North Carolina law requires that real estate be appraised at “fair market value.” This is defined as the price at which the property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller in an arms-length transaction.
Despite the expected reduction in the tax rate, a significant increase in property tax value may still result in an overall increase in the property taxes of a given piece of real estate. This likely means that Wake County will implement lower tax rates in 2020. However, Wake County is expected to target, at least initially, a “revenue neutral” tax rate, meaning a tax rate that generates the same amount of tax revenue in 2020 as was generated in 2019, despite the overall increase in property tax values. The specific property tax rates applicable for 2020 will not be set until later this year, so the exact impact on property taxes caused by the increased values is not yet known. The current revaluation, effective on January 1, 2020, is the first time that Wake County has performed a county-side revaluation since January 1, 2016.Īn increase in property value does not necessarily mean an increase in property taxes. This is intended to allow the assessed tax values of properties in Wake County to better track changes in the market. Wake County has chosen to shorten the time between reappraisals, now reappraising property every four years. On average, the assessed values of residential properties increased by 20%, and commercial properties increased by 33% from their 2019 values.īy law, every county in North Carolina is required to appraise all real property in the county at least every eight years. If you are like most property owners in Wake County, you may find that the new tax value of your property is a significant increase from the 2019 value. If you own property in Wake County, you have likely received a notice from the Wake County Tax Department of the new value assigned to your property effective January 1, 2020.