FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS



When is the assessment date in Kentucky?
January 1 is the assessment date. The assessment of all property real or personal is based on the January 1 assessment date. Therefore, if a house burned or was damaged on January 2 or any date following in the year, the tax bill would be based on the full value. Taxes are not prorated in this situation. The same is true with personal property. For example, if you wrecked or sold a car on January 2, the entire year's tax would be due. On the other hand, if a home was under construction and the construction did not begin until January 2, taxes on the house would not be due - only taxes on the land value would be due. In the vehicle example, if you bought a new car in January, only the car owned as of January 1 would be subject to property tax.

What requires that property be revalued?
The Kentucky Constitution. The Kentucky Revenue Cabinet monitors and enforces compliance with this law. All property must be revalued each year and must be physically examined at least once every four years.

Why have a property tax?
Properties are assessed so that those of us who want the advantages of having schools, fire and police protection, and other public benefits (which is just about everyone) can absorb our fair share of the cost in proportion to the amount of money our individual properties are worth. The property tax is part of a well-balanced revenue system. It is a more stable source of money than sales and income taxes because it does not fluctuate when communities experience recessions. When the community spends your tax dollars on better schools, parks, etc., your property values rise.

Why does assessed value change from year to year?
When the market changes, so does assessed value. For instance, if you were to increase the total market value of your property by building an addition, the assessed value would increase proportionately. Similarly, should your property's value be decreased by fire, the assessed value will decrease to reflect the downward effect on your property's market value. The entire community's economy and forces of supply and demand will also affect your property's assessed value.