Gallatin County Totally Freaks Out As Shocking New Property Assessments Arrive

Did your head explode this week as you opened your new Gallatin County property assessment? You're not alone. Nobody expected their property taxes to go down or stay the same - we all knew they were going up. HOWEVER, the increase this year for most property owners is downright painful.

IMPORTANT: This article is somewhat of a 'Part 1' regarding these new Gallatin County property assessments. They JUST got here. There are conversations to be had with County officials. Some Town Hall style meetings may be held to further explain the assessments. The assessments were made at perhaps the 'most expensive' time in Gallatin County's recent history.  But most importantly in my opinion - there ARE discrepancies in assessments this year that used to grow/increase identically.

• According to the Montana Department of Revenue, "January 1, 2022 is the mass appraisal valuation date for the 2023-2024 valuation cycle." This is important to remember, no matter what angle of the property assessment discussion we're talking about. That date - IS WHAT IT IS.
• Search your property by address to see the Property Record Card with the State of Montana. This information isn't terribly detailed, but it will give you a quick glance of the Market Value and Taxable Value of your property over the last three years.
• "Local construction cost data is collected statewide on all property types for the development of cost tables used in calculating accurate estimates of replacement cost new." (Montana Department of Revenue)
• When valuing land, "The sales comparison approach is the primary land valuation method used by the department."

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IN MY OPINION, there are two important initial concerns with the Gallatin County 2023 property assessments. First (but not surprisingly) the assessed values shot up drastically. Mine shot up 30%. Second (and WAY more concerning to me) is that very similar properties that have 'been parallel' for many years when it comes to property taxes - are no longer similar on this assessment.

My neighbor and I are a prime example of what I just mentioned. Their house is newer and little bigger - my lot is a little bigger. None of the differences are drastic, hence the assessed values have historically been very similar. Not this year. THIS ASSESSMENT shows about a 27% difference, with theirs being on the high side. THEIR assessed value shot up 52% since the last assessment two years ago. 30% vs 52% increase. HOW?

Montana Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Property Classification and Valuation Manual 2023-2024

Governor Gianforte signed three House Bills into law to provide tax rebates for eligible Montana taxpayers. House Bill 192 provides a rebate for individual income taxes paid in tax year 2021. House Bills 222 and 816 provide a rebate for property taxes paid in tax years 2022 and 2023.