New property value assessments mailed to Beaver County residents leaving some with sticker shock

BEAVER COUNTY, Pa. — New property tax value assessments are hitting Beaver County mailboxes and many neighbors told Channel 11 they are in sticker shock.

In some cases, values are several times higher than they were when the last assessment was done, back in 1982.

“Some of the properties I have are up in the two and three hundred thousand, and if I went to sell them, I could never get that for them,” Pete Sudak said. He owns properties in Aliquippa and Center Township.

The reassessment has been years in the making and was triggered after a property owner sued the county and won.

Channel 11 looked into what this means for neighbors.

If your new valuation is 10 times higher, does that mean you’ll pay 10 times higher taxes? According to County Commissioner Daniel Camp, no.

In a statement on his Facebook page, he wrote: “DO NOT APPLY CURRENT MILLAGE RATE TO YOUR NEW TENTATIVE ASSESSMENT!”

Commissioners are hoping to drop the county’s current 26 millage rate to a tentative rate of 3.5.

Let’s do the math.

A property previously valued at $30,000 at the 26 millage rate would pay $780 in county tax.

If that same property is now valued at $200,000 at the tentative rate of 3.5 mills, the bill would come to $700.

A higher valuation does not necessarily mean you’ll be paying more.

There is an appeal process. Property owners can call 1-877-394-3379 to set up an appointment.

If you’d like to figure out what your new tax bill might be, take your new assessed value and divide it by one thousand. Then, multiply that number by 3.5.

Example: 200,000/1,000=200

200x3.5=700

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