Albemarle County, VirginiaOffice of the County Assessor

Authority for TaxationConstitution of Virginia

• ARTICLE X• Taxation and Finance• Section 1. Taxable property; uniformity; classification and segregation.• All property, except as hereinafter provided, shall be taxed. All taxes shall be levied and collected under general

laws and shall be uniform upon the same class of subjects within the territorial limits of the authority levying the tax, except that the General Assembly may provide for differences in the rate of taxation to be imposed upon real estate by a city or town within all or parts of areas added to its territorial limits, or by a new unit of general government, within its area, created by or encompassing two or more, or parts of two or more, existing units of general government. Such differences in the rate of taxation shall bear a reasonable relationship to differences between nonrevenue-producing governmental services giving land urban character which are furnished in one or several areas in contrast to the services furnished in other areas of such unit of government.

• The General Assembly may by general law and within such restrictions and upon such conditions as may be prescribed authorize the governing body of any county, city, town or regional government to provide for differences in the rate of taxation imposed upon tangible personal property owned by persons not less than sixty-five years of age or persons permanently and totally disabled as established by general law who are deemed by the General Assembly to be bearing an extraordinary tax burden on said tangible personal property in relation to their income and financial worth.

• The General Assembly may define and classify taxable subjects. Except as to classes of property herein expressly segregated for either State or local taxation, the General Assembly may segregate the several classes of property so as to specify and determine upon what subjects State taxes, and upon what subjects local taxes, may be levied.

• The amendment ratified November 6, 1990 and effective January 1, 1991—Added a new paragraph after paragraph one.

Authority for AssessmentConstitution of Virginia

• Section 2. Assessments.• All assessments of real estate and tangible personal property shall be at their fair

market value, to be ascertained as prescribed by law. The General Assembly may define and classify real estate devoted to agricultural, horticultural, forest, or open space uses, and may by general law authorize any county, city, town, or regional government to allow deferral of, or relief from, portions of taxes otherwise payable on such real estate if it were not so classified, provided the General Assembly shall first determine that classification of such real estate for such purpose is in the public interest for the preservation or conservation of real estate for such uses. In the event the General Assembly defines and classifies real estate for such purposes, it shall prescribe the limits, conditions, and extent of such deferral or relief. No such deferral or relief shall be granted within the territorial limits of any county, city, town, or regional government except by ordinance adopted by the governing body thereof.

• So long as the Commonwealth shall levy upon any public service corporation a State franchise, license, or other similar tax based upon or measured by its gross receipts or gross earnings, or any part thereof, its real estate and tangible personal property shall be assessed by a central State agency, as prescribed by law.

Albemarle County Code• ARTICLE X. REAL ESTATE - IN GENERAL

• Sec. 15-1000 Annual assessment of real estate.

• A. All real estate in the county shall be assessed annually for purposes of taxation director of finance of the county as of January 1 of each year.

• B. The office of real estate assessments of the county shall annually conduct a new reassessment of all real property to be applicable for the tax year beginning January 1, 2007, and every tax year thereafter.

• C. All assessments of real estate in the county shall be made at one hundred percent (100%) of fair market value.

Duties of the County Assessor’s Office

• Annual Assessment of All Real Estate• Administrative Assessment and Board of Equalization

Reviews• Assessment of New Buildings Substantially Complete• Assessment of New Lots and Parcels• Administer the Land Use Assessment Program• Mapping of New Parcels, Splits and Mergers• Record Management from Deeds, Wills and Other

Recorded Documents• Tax Exemptions by Classification• Tax Exemptions for Qualifying Veterans

Specific Requirements of the County Assessor

• Manage the Office of the County Assessor• Mandatory Member of the Ag/Forest District

Advisory Committee• Chairperson of the ACE Appraisal Review

Committee• Meet the Requirements of Virginia Code 58.1-

3258 as a Qualified Assessor

Assessor’s Office Statistics

• 44,755 Parcel Count ( 43,369 Taxable, 986 Exempt)

• 4,711 Parcels in Land Use Assessment• Total Fair Market Value - $21,848,066,700• Taxable Fair Market Value - $17,745,914,400• Exempt Fair Market Value - $4,102,152,300• Land Use Deferred Value - $1,944,356,500• Office Staff – Assessor, Assistant Assessor, 8

Appraisers, Three Administrative Support

How Are Assessments Determined• Mass Appraisal is the systematic appraisal of properties as of a

given date using standardized procedures and statistical testing.

• As compared to

• Single property appraisal is the valuation of a particular property as of a given date.

• In both all three appraisal approaches to value are considered and the most appropriate is considered as the property value. The three approaches are the cost approach, comparable sales approach and income approach.

Assessment Review Process

• Notices of Reassessment are Mailed the end of January

• Administrative Review Request are Held Through February 28th

• Board Of Equalization Appeal Deadline is March 16th of the Tax Year. All BOE Appeals must be finalized by September 1st of the Tax Year.

• Appeals to the Circuit Court Must be Filed Within Three Years of the End of the Tax Year.

What Should I Do?

• Review Your Property Record For Accuracy

• Visit the County’s Website to Review Sales Information and Comparable Assessment

• Discuss Your Assessment With the County Appraiser In Your Area.

What Are My Rights

• The Real Estate Assessment Process Is One of the Most Transparent Functions of Local Government

• You Are Entitled To All The Working Paper Used In Estimating The Value of Your Assessment.

Assessment of Conservation Easement

• The assessment of Conservation Easement are governed by Code of Virginia Section 10.1-1011.

• Qualifying land is assessed at land use assessment rates

• Non qualifying land and buildings are assessed at fair market value.