LEXINGTON, Ky. (LEX 18) — A group of homeowners in Lexington is brainstorming ways to limit how quickly property taxes can rise. As the real estate market has skyrocketed the last few years, so too have people's taxes. They hope to take their argument to Frankfort.
Thursday night, Ed Brown led a group of people from the neighborhood along Tates Creek in a discussion about the recent property reassessments they just got in the mail.
"I'm a single woman who is retired and when I got this tax thing, I thought, what am I going to do?" one woman said to the group.
It's an issue that a lot of people across the country have been dealing with these past few years as property values have skyrocketed. Fayette County Property Value Administrator David O'Neill said on his Facebook page last month that he's concerned about the state of the housing market and its affordability. He said his office is required by state law to assess properties at 100% of their fair cash value.
Due to delays during the pandemic, he said a lot of homes are seeing their first reassessment in five or six years, which can mean huge increases.
"We are facing 40% to as much as 100% increases in tax payments," Brown said.
Brown and the homeowners who showed up tonight are working to organize an effort to reach out to state lawmakers to push for change. They also shared ideas about how to appeal assessments.
"I would like to see us cap it at 2023 assessments, and then in 2025, increase that by maybe the national CPI, which is the consumer price index," Brown said.
It's just one idea. Brown and these neighbors hope it can be the start of some kind of change.
"We need somebody to step up and take responsibility," he said.
