KIMBALL COUNTY ASSESSOR’S 5-YEAR PLAN

Revised for September 1, 2004

2001-2006

I, Alice Ryschon, County Assessor for the County of Kimball, Nebraska, submit the following revised 5-year plan of assessment pursuant to section 77-1311, as amended by 2001 Neb. Laws LB170, Section 5.

This plan must be submitted to the Kimball County Board of Equalization and the Department of Property Assessment and Taxation on or before September 1, 2001, and every five years thereafter. The county assessor shall update the plan each year between the adoptions of each five-year plan. The plan and any update shall examine the level, quality, and uniformity of assessment in the county and may utilize a progress report developed by the department.

The budget of the Kimball County Assessor’s Office for 2003-2004 was $164,125. The request for 2004-2005 was $171,569.84. The increase was due to a salary increase of 2.5% and I was hoping for some extra money to hire an appraiser to come in and revalue the grain elevators. The number of employees I have is sufficient to meet the needs and duties of this office. The Commissioners have been very good in allowing me the budget I need to do the job. However, to date the County Commissioners are not complete with the process but the $5,000 to revalue the grain elevators was removed. The staff will remain the same as last year.

The Kimball County Assessor’s Office staff consists of the following employees:

Assessor – Alice Ryschon

Deputy Assessor – Frances Janicek

Clerks – Sherry Winstrom, Wiletha Bell,

Sallie Mihalek

VERY BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES AS RELATED TO THE 5-YEAR PLAN

Deputy Fran Janicek does the real estate transfers, sales verification process, answers the phone, computer work and waits the counter. Fran helps with the administrative job of the Assessor and everything else that is asked of her. The job of doing the real estate transfers are further into this 5-year plan.

Clerk Sherry Winstrom manages the review process. She is in charge of organizing the work. She is the main person and does the physically inspections with the help of Sallie and Wiletha. Sherry also manages the annual pickup work and everything else that is asked of her.

Clerk Sallie Mihalek manages the GIS project, does the review work and annual pick up work. Sallie is very knowledge reading legal descriptions since she worked with the surveyor for years. Sallie also does everything else that is asked of her.

Clerk Wiletha Bell manages the personal property assessments of commercial and agricultural. Wiletha is the person doing the phone calling setting up appointments for the review process. Wiletha is processing the digital pictures and bringing them into the CAMA program. Wiletha also does everything else that is asked of her.

According to the 2004 abstract parcel count in Kimball County is as follows:

REAL PROPERTY

(Statutes located in Chapter 77 and Rules and Regulations furnished by the Property Assessment and Taxation Department and Rules set by the Nebraska Tax Equalization and Review Commission)

Residential Property	1,831
Commercial Property	419
Industrial Property	9
Agricultural Property	1,450 unimproved parcels
	614 improved parcels
Exempt Property	468
Producing Minerals	240
Non-producing Minerals	278
Totals	5,309

PERSONAL PROPERTY

(Regulation 20 – Schedules must be filed 1/1 to 5/01 of each year.)

Commercial Property	546
Agricultural Property	265
Total	811

HOMESTEAD EXEMPTIONS

(Statutes 77-3510 thru 77-3528, Applications must be filed on or before June 30 of each year.)

206 Exemptions filed in 2004

1. Appraisal work in office being done on a continuing basis:

a. Review urban properties on computer for correctness. All urban properties have been entered, but needs to be reviewed for accuracy.

b. Complete entry on rural buildings & homes. Most of information is entered on house and being reviewed.

c. Begin entry on commercial property

d. Depreciation study for all properties. I have started and hopefully will be completed by January 1, 2005

e. Lot and Land market study done for all properties

f. Sketches updated on computer (CAMA) as per review.

g. New Property record cards and folders will be developed for better organization after the Property Assessment and Taxation Department reviews and redefines the parameters in Regulation 10.

h. Digital Pictures taken of every property and scanned to computer and placed in file

i. GIS System and the new soil survey

Kimball County has contracted with GIS Workshop of Lincoln for a GIS system.

Kimball County is in the process of getting a new soil survey. The fieldwork is complete. However, we have not heard when the maps will be ready for implementation. Apparently, the soil scientists are working on the manuscript.

2. Appraisal work outside of office.

Organize and physically inspect each parcel in Kimball County, City of Kimball, Village of Dix and the Village of Bushnell. Last time this office reviewed property everything was completely measured and all homes drawn to scale. It will not be necessary to re-measure all improvements, only when the reviewers feel there is reason. A reason being, when the taxpayer questions the size or when the reviewer can tell if the building has been added on it or deleted from.

a. Rural (Property Class 4000 and 4500)

1. Improvements – inspections

(Condition of outbuildings is very important)

2. New photos taken

3. Land use – work with FSA office to review their slides.

b. Urban & Suburban (Property Class 1000)

1. Improvements – inspections

2. New photos taken

c. Commercial (Property Class 2000)

1. Improvements – inspections

2. New photos taken

Note: commercials in Kimball are being reviewed with the residential property. We will have to do the commercials in the rural area when town properties are done.

The review process is as follows:

· Postcards are sent to the property owner, telling them that we will be out and to please call the office for an appointment. If we do not hear from them, Willie “B” is calling to make an appointment and explains why we are doing the review. A team of 2, Sherry Winstrom and Sallie Mihalek, do the review. Willie “B” Bell goes when needed. One person asks the questions while holding the card and one person does the writing, however they both do the inspection.

· Ninety-five percent (95%) of the time, the property owner takes the team through the entire property. They are checking our appraisal card to make sure the correct information is noted such as; room count, bathrooms/fixtures, etc. In the basement, we are checking for the correct finish and room count. If the basement has finish, they are making a determination if it is minimal or partitional. They are re-measuring if the card appears to be different then what is there.

· More questions are asked about kitchen and or bathroom remodeling and when it was done.

· We are reviewing the kind of heating/cooling system in place, and if there has been any rewiring of electricity or if plumbing has been updated.

· Re-measuring will happen if the team looks at the sketch and sees something has been changed.

· Outside decks, patios and slabs are noted and re-sketched if different. Garage finishes are noted.

· If the property owner does not allow a tour of the home, the questions are still asked and recorded.

· A sheet with the above information is presented to the property owner for review, then they are asked to review the sheet and sign and date it.

· Pictures are then taken of the front of the property, the back of the property, garages, decks or sheds.

· The information is then brought back to the office for finalization.

· The pictures are downloaded onto the computer and then matched to the property record card in CAMA

· A property record summary is typed and attached to the record card.

· The information is then checked with the appraisal card and changes are made to the card and to the record. CAMA is checked and corrections made and sketches redone if necessary. When sketching, they are trying to get the correct placement of house with outbuildings.

After all of the property has been physically inspected and information updated, a pilot study will be done on the sale properties before applying new depreciation to the remainder of the properties. New values will be sent to each taxpayer in Kimball County.

The Assessor is in the process of entering sales information into a spreadsheet so that a new deprecation schedule showing new market information is obtained for all homes in Kimball County.

Along with this, the annual work within the Assessor’s Office will continue. This work consists of:

1. Annual Review of the level of value for all types of property and adjust by percentage to achieve the standards set out by the TERC This will be done until the new information and sales study may be completed. The statistics that will be examined yearly will be:

1. Median

2. COD

3. PRD

For 2004, percentage adjustments were made to achieve standards set out by the TERC. The adjustments made are as follows:

· Residential Property (except Mobile Homes)

· City of Kimball - Increased Improvement value 5%

· Village of Bushnell – Increased Lot Values 50%

· Village of Dix –Property valued at $19,999 or less – 10% increase in Improvement value

Property valued at $20,000 or more – 20% increase in Improvement value

· Suburban – Increased Improvement value 5%

· Rural Acreages – Increased Improvement value 5%

· Commercial and Industrial Property:

No Change

· Agriculture Land

	Area 1	Area 2	Area 3	Area 4
Irrigated Land	20% Increase	20% Increase	20% Increase	20% Increase
Dry Land	10% Decrease	No Change	20% Decrease	No Change
Grass Land	20% Increase	20% Increase	20% Increase	20% Increase
CRP Land	20% Increase	15% Increase	15% Increase	15% Increase

The Tax Equalization and Review Commission further ordered that all rural residential be increased 9%. This included site values and mobile homes.

The Final 2004 Statistics for Kimball County were as follows:

	Median	COP	PRD
Residential	96	13.56	101.60
Commercial	98	24.89	108.41
Agricultural	77	13.60	102.11

2. Annual Pickup Work.

1. Organize cards, copying field sheets, notifying taxpayers of inspection times

2. Review what people have reported

3. Review what we have found by driving

4. Review the building permits

5. Review sold properties. We send out a questionnaire on all sales. We do calling on agricultural, commercial and residential sales if the questionnaire does not come back and the assessed value is substantially different from the selling price. This is also a small county and a lot of information is received from other taxpayers.

After completing the physical inspection during the annual pickup work, the office staff will place updated values on the properties for each year. This process begins around the last of August and will continue until finished. The annual pickup work will be completed around March 1 of each year. The additional work of reviewing all properties will be in conjunction with pickup work during this time.

3. Real Estate Transfers being recorded in this office. Every transfer statement needs the following work done.

1. Update the Property card

2. Fill out the sheets that are sent in to the PAT along with the transfer statement.

3. Send out Data Confirmation sheets on all sales

4. Update the computer (County Solutions and CAMA)

5. Change the counter rolodex

6. Update the cadastral map

7. Update the cadastral card

8. Update the aerial map for rural

9. Update the label information

10. Inform the Treasurer’s Office on landfill changes

11. Update Counter Book

12. Update Sales Book

13. Update GIS maps

The process of doing real estate transfers is the job of the Kimball County Deputy Assessor. Because of doing all the steps above, this is a full time job for her. This duty does not allow her extra time to help in the appraisal projects.

History of real estate transfers:

2001	344
2002	406
2003	413
2004	274 To Date

4. Filing of Personal Property (This job is done by all staff)

1. Commercial

2. Agricultural

3. Oil and Gas

4. Specials, which includes Railroads, Pipelines, Telephone Companies.

5. Administer the Homestead Exemption Programs for the State of Nebraska, Department of Revenue.

6. Complete all the administrative reports due to the Property Assessment and Taxation Department.

Some of the reports are:

a. Abstract –Reg 60-004.02 – Due March 20

b. School District Taxable Value Report – Due August 20

c. Certificate of Taxes Levied – Due December 1

d. Many more reports – See the attached Assessors Calendar.

7. Complete the Tax Roll every year. This includes proofing all cards to the computer. We proof value, names, legal descriptions, codes and miscellaneous information.

8. Complete the valuation reports due to each subdivision for levy setting.

9. Complete and send out valuation notice each year and sit with the Board of Equalization to review the protests.

10. Waiting on the counter takes a lot of time. Most of our customers are Realtors, Appraisers, Insurance Agents, Title Insurance Agents, etc. This takes a lot of card pulling and copying the files for them. Our appraisal cards are not for our use only. The public is becoming more informed about our cards and that they are open for public use. More prospective homebuyers are using our information on our cards and our sales book to determine a price to offer on a home.

11. Continue to work for the education of taxpayers to the

Nebraska Property Tax System.

12. GIS

Progress Statement from September 1, 2001 to September 1, 2002

Office staff has physically inspected rural improvements in townships 12, 13, 14 & 16. Conditions of rural buildings have been noted, measurements taken if necessary, new digital photos taken, new inventory sheets typed up on computer. Homes have been inspected and information confirmed by owner. Also new digital photos of home taken. Assessor is still working at entering correct information on the CAMA Program. This is a slow progress because there are also a lot of other administrative jobs to be done.

Pickup work was completed on time and valuations were done by March 20, 2002. Sales were studied to determine the percentage adjustments to be applied to the valuations to bring the median level up on residential, commercial and agricultural land. A ratio study has been conducted for the tax year 2002.

Sketches of homes have been started on the CAMA Program. Sallie Mihalek has begun this project. However, she also has been going in the field. We also share Sally with the Clerk’s Office and the Surveyor’s Office. The need of Sallie in the other offices gets priority over the Assessor’s Office.

Progress Statement from September 1, 2002 to September 1, 2003

Office staff has physically inspected rural improvements in townships 12, 13, 14, 15 & 16. The inspection of rural and suburban properties is approximately 98% complete. Conditions of rural buildings have been noted, measurements taken if necessary, new digital photos taken, new inventory sheets typed up on computer. Homes have been inspected and information confirmed by owner. Also new digital photos of home taken. Assessor is still working at entering correct information on the CAMA Program. Sallie has begun to help with the entering of information. This is a slow process because of the amount of administrative jobs to be done.

Pickup work was completed on time and valuations were done by March 20, 2003. Sales were studied to determine if percentage adjustments should be applied to the valuations to bring the median level up on residential, commercial and agricultural land. A ratio study has been conducted for the tax year 2003. No percentage adjustments were made.

Progress Statement from September 1, 2003 to September 1, 2004

Office staff has physically inspected all rural improvements, which includes home, garage and all outbuildings. Approximately 98% of the homes were reviewed with the property owner. The other 2% were physically reviewed with the exception of the inside house information. Conditions of rural buildings have been noted, measurements taken if necessary, new digital photos taken, new inventory sheets typed up on computer. Information is still being entered into the CAMA Program and still needs to be checked.

The Villages of Dix and Bushnell have been completely reviewed and entered into CAMA.

We are working in Kimball City now. The west part of town has been sent cards and approximately 80% has been inspected to date. The first of August, postcards have been sent to the southeast part of town and appointments are being made.

Also, it is budget time and this is always a very big concern.

Assessor will place final values when a home depreciation schedule is arrived at. This is a very slow process because of the amount of administrative jobs to be done.

Kimball County has contracted with GIS Workshop of Lincoln for a GIS system. Sallie Mihalek is the mapping expert. Her expertise has come from years of working with the county surveyor. However, she is also one of the team members for the review work. Therefore, the GIS program is moving slow. She has the parcels entered; however she has had to check them because there was a problem in the software. Justin, from GIS took the program back to Lincoln and cleaned up the software. This winter, the system is ready for her to start drawing in the land use when time allows.

Future Goals for September 1, 2003 to September 1, 2004

Complete the physical inspections of rural improvements. Begin the review process in Villages of Dix and Bushnell and the City of Kimball. Residential properties will be completed first. We will need additional training to do the commercial properties. The 2004 annual pickup work will begin the first of October 2003. The Assessor and staff will continue working on entering data on the CAMA Program. The sales will be reviewed to determine a new depreciation schedule for the rural homes and a pilot study done to see how it works. New values hopefully will be applied to rural properties for the 2005-year.

GIS Workshop will be delivering data periodically when complete. Sallie will continue to identify parcel identification numbers to the maps. When this process is complete, the employees of GIS Workshop will do training for the office on how to use the system

Also, see the 2003 Progress Report, page 6 of 6 for the Property Assessment and Taxation’s recommendations and conclusions for Kimball County. I will be reviewing this and taking the extra steps to comply.

All regular work in the office as outlined above will be continued.

Future Goals for September 1, 2004 to September 1, 2005

The review work will continue in the City of Kimball and surrounding area for residential and commercial property. The Assessor and staff will continue working on entering data on the CAMA Program. The Assessor will be checking the information in the CAMA Program and making the necessary updates.

Depending on how accurate the information has been entered into CAMA, the main goal for the valuation year 2005, is to complete the depreciation study and set a new depreciation schedule for Kimball County rural homes. This includes the property class 4000 and 4500s. The property class 4500 includes rural acreages that are not actively involved in the raising of agricultural products for a living and more then a mile from the Kimball city limits. This class includes the hobby farmers. Hobby farmers are persons who might have horses or a couple cows, but they cannot make their living from the small acreage they own. The property class 4000 is the agricultural parcels that are involved in the raising of agricultural products. However, the homes on these parcels will be uniform and proportionately valued. The home site land value will be uniform and proportionately valued. The valuation notices for the new values will be mailed June 1, 2005.

Sallie will continue to check the parcel identification numbers to the maps. GIS is now tied into our Administration Software, (County Solution), however, the new County Solution is now in and the tie in will work better. Sallie will begin after the ID numbers are check to begin drawing in each parcel’s land use. There is no simple way of doing this but by hand. The FSA office has nothing available to offer us. Sallie will also be training the necessary staff how to work the GIS computer and be able to serve the public.

Pickup work will also be continuing for this term. The real estate sales will continue to be monitored for the median level. Until the time that all property is reviewed and the market can be studied for a new depreciation schedule, percentage adjustments will be used to maintain the median level of value. Ratio studies will be conducted each year for each class and subclass of properties. Subclasses of properties will be monitored more closely and additional adjustments made to avoid TERC adjustments.

Hopefully the new soil survey will be completed and the mapping will be digitalized and we will begin working at getting it ready for the cards.

All regular work in the office as outlined above will be continued.

Future Goals for September 1, 2005 to September 1, 2006

The review work will continue in the City of Kimball and surrounding area for residential and commercial property. The Assessor will be checking the information in the CAMA Program and making the necessary updates.

The review work on residential will hopefully be finished up and the market studied to arrive at a new depreciation schedule for homes in Dix, Bushnell, Kimball and Suburban area. A study will be conducted to see how the new depreciations work on the sale properties and then will be applied across the board to all properties. Sales of vacant lots will be reviewed for new valuations. The valuation notices for the new values will be mailed to every residential property owners. The review of commercial property will continue.

All regular work in the office as outlined above will be continued.

Attachments:

2004 Progress Report

Property Tax Calendar

Copy of sales questionnaire

______________________________

Alice Ryschon

Kimball County Assessor

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