Has your Chester County buyer received notice of a reassessment?

Has your buyer received notice of a county reassessment after purchasing a property?

If so, the Suburban Realtors Alliance would like to hear from you at sra@suburbanrealtorsalliance.com

We're trying to understand the criteria and methods Chester County uses to determine which properties require a new assessment.

The Alliance has engaged in discussions with county officials on the topic previously. In 2021, we reported that the Chester County assessment office observed a significant increase in purchases by LLCs that make improvements to properties and sell them, all without filing requisite permit applications with local municipalities.

The assessment office now reviews all property transfers for LLCs, and in some cases the assessments for properties are being adjusted accordingly.

Recently, however, we have heard reports of reassessments of homes in which no LLCs were involved. One common thread with the latest reassessments is that the county is using MLS photos to determine whether improvements have been made to the property. If a newly finished basement, addition, or remodeled kitchen or bathroom is seen in the photos, the county conducts a reassessment of the property.

Photo: Weatherstone development in West Vincent Township, by Montgomery County Planning Commission (CC BY-SA 2.0)