Caller challenges pool-related assessment in Oklahoma County BOE phone hearing

John Clark, calling in for the Clark Trust appeal, told the Oklahoma County Board of Equalization that realtor comparables and the character of a single nearby comp make the assessor's median-based valuation too high.

Clark argued that one nearby sale was an outlier — a house improved substantially by its original owner — and that removing that comp would bring the assessor's median value closer to Clark's requested figure (about $550,000). The assessor said the county's notice had been set at $619,000 then lowered to a median-based $612,800 and that last year's value of $570,000 stands because the owner did not protest then.

A point of dispute was a newly permitted pool. The assessor said a permanent value of roughly $66,000 and a permit amount (noted in the record) produced a $37,500 added value; Clark said the pool is an in-ground vinyl steel-wall installation and that his out-of-pocket cost was nearer $36,000 to $70,000 depending on landscape and concrete work, but he argued the pool's market effect did not justify the assessor's full adjustment. The board asked clarifying questions and said it will meet Friday to set the final value and mail the decision to Clark.