By COLE REIF
Great Bend Post
Barton County Appraiser Wendy Prosser went before the Barton County Commission Tuesday morning to give an update on the 2025 real estate valuation notices. The Appraiser’s Office is required to complete and mail notices by March 1 each year and Prosser said they were sent to the post office last Friday, Feb. 28.
"Property tax is our primary source of revenue to fund our local government services such as our public schools, police, fire protection and other public benefits," said Prosser. "Our accuracy of our real estate valuations is very important to us because the allocation of the property tax burden is based on the appraised value of each property owner's property."
Prices are based on the fair market value or the sale prices of similar properties. If the properties are selling for more than the previous year, if there is new construction, updates or property deterioration can all impact valuations.
"When each property is appraised at its fair market value as required by the Kansas laws, no owner is required to pay more than their fair share of the overall cost of their local government services."
Prosser said like most counties in Kansas, Barton County has continued to see increases for the prices paid for properties, thus bumping up valuations. Prosser told commissioners that in some areas of Great Bend increases were 7% to 9% and other neighborhoods saw more than 20% jumps.
"The increases are substantial," said Prosser. "It's economics with supply and demand. There are not a lot of new properties that are being built that are sold. We have a lot of property owners that are building, but they are building to live in. So, we just don't have a lot of new properties built to be sold. That really shortens the supply chain that we have."
If property owners believe their 2025 valuations do not reflect a fair market value, or what they can sell their property for, they can call the Appraiser’s Office to schedule an informal appeal. The last day to schedule an appeal is March 31. The Appraiser’s Office phone number is 620-793-1821.
Parcel searches on the bartoncounty.org website are also updated with 2025 valuations.