’s real-estate reappraisal is being complicated by the recession-induced sales shortages, according to the reappraisal company.

“There are fewer transactions to work with. There’s less sales activity,” from which comparable selling prices can be derived, said Richard Barrett, an appraiser with the Niles-based Integrity Appraisal Services Inc.

The county auditor’s office hired Integrity in March to perform the once-every-six-years reappraisal of the county’s 166,000 parcels of real estate to determine their value for taxing purposes. The actual tax rates are set by voters in each community.

So far, all parcels in the county have been photographed; and appraisers have visited 24,000 of them, all in Youngstown, as the company has begun its two-year task.

The field work will continue through the winter, and likely into next spring in Youngstown, which contains about one-third of the county’s real estate parcels, said Doug Constance, Integrity’s treasurer.

Barrett explained how the shortage of sales data makes the appraisers’ task more difficult.

“If I went into a neighborhood and I had 50 sales, I’m more comfortable with my value than I am if I go into that same neighborhood and I only have 10 sales,” Barrett said.

Read the full story Monday in The Vindicator or Vindy.com.


Comments

1 pci510 (58 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

Property values have been put to the very lowest they will reach with the mortgage crisis and with the recession. Many politicians have said that property taxes should be considered unconstitutional do to false info, people on welfare programs and those whom have several children by several different marriages that everyone else has to pay for. Those whom do not need officers or ambulatory services and those whom have no children living at their residence is a prime example of unconstitutional. That is a small amount of explanation which has been spoken about by those in the political career. There are several more valid reason for unconstitutional including job loss, reevaluation loss, damages by weather and the list goes on. Posted by Tera

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2Read blog Stan (2577 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

It's all about raising the value of your property . Many didn't mind paying overinflated prices as long as financing was available . Now with foreclosures and sales by lending institutions for what the market would bear ,Youngstown property is at an all time low . Will they devalue property for tax purposes ? Not a chance . They will raise it far beyond market value . How many would have the money to take them on in court for their overinflated valuations ?

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3 shadowman (55 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

Four years ago when I bought the house I live in, the bank sent their appraiser. Three years later with the drop in interest rates, I applied to refinance. The appraiser came out and wrote an appraisal for $35,000 less than the one that was written three years earlier. When I told him of the amount of the prior appraisal, he said I paid way too much for the house and questioned the experience of that appraiser. So I pulled out the old appraisal and he asked who wrote. I looked at it, looked up at him and said "you did."

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4 UnionForever (262 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

Property values have dropped significantly - that's reality. These appraisals had better show that in spades. I would suggest property values are half or less of what they were. You can't sell a house in the valley these days. I just wonder what the schools and county will do with their property tax losses? They better get ready for the cut in revenues now.

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5Read blog Stan (2577 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

"Property values have dropped significantly - that's reality. These appraisals had better show that in spades."

The appraisal is all about raising property values . Their main worry is that they may not be able to raise them high enough . Brace yourself for a property tax increase either by appraisal and or a higher rate on the property value .

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6 jimmy349 (9 comments)posted 1 month, 5 days ago

One of the big problems is that when the market was good People were having their homes appraised high many of these were created by house flippers who would buy a vacant home low but have an appraiser come in & slip them a few extra $$$ for a higher appraisal. Then would turn around & sell the home for more than 2.5 x it was actually worth then sell the home to someone who really couldn't afford the higher payment so let it go into foreclosure. Your homes are not made of gold. One of my old neighbors sold their home in now known as a rough neighborhood in the Cottage Grove area. back in 06 For $65000 while other homes went from $18000 to $38000. Take the money & run. while other homes were left vacant,torched, or boarded up. with the Street thugs left free to roam the streets & intimidate the rest of the people in the neighborhood. Anyone heard of the Dale Boys?

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