Stunned by spiking Fayette County property values? Blame housing crisis, locals say
After valuation notices went out to property owners across Fayette County this week – bringing “sticker shock” to some surprised by big jumps in their assessment – we asked locals for their reactions.
“It’s no surprise,” said Blake Hall, who owns a home on Richmond Avenue in Lexington.
“It’s upsetting, but it’s not surprising,” Hall added, blaming a “substantial housing shortage” he said Lexington has done little to address.
“It’s a scarce commodity,” he said of his home, which jumped this year in assessed value from $264,000 to $353,000, according his property assessment notice. That’s an increase in taxable value of nearly $90,000.
Despite the shock he felt after opening the notice he got in the mail, Hall’s not planning to protest it.
Hall said he doesn’t have a case to challenge the assessment. A house across the street from his home recently sold for $387,000, he said. Hall also expects he’ll be able to afford the increase he’s likely to see on his property tax bill in the fall.
The clock is ticking for those who are looking to protest, however. The appeal process for the most recent assessments ends May 16.
Hall said the bigger problem is many old neighborhoods around town have consistently opposed new housing developments over the years, creating what he called an “artificial limit” on housing.
That’s pushing up property tax bills as home assessments rise, Hall said.
In addition, he critiqued current homeowners with “woe as me” attitudes as the same people who’ve historically opposed housing developments he said would ultimately bring housing costs down over time.
Local homeowner Barry Saturday disagrees.
“It’s not a NIMBY thing,” Saturday said, referring to the acronym for “not in my backyard.”
The phrase has historically been used to criticize opponents of proposed developments and strict land-use policies, particularly multi-family developments and those that would house lower-income families.
Saturday, who owns a home on Laredo Drive, laid the blame at the feet of the city’s planners. He took issue with Lexington’s current comprehensive plan, effectively a blueprint for the city’s future development.
There is opportunity to increase housing supply, Saturday said, provided Lexington’s Planning Division stops constricting development and new building projects are ultimately allowed to extend beyond the Urban Service Boundary.
Saturday is running for a seat on Lexington City Council and said his home value assessment jumped up $63,000 this year, from $123,000 to $186,000.
“I immediately appealed and they dropped it to $162,000, making it closer to a 33% increase,” Saturday said of his home assessment.
Although likely to give him a bigger tax bill this year, Saturday said he plans to stay where he’s at, but other families might not be so lucky.
For many homeowners, the issue only adds to the general rising cost of living.
“It’s going to push a lot of people out of the county,” Saturday said.
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