Loudoun property values projected to decline

Property value in Loudoun County is projected to drop 6.31 percent this year, while taxable value is expected to decline 6.96 percent, according to the county assessor.

Loudoun property valued at $66.9 billion on Jan. 1, 2008 is projected to be valued at $62.7 billion on Jan. 1, 2009. The taxable value is projected to decline from $62 billion on Jan. 1, 2008 to a projected $57.7 billion on Jan. 1, 2009.

Loudoun County finances are heavily dependent on property taxes, which are based on assessed values. The county, which is suffering through difficult budget times with the rest of the Washington area, raised property taxes 19 percent in April to shore up its coffers.

"Obviously we're in October, and this is stuff we're seeing day to day," said county Assessor Todd Kaufman, who emphasized the declines were predictions and subject to a currently volatile real estate market.

He emphasized that dropping values do not necessarily mean a tax increase.

Property value, called "portfolio value," includes the effects of sales trends, new construction, assessment appeals and parcel growth.

Foreclosures have done nothing to improve assessments in the county in the past three years, as they have soared since 2006. That year, the county saw 171 foreclosures. That number jumped to 1,258 in 2007 and 1,705 this year through July, Kaufman's report said.

The Board of Supervisors asked Kaufman to prepare the forecast so it could get a better handle on the fiscal 2010 budget situation.

"Basically, the supervisors want an idea of the direction they're going to be in," he said. "They need to have some type of understanding of" what they're facing.

County Administrator Kirby Bowers will prepare a budget in February.

The report also projected the assessments by property size:

• Single-family houses generally less than 1 acre are projected to decrease by 11.91 percent in 2009, but should comprise about 76 percent of county properties for 2009.
• Single-family residences between 1 and 20 acres are projected to decrease by 11.63 percent and comprise about 16.13 percent of the properties in Loudoun in 2009.

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