A number of buyers of low-priced Omaha bank owned homes for sale are filing protests with the Douglas County Assessor’s Office to reduce their high tax valuations.
Among the most publicized case was that of a family who purchased a fixer upper in October last year for $189,000. Now the house is worth $247,600, according to the county tax assessor, increasing the real estate tax assessment by $1,200. The family argued that even if the costs of improvements were added, the total would be only around $200,000. The fact that the property did not receive purchase offers when it was listed at a higher price proved that the assessment by the county does not jibe with market price.
Other buyers of bank owned homes in Nebraska could face the same tax assessment problems as weak prices in the residential market muddle county valuation of properties. The greatest attractions for people planning to buy bank owned houses are their bargain prices and expectation of paying lower taxes.
In 2009, 56 percent of Douglas County real estate owners who filed tax protests had their tax assessments changed. County tax assessors said they considered the lower prices of Omaha bank owned homes for sale and foreclosures in other Douglas areas. The assessors acknowledge that it is a buyer’s market, as average house prices have fallen every year over the past four years.
Last year, almost 11 percent of all residential sales in Douglas County or nearly 1,500 homes were foreclosures, and these pushed down the values of neighboring properties. Tax assessors, however, argued that not all prices of bank owned homes represent real market prices. They explained that when banks lower their prices sharply to eliminate foreclosures from their books, these prices do not represent the true price levels in the residential market.
On the whole, the low prices of Omaha bank owned homes for sale are enough reasons for investors and other buyers to take advantage of home buying opportunities.
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