Starting in November, parcel owners in New Castle County and Sussex County have received a Tentative Assessed Value Notice as part of the ongoing property reassessment process. Each Tentative Assessed Value Notice provides the parcel owner with notice of the newly determined assessed value for the subject parcel to be effective for tax year 2025. The assessed value is “tentative” until it has been certified on the tax roll, so each parcel owner or their assigned agent, can contest the tentative assessed value via an informal value review hearing with a Tyler Technologies representative (Tyler Technologies was contracted to handle the property reassessment for all three counties). These informal appeal hearings, which can be held in-person or via phone call, allow parcel owners the opportunity to informally present documentation to correct inaccurate property information and show that the proposed tentative assessed value exceeds its fair market value, as of July 1, 2024. These must be scheduled before Tyler Technologies closes scheduling for each parcel that an owner wants to discuss. The results of the informal appeal hearings are expected to be sent to the parcel owners in writing via USPS mail by February 2025. A similar process was completed in Kent County last year for the 2024 tax year. Parcel owners who disagree with the results of the informal appeal hearing will need to file a formal appeal for each parcel by the applicable County’s deadline under 9 Del. C. §8311, or they will be estopped from appealing their assessment.
Importantly, tentative assessed value is only one part of the equation, so the Tentative Assessed Value Notices DO NOT include the projected tax rates or anticipated taxes. While countywide reassessments are generally intended to be revenue neutral, state law controls how much additional revenue can be generated from reassessment. Specifically, each County is capped at a 15% increase in tax revenue and a school district is capped at 10% in additional tax revenue, however, there is no statutory limit on the amount of additional tax revenue a municipality may raise. Officials from all three Counties have committed to raising no additional revenue from the current countywide reassessment, which originated from a landmark ruling of the Delaware Court of Chancery in 2020, In re Delaware Public Schools Litigation, C.A. No. 2018-0029-JTL (Country Track), 2020 WL 2296888 (Del. Ch. May 8, 2020), but now that Delaware has enacted legislation requiring each County to conduct a regular property reassessment at least every five years, it is unclear if this commitment is limited to the current reassessment. With respect to the new tax rates for tax year 2025, New Castle County and Sussex County are not expected to announce the rate until June or July 2025.
PENDING DEADLINES:
- New Castle County:
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- Informal Appeal Hearings: Friday, December 20, 2024 – Tyler Technologies to close scheduling for informal appeal hearings. An informal appeal hearing can occur after the scheduling deadline if scheduled before.
- Formal Assessment Appeals: March 14, 2025 – Deadline to file an appeal to the Board of Assessment Review for New Castle County under 9 Del. C. §8311(a).
- Sussex County:
- Informal: Appeal Hearings: Friday, December 13, 2024 – Tyler Technologies to close scheduling for informal appeal hearings. An informal appeal hearing can occur after the scheduling deadline if scheduled before.
- Formal Assessment Appeals: March 1, 2025 – Deadline to file an appeal to the Board of Assessment Review for Sussex County under 9 Del. C. §8311(c).
“What should I be doing?”
If you are a parcel owner in New Castle County and/or Sussex County, you need to immediately complete your review of the Tentative Assessed Value Notice. If you notice any factual inaccuracies or feel the proposed tentative assessed value exceeds a property’s fair market value, you or your authorized representative should contact Tyler Technologies to schedule an informal value review hearing, in-person or via phone call, before the applicable scheduling deadline. You should collect permitted documents supporting your position to share with Tyler Technologies as part of the informal value review hearing. You should also consider contacting a licensed Delaware appraiser regarding obtaining an appraisal of your parcel, so you can meet the applicable deadline to file a formal appeal, if needed.
If you have questions or need any assistance, please contact Fred Mitsdarfer at (302) 757-7800 or Frederick@tarabicosgrosso.com