King County Assessor Lloyd Hara’s office mailed the 2014 property valuations on Sept. 11 to all residential property owners in Area 73 – Kingsgate and Queensgate – located in Northwest King County. Area 73 residential property values generally increased by 17.9 percent but individual property values might vary. The Assessor’s Office will continue to mail out more than 600,000 residential and commercial valuation notices to taxpayers throughout the rest of King County between September and October.

Residential property is assessed each year at 100 percent of its true and fair market value in money, which is defined by Washington State law as the amount of money that a willing and unobligated buyer is willing to pay a willing and unobligated seller. Residential values are determined based on multiple sales of similar properties.

The King County Assessor’s Office annually revalues all properties and conducts a physical inspection on each property once every six years. The last physical inspections of the Kingsgate/Queensgate area were conducted in 2013 and 2012.

“Continuing the 2013 trend, property values are increasing across King County as we emerge from the Great Recession,” Assessor Lloyd Hara said. “In 2013, we saw a residential increase in 76 out of 86 residential areas and we expect to see continued growth in residential values in 2014 for almost all residential areas in King County except for a small number of parcels in the Snoqualmie Pass and Stevens Pass area.”

Assessor Lloyd Hara would like to remind all property owners to carefully review the information contained in the valuation notice. If you feel a mistake has been made in valuing your property, it is recommended that you contact the Assessor’s Office directly before filing an appeal at (206) 296-7300 or assessor.info@kingcountygov.

Property owners can review their property information online using eReal Property and review our Area Reports on the Assessor’s homepage at www.kingcounty.gov/assessor or with the Assessor’s staff to make sure an error has not been made. King County allows 60 days from the valuation’s postmark date to file an appeal with the King County Board of Equalizations.

Some low-income seniors, disabled veterans, or disabled persons retired because of a disability might be eligible for a property tax deferral or exemption. The King County Assessor’s Office encourages you or those you know to contact our office to determine eligibility.

For King County taxpayers who need advice and assistance on property tax related matters, including appeals, contact the King County Tax Advisor at (206) 477-1060 or by email at taxadvisor@kingcounty.gov.