Property Tax Facts
How levies can affect your
taxes: Taxes affect all our lives. And levies are the
way many taxing districts choose to raise the money to support the
services their
taxpayers demand. Let's take a brief look at how levies operate.
First, let's define
the basic terms:
Mill: A unit of measure, 1/1,000 milligram, milliliter,
millimeter, etc. When talking
about taxes, a mill is $1.00
in taxes for every $1,000 of assessed value.
Assessed Value: In Ohio, the assessed value of real estate is
35% of the property's
estimated market value.
Market Value: The sale price of real estate as agreed upon
between a willing buyer
and a willing seller, with neither being under
any duress to either buy or sell.
Who sets
the real estate market value? The County Auditor has the responsibility
for
determining the market value of all real estate in the county. The
County Auditor
then calculates the assessed value for each property.
How is market value determined?
The
County Auditor uses real estate sales in the county, specific property
characteristics, and statistical analysis to arrive at the market value
for every
property in the county. The market value is determined as of
January 1st of the
year of the assessment.
What happens when a tax levy is passed by the voters?
Every
levy ballot must contain language showing the year the levy commences
(begins). For example, "...commencing tax year 2001"; taxpayers within
the district
where the levy's been approved will begin paying what they
owe on the tax levy
in the year of collection. The amount of millage
they will pay ($1.00/$1,000 of
assessed value of their real estate's
value) is based on the amount of money the
levy must collect.
Frequently Asked Questions
- What is a renewal with an increase?
- As the population rises in a district so
does the amount of money that a levy will collect. In order to
receive the added money because of increases in value, the
district changes the levy to renewal with an increase. Using
this instead of a replacement will allow the levy to still
receive rollback money from the state EXCEPT
for the increase portion of the levy.
- As the population rises in a district so
does the amount of money that a levy will collect. In order to
receive the added money because of increases in value, the
district changes the levy to renewal with an increase. Using
this instead of a replacement will allow the levy to still
receive rollback money from the state EXCEPT
for the increase portion of the levy.
- How often does the County Auditor update market values?
-
Every six (6) years the County Auditor does a field inspection of all the real estate in the county, called a revaluation.
If ordered to by the Department of Tax Equalization, the Auditor also performs an update of property values three (3) years after the six-year revaluation.
Carroll County's valuation cycle is:
- 2010 Previous Update
- 2013 Previous Revaluation
- 2016 Update
- 2019 Revaluation
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- How much can I expect to pay in taxes for a 1.00 mill levy?
-
Assuming the market value of your home, which is your primary residence, is $100,000, your tax bill for a "1 mill" levy is calculated as shown below.
Sample of the effect of a 1.00 mill tax on a $100,000 home's tax bill:
$100,000
Market value of your home
$35,000
Assessed value of your home (35% of $100,000)
$35.00
Gross taxes of 1.00 mill ($1.00/$$1,000 assessed value)
- $3.50
*State of Ohio 10% Rollback
-$0.88
*State pays an additional 2.5% as an exemption for the primary residence
$30.62
Net taxes for 1.00 mill levy
* If the levy is a new or replacement levy after 2013, the 10% and 2.5% rollbacks do not apply since the State of Ohio will no longer give the rebate for these levies.
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- What is inside millage?
- Inside millage
is limited by law to 10 mills for any taxing
district. Because they are inside mills, these 10 mills can be
collected as a levy without being voted on by the people in the
taxing district.
- Inside millage
is limited by law to 10 mills for any taxing
district. Because they are inside mills, these 10 mills can be
collected as a levy without being voted on by the people in the
taxing district.
- What is outside millage?
- Outside millage
is all other millage requested that is over the 10-mill limit.
Outside mills must be voted upon and approved by the majority of
the voters in the taxing district where the tax will be levied.
Because of H.B. 920 (passed in 1976), there is a cap on the
amount of money a levy can collect. That means a levy can
collect no more in the future than it collets during the first
year it's enacted.
- Outside millage
is all other millage requested that is over the 10-mill limit.
Outside mills must be voted upon and approved by the majority of
the voters in the taxing district where the tax will be levied.
Because of H.B. 920 (passed in 1976), there is a cap on the
amount of money a levy can collect. That means a levy can
collect no more in the future than it collets during the first
year it's enacted.
- What is a replacement levy?
-
A replacement levy allows the taxing district to change an existing levy. Possible reasons for a replacement levy are:
- Change in amount of time for the levy (ex. continuous instead of 5 years)
- Change in the millage
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- What is a renewal levy?
- A renewal levy allows the taxing
district to keep a current levy on the books and collect the
same amount of money as when the original levy was voted in.
- A renewal levy allows the taxing
district to keep a current levy on the books and collect the
same amount of money as when the original levy was voted in.
- What is a "rollback"? What is the 2.5% exemption?
-
The State of Ohio pays each subdivision (school, township, village, count board or district) for the portion of the taxes that are either "rolled back" or exempted.
The rollback reduces the property taxes due by 10%.
The 2.5% exemption reduces the property's taxes by that amount only if it is the person's primary residence.
As of November 2013, any levy that is not a renewal will no longer be subject to these rollbacks. The state has lifted these rollbacks for all new and replacement levies.However, if a person is either totally disabled or elderly (and meets the income and eligibility requirements), there could also be an additional tax exemption on the property.
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Also, if a new house is built, or improvements, such as a deck, garage, porch or building addition is made to a property, the property's market value could increase annually until the improvement is completed.