WAWARSING – For residents awaiting the final verdict on their property assessments, the final portion of a long awaited revaluation is almost complete, according to town assessor Mike Sommer.

Impact notices are anticipated to arrive in mail boxes at the tail-end of February, said Sommer, thus ending a two-year, $325,000 town-wide reassessment project... the town's first in memory.

And it's been a long, hard road.

During an informational meeting January 22, Mike Maxwell of Maxwell Appraisal Services of Syracuse gave a rundown of the revaluation process and an update as to what residents can expect coming up.

"There is no easy way to do this unless you do the whole enchilada all at once and obviously, when you do that, you break a lot of eggs," Maxwell said. "There are some people that are really happy and there's people that are a little upset."

Overall, he added, assessments went up. But whether the final breakdowns fit the "one-third" equation — where a third of the overall assessment stay the same, a third goes down, and a third goes up — won't be known until the impact statements are sent out and data compiled.

"I think your town did you a good justice getting it done," Maxwell went on, noting that he's come across some major errors in the old assessments, and that major changes will be coming. "There will be some people who are going to be a bit put out, maybe they're going to get quite an increase, but the way I look at it, if you've been over-paying all these years the money's gone — you don't have that money; but if you've been underpaying by $200, $300, or $400 a year, you have that money."

It's a big pill to swallow, for sure, he further noted, but everyone's trying to make the best of a situation since for all practical purposes, a town-wide assessment may have never been done before, leaving Wawarsing's equalization rate at 1.76 percent, when the state has long asked for 100 percent.

The point of the reassessment, Sommer said, is to make sure everyone is paying their fair share in taxes — which just hasn't been happening.

Taxes, Maxwell explained, are supposed to be based on the market value of a property... and the current market value, not one from decades past.

When the new reassessed notices go out, he added, he suggested that everyone simply take a deep breath, read over all the information and then, if there are questions or corrections needed, give the town assessor's office a call and schedule an informal meeting for May.

But, Maxwell then went on, the emphasis must be that all concerns be focused solely on the homeowners' assessment, and not any actual tax amounts.

"We don't have anything to do with your taxes," he said. "The only thing we're trying to do is say 'Hey, this place is worth $100,000.' What the taxes are, that's between you and the county, town, and school. I don't have any control over what the tax rates are."

The notices, he continued, will be difficult because they'll be dealing with whole big numbers versus the fractions they've been working with for decades. The equalization rate, now at 100 percent, is based on the state's review of what properties sell for annually, and how those sales reflect greater property values, and would-be values.

"So obviously fifty years ago houses were selling for pretty cheap. Over the years, your equalization rate has tumbled downward, and that's where it is now — at its lowest rate," Maxwell said.

That equalization rate, coupled with the market value of a property, determines the amount of taxes a homeowner will pay to go towards a municipality's tax levy and their assessed value.

"One thing you want to keep in the back of your mind — if the town comes to you and says they're going to raise the tax rate a $1.00/1,000, last year, that's peanuts; it was $1.76 on a $100,000 house," he went on. "If they do it this year, it's $100 — so, you have to be wary of something like that."

Over 6,000 residents will be affected in one way or another by this reassessment. Maxwell urged taxpayers to be certain their inventory is correctly listed on the Ulster County website, including the condition of the residence, number of bedrooms and bathrooms, and so forth. If things don't match, he added, be ready to bring in evidence to prove that at the informal meeting. Changes can be made.

In other business at the reval info meeting, it was noted that a key piece of property in the town — the New York City-owned Rondout Reservoir and its lands — has had its assessment left as is to avoid any potential litigation, which has occurred in other watershed towns. Sommers explained the value has been adjusted, and the tax load — which wasn't questioned last year — will be kept the same for now.

Also important this year, with the school tax bill in September the first to be affected, is for residents to get their STAR exemption applications in. The deadline for that as well as for veteran exemptions is March 1.

"We have about 600 enhanced star exemptions, and right now, only about 60 percent are in," Sommer said.. "Forty percent, or about 240, still need to come in,"

Without the proper applications submitted, including an alternative veteran's conversion, veteran residents will see a dramatic change in their taxes. "Get the word out; it's important to get your exemptions in," Sommer added for emphasis, noting that any veteran could bring their DD-214 discharge papers in to his office, "and we'd be happy to assist them with the proper exemption application as well as those applying for STAR."