49°
Though most applications are filed only on paper, some residents came out to have the Board of Assessment Review hear their cases.
At the Village of Larchmont's Tax Grievance night, Mary Jo Mitchell spoke to the three-person board about her assessment. She explained that the Town of Mamaroneck had assessed her Willow Avenue home's tax at $10,000 less than the Village of Larchmont's assessment.
“It’s not fair that it’s assessed in one part at $25,000, and then the Village thinks it’s $35,000," Mitchell said. "It used to be all the same when it was one board, but now there is this discrepancy.”
This is only the second year that Village of Larchmont has its own Board of Assessment Review. Prior to that, only the Town of Mamaroneck was assessing Larchmont homes.
“I just recently feel that the property has been diminishing value because of the large addition that’s going next door," Mitchell added. "It’s very large and it’s encroaching on what was our privacy.”
She said she also determined that her assessment should be lower, based on sales of recent homes in her neighborhood.
"If you have good evidence, then you have a good chance of being able to lower your assessment," said Dan Whittemore, the Village of Larchmont Assessor. "The bottom line is to prove that your assessment is actually too high for the property – you just bought the house, you had a recent appraisal or refinancing, those are good ways to go about that."
There were a lot of renovations and additions to homes in Larchmont in the past year. Whittemore said he does the assessment roll based on the changed value of these properties.
"The Town of Mamaroneck will be doing a revaluation and coming up with new market values next month," he said. "People are waiting for that to see how this is going to impact their taxes. I think they’ll get a lot more challenges in the Town. Every house is getting a brand-new assessment, as opposed to just rolling over."
Robert Fletcher, a member of the Board, said they do not see many cases such as Mitchell's, since most of the assessments are the same in the Village and Town.
The Board of Assessment Review will notify those who filed grievance applications of its decision on April 1. Those who missed the tax grievance period can submit cases next year.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Mamaroneck and receive free news updates.
