Why do tax appraisers not appraise a property based off of its real-world valuation at the time of appraisal? Why is there such a huge disparity between tax appraisers and real-estate appraisers for sale?

Question

Why do tax appraisers not appraise a property based off of its real-world valuation at the time of appraisal? Why is there such a huge disparity between tax appraisers and real-estate appraisers for sale?

In: 43

Answer 1

Some properties have recent, real world valuations while others do not… some information is known, others is not.

Say there are 2 similar homes — same size lot, same size square footage. One last sold in 1980 for $50k. The other sold in 2022 for $500k. Before it sold, the owner spent $150k replacing the kitchens, bathrooms, flooring, painting, new lighting, etc.

So what’s the value of the old home that hasn’t sold in 40 years? Tax appraisers don’t go into every home to document how nice the finishes are, how recently the kitchen was last updated. At best, they do a cursory exterior review to verify that lot size and square footage roughly match what the county has, that type of building is consistent, etc.