There are many certification programs involved with property tax. I suggest that every NC property tax student be familiar with which organizations provide certifications, credit hours, and the requirements of those organizations. A certification or designation is required by law for some positions. Two are required in the assessor’s office. If you are one of the 100 appointed county assessors in North Carolina or a county appraiser, you must be certified by the NC Department of Revenue. Becoming and being a certified assessor or appraiser includes requirements for initial certification (certifying education) and also follow-up requirements for continuing education. If you represent yourself as a real estate appraiser but do not fill one of the two positions above, NC law requires your certification to be through the NC Appraisal Board. All other certification programs for property tax are not legally required in NC law but may be required by your employer or by your association. Perhaps you’re not currently in a position that is required to be certified but your future could lead you in that direction. Regardless, I think you should maintain your course records for attendance and successful completion of property tax courses. I have recognized uncertainty in this area over the years and it seems to be more so in recent times. I hope this post is a way to help bring us back to certainty. Continue reading
Author: Kirk Boone (page 1 of 2)
“I can’t think of anything that shows you are more committed to your work and your profession than a professional designation. A job applicant who has a professional designation earns an automatic interview from me.”
Marcus Kinrade, AAS, RES
Wake County Tax Administrator
In this post, I wanted to share that the School of Government’s Knapp Library has a new collection for North Carolina’s assessment community. This is a short post because I anticipate most of the reading will occur as you explore the links in this post. In January, IAAO announced the availability of their new collection of informational books on assessment, Apendium.
The county assessor’s office has a role in damage assessment.
WHY?
For a 12-minute video overview of why local governments and the assessor should talk about this topic every year, watch this.
Damage assessment is a required process in North Carolina local government after a disaster for reasons in two categories.
First, the county assessor has the legal requirement to assess property for tax purposes. Part of that requirement includes recognizing a change in the January 1 value of land or improvements resulting from physical change such as damage, destruction, or construction.
Second, to estimate damages for other, non-property tax-related purposes.
See additional damage assessment resources from the second category on our SOG resources page, here.
Since the assessor’s office maintains property data, is required by law to have appraisal experience, and assesses January 1 physical characteristics due to damage and construction even in years without a disaster, the assessor’s office should probably be part of a local government’s damage assessment plan.
In November 2024, The NC Association of Assessing Officers hosted a one-hour 45-minute presentation at their conference providing an overview of the damage assessment process and the assessor’s role in Onslow, Craven, Dare, and Ashe Counties. See that presentation here.
WHO?
After a disaster, individuals in local governments who are tasked with the damage assessment process have suffered loss themselves. With that in mind, assessors can offer assistance to one another and share expertise with affected counties. Hosea Wilson in Dare County is no stranger to disasters and the damage assessment process. He and others offer their assistance along with the support of the NCAAO/NCTCA.
Hosea Wilson, AAS, PPS, Dare County Assessor, 252-475-5938
Kevin Turner, AAS, Onslow County Assessor, 910-937-1230
Wes Wilson, RES, AAS, Onslow County Appraisal Supervisor, 910-937-1271
Justin Deese, RES, Craven County Chief Appraiser, 252-636-6640
Chris Lambert, Ashe County Assessor, 336-846-5553
If your office can spare help with damage assessment or otherwise, make sure your county emergency manager is aware that you have staff that can assist impacted counties so it can be coordinated through the webEOC system. And if you’re an impacted county, consider asking for this type of assistance so your staff can be at home with their family and friends as much as possible.
Together will will get through this. Together we can discover better ways to support one another through these times.
Dare County Disaster Assessment Guidelines / FEMA Damage Assessment Matrix
Note documents under this header are examples used in Dare County for prior damage assessment and may be modified for use in other counties. Hosea Wilson, Dare County Assessor.
DA_Guidelines Dare County guidelines – A quick reference guide to have in the field.
FEMA_DamageMatrix Dare County modified these for their jurisdiction and damage types
FEMA Damage Descriptions with photos
Dare County found that besides a field reference, review of these pre-event is helpful for consistency of reporting.
IAAO Resources provided October 7, 2024 in the wake of Hurricane Helene.
Jeff Neibauer, Brunswick County NC, Managing a Tax Office and Revaluation During a Natural Disaster Post Hurricane discussion begins at the 19-minute mark
Property Assessment in the Wake of Natural Disasters 2024
The importance of imagery- Disasters happen 2022
IAAO resources provided September 11, 2018 as Hurricane Florence was approaching NC.
Disaster_Recovery_Subject_Guide_Updated2018
Disaster_Help_A_Resource_for_Diaster_Control_and_Prevention_Initiatives
Disaster_USA_A_Perspective_on_the_Aftermath_of_Hurricane_Katrina
Many thanks to the IAAO Paul V. Corusy Memorial Library.
It wasn’t always called the NC Candidates’ Club. There was no need to designate it as the “NC” club because we were the only such club in the nation. The club started in 1984 at what was then called the “Institute of Government”, so it was first named the Institute of Government’s Candidates’ Club. Just one year earlier, a young appraiser who started his career in Tennessee began lecturing at UNC’s Institute of Government. His name was Joe Hunt and is now known by many as one who advanced the science and art of property tax assessment in North Carolina.
Joe Hunt, CAE
How might a citizen advisory committee aid in the reappraisal process? In the SOG publication, “Creating and Maintaining Effective Local Government Citizen Advisory Committees, Upshaw, 2010″, here is the introductory reason to have CACs:
When communities face complex issues affecting large, diverse groups, citizen engagement leads to people being better informed, better able to collaborate with others, and more active in addressing issues that affect them. By sharing responsibility, local officials increase opportunities for citizens to contribute to the common good.
A question was asked earlier this week about a company’s records that do not agree with previous listings. I think an important question to ask in these situations is whether either resource (the records or the listing) match what really exists. This brings up a few good business personal property topics to review. Do you believe in Ghosts? Don’t be scared.
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| …on a south branch of White Oak on the south south side as follows. Beginning at a pine thence So67W 140 poles to a branch to three pines thence So7Et 120 poles to a post…to the beginning Containing 100 acres more or less. |
A county mapper recently contacted me with a question and not surprisingly I had to learn the answer myself to provide an answer. I am not a mapper nor have I had the opportunity to work closely with mappers, so if you can add to this discussion, please do so below through “Leave a Reply”. While searching for the answer, some documents were revealed that I think will be helpful to others.
The issue involved a county that assesses land based on deeded acres, which may include road right of way. The question was whether there is guidance to help establish a county policy identifying assessment best practice regarding situations where deeded acreage may include road right of way or when deeded acreage varies from calculated acreage. The answer is, yes.
This post shares some information coming from the recent announcement of USPAP availability online. It’s also a reminder of how to join PTAX, and where to find the latest PTEP calendar. If you have questions or comments about any of these, please click “Leave a Reply” at the bottom of this post.
KISS is only one acronym or abbreviation for the minimalist approach I’m referring to in this post. Another popular way to put it is “less is more”. Maybe my favorite is “simplicity is the ultimate sophistication”.
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