Bastrop, Elgin home values rise almost 7 percent,

BASTROP — Home values in Bastrop County jumped by an average of 6.8 percent this year, driven by Central Texas’ continued growth and more people rebuilding since the 2011 fire, the county’s chief appraiser says.

“What people are realizing is Austin has gotten to be a pricey place to live and their dollars will buy more house and bigger lots in Bastrop. And they have a good road system to get into Austin to go to work,” said Mark Boehnke, chief appraiser for the Bastrop Central Appraisal District. “It’s basic supply and demand.”

The average market value for homes in the county with a homestead exemption increased from $121,336 in 2014 to $129,614 this year, according to Boehnke.

The average taxable residential value — the home’s market value minus ex- emptions — rose from $118,336 to $126,614 in 2014, about a 7 percent increase. The effect on property taxes is still uncertain, but taxing units will determine their rates based on the new numbers.

Residential and land property values in Bastrop and Elgin saw some of the highest increases.

“People are moving in and they’re willing to pay more for new houses and existing houses,” Boehnke said.

The overall market values for commercial property in Bastrop County increased by nearly 13 percent, going from $1.2 billion in 2014 to $1.3 billion this year.

Notices about this year’s preliminary appraisals went out last month.

James Welch, a 21-year Smithville resident, received his notice a week after his home and others on Northeast Seventh Street experienced flood damage following a severe storm that brought more than five inches of rain in a matter of hours.

Welch spoke to the Smithville City Council on May 18 on behalf of about 18 other homeowners about their increased property values, and he requested the council address the street’s drainage issue.

“This situation has been ignored too long and now, to add insult to injury, we have been notified by the Bastrop Central Apprais- al District that the taxable value of our improvements and real estate is being increased for 2015 tax purposes,” Welch told the council, reading from a petition homeowners wrote.

Welch and others intend to appeal their appraisals. Last year, the Bastrop Central Appraisal District received 2,358 appeals.

“I think some people think the appraisal district sets the market and that’s not what we do, we read the market,” Boehnke said.

He said it is difficult for himself and other appraisers to determine exact market value of properties because Texas does not require all property sales prices to be public records, so they must rely on real estate agents, buyers, sellers and appraisers to confirm sales prices.

Residential and commercial property owners have until June 1 to submit an appeal.