Nearly 700 Barrington residents turned out Thursday night to protest their recent property assessments and more than 900 residents have signed a petition that asks the Town Council to delay its revaluation for one year so that a new revaluation can be done. The Town Council did not take any action Thursday night. Rhode Island law mandates cities and towns to complete regular appraisals of all taxable property. In every nine-year cycle, a "walk through" evaluation is completed with two intervening three-year statistical reviews based largely on the sales of property in the town. What most people don't know, is even though the assessment goes up, the mil rate usually goes down, so often the taxes are about the same. Further, if you believe your new value is incorrect, there is a process by which you can appeal. To be successful, an appeal must provide evidence that the appraised value from the assessor does not reflect the market value of the property. This evidence usually includes comparable sales data or information about conditions the assessor may not have known.
- Errors in the description of your property (does it say you have three bedrooms when you only have 2).
- Neighbors with lower assessments on similar houses.
- Value reducers in your home or area, including drainage problems, easements, re-zoning, heavy traffic, nearby railroad tracks, freeways, industry or toxic waste.
- Depreciation factors, including the quality of materials, inefficient heating, structural cracks, deterioration, or chronic defects.
