Washoe County Board of Equalization upholds assessor valuations in multiple appeals

The Washoe County Board of Equalization met Feb. 13 and approved a series of procedural items and decisions on property tax appeals, largely siding with the assessor's valuations.

Chair Darren McDonald called the session to order and the board first accepted a petitioner's withdrawal for assessor parcel 02020165. The board then approved continuances for several appeals to the Feb. 25 meeting and adopted stipulations agreed between petitioners and the assessor's office; the stipulations were presented as compliant with NRS 361,345, as cited in the hearing.

The board heard presentations from assessor's office appraisers on multiple contested parcels and upheld the assessor's valuations by voice vote. Appraiser Kelson Powell summarized evidence for a single-family residence (APN 12212619), pointing to four improved sales within a four-mile radius and land-sales comparables; he concluded the taxable value should be upheld.

Appraiser Adam Smith presented comparable sales and described downward adjustments used for a Country Club Drive residence (APN 13108024), including a 20% traffic adjustment and an $11,000 lump-sum adjustment applied in prior years; after questions the board voted to uphold the assessor's appraisal.

For a larger vacant parcel in Palomino Valley (APN 07725001), appraiser Jeff Cronin described zoning (general rural agricultural, typically one home site per 40 acres), recent listing history, access conditions, and three recent land sales that supported a per-home-site range of roughly $107,000 to $200,000 and a taxable value the assessor had set at $102,000. Cronin addressed the petitioner's concern about a nearby neighborhood waste-collection stop but said he found no paired-sales evidence supporting an adjustment for external obsolescence. The board voted to uphold the valuation.

The board also approved routine minutes from its March 28, 2025 meeting and heard a public comment in which a long-term homeowner urged a broader review of land-valuation methods in Incline Village and Crystal Bay. Board members reminded the commenter that an appeal to the State Board of Equalization must be filed by March 10 and offered the appropriate forms.

Voice votes were used throughout; where motions were recorded the board announced the motion carried.