Recent tax appraisals have surprised many property owners throughout the county, and several have met with the Carroll County Board of Equalization over the past three weeks to dispute their valuations and get answers about the tax rate.
The board is meeting with property owners until June 20.
Last Tuesday, June 10, Carroll County Observer sat in one of the sessions to get a better understanding of the process, and listened to several appeals.
Misclassified Land
One of those appeals came from Chris Randell, a landowner near Indian Lake who said he had been taxed for decades on land that was misclassified as pasture or cropland, when in fact it was primarily unusable terrain covered in pine trees and ravines.
“I’ve been charged for 50-something acres of pasture land and rotation land,” said Randell. “I don’t have that. I’ve got pictures. It’s hills, hollers, and gullies.”
Randell said he originally planted pine trees on the advice of the local forestry office, but the timber is now worthless. He brought documentation and maps to support his claim and requested that the board reclassify his land accordingly.
The board voted to reclassify the mislabeled acreage from pasture to forest land, which will significantly reduce Randall’s property tax burden.
The reclassification applied to all but four of the approximately 60 acres in question.
According to figures discussed, forested land in Greenbelt is valued at $529 per acre, significantly less than pasture or cropland.
Property Assessor Rita Jones explained after the meeting that misclassification in the manner that Randall experienced it is quite common, and said that it can be avoided by updating the Assessor’s Office about changes at the time they are made.
Randell was fully prepared if he and the County could not agree to a solution.
“If we couldn’t come to some understanding, I wasn’t going to fight y’all,” He said. “I had already talked with the Choctaw Nation. I’m a card-carrying member, and I was prepared to donate the land and be done with taxes altogether.”
Generational Farm
Two other property owners sought clarification on their tax appraisals.
One was James Grant, who said his family’s farm near the Carroll-Henderson County line had been in operation since World War II.
Grant expressed frustration that the appraised value of his land had more than doubled.
“I’m not in California,” he said. “We need to leave real estate out of it. The average income in Carroll County doesn’t support these kinds of values.”
Board member Eli Ford clarified that the Board of Equalization does not set tax rates or determine market value appraisals, but hears appeals and makes corrections where justified.
“Every five years the county goes through a reappraisal,” Ford explained. “The increase didn’t happen in one year—it’s the cumulative change over the last five.”
Grant acknowledged the board’s limited authority but said he came to voice his disappointment.
“I’m just a concerned citizen,” he said. “I’ve put everything I have into keeping up this farm. I’m not against paying taxes, but don’t punish me for taking care of my place.”
Jones pointed out that Grant’s property is enrolled in the Greenbelt program, which significantly reduces taxable value on qualifying agricultural land.
She said that without Greenbelt, his land taxes would have been $1,277. With the classification in place, they total just $379.
New Owner Questions Valuation
Another landowner in the third district of Carroll County said his appraisal nearly doubled despite little-to-no improvements since purchasing his property just over three years ago.
He said he recently had the home appraised for refinancing purposes, and the value came in well below the county’s estimate.
“Nobody [from the county] came into my house. Nobody looked at the buildings,” he said. “We’ve cleaned the place up and made some repairs, but we haven’t done anything close to what this appraisal suggests.”
He noted that much of his land is unusable for farming, though some is used for hay and horse pasture.
He also emphasized that, like others, he was not opposed to paying taxes, but wanted the amount to reflect the actual value and usability of the land.
Jones said that although the appraised value had increased, the certified tax rate had decreased accordingly, and the man’s taxes for 2025 were estimated to be about $266 lower than the previous year.
Even so, he remained wary about what could happen if future officials were to raise the rate again.
“I’ve seen this before,” he said. “They raise values now, then change the tax rate later. Next thing you know, you’re paying a fortune.”
Call Your Commissioners
Members of the Equalization Board stressed the importance of property owners contacting their County Commissioners to express concerns about tax rate changes.
The full Commission is set to meet Monday, June 30 to discuss the proposed certified tax rate and the new budget.
Carroll County is divided into nine commission districts, each represented by elected commissioners.
District 1 includes Darrell Ridgely, Randy Long, and Jimmy Halford.
District 2 is represented by Lana Suite and Daniel Willman.
District 3 includes Joey Simmons and Larry Spencer.
District 4 is represented by Morris Rogers and Daniel Thomas.
District 5 includes Barry Mac Murphy, Joey Darnall, and Cyril Ostiguy.
District 6 is represented by Phillip Moore and Jimmy McClure.
District 7 includes Walter Smothers and Manual Crossno.
District 8 is represented by Dr. Jay Phipps and Willie Huffman.
District 9 includes John Austin, Spiridon L. Roditis, and Jason R. Martin.
A full list of Carroll County’s Commissioners and their contact information can be here.
I cannot pay mine now at 80 on a fixed income. My commission er got snappy with me. Crosno. I was asking questions and he did not answer. I don’t think he knows I called one other and he was nice and told me to call all if I wanted to
My taxes have also doubled on my property which is in horrible disrepair and grown up really bad with no usable timber or land on it. I’m also a disabled veteran drawing a $620 disability check each month my taxes are now over $1,000 on property that isn’t worth nearly what they have it appraised at.
Mine went from 100 in 2023. To almost 400 now they doubled it again saying I have rental property. No one told me about the hearing s I’ve been fighting it for months. I live on disabilty raising 2 grandsons . After my house burnt in 2015 .
My property I have two different properties one of them with a mobile home on it it doubled in value I have another 5 Acres which is nothing but trees and it tripled in value and I don’t understand why it is tripling in value with nothing on it but trees
I commented earlier but it’s hard to come to a meeting when you’re a truck driver over the road I am fixing to try and retire by next year but with my property taxes doubling and tripling it’s got seem impossible to try and do what I need to do to retire this needs to be addressed and addressed immediately thank you
How can you value woods with Gillis and hills and no road access at over 12000 per acre. This is crazy!something needs to be done
How can you value woods with Gillis and hills and no road access at over 12000 per acre. This is crazy!something needs to be done
We are in a similar scenario as the gentleman in the ‘New Owners’ section of this article, and we have a lot of the same sentiments. We just bought our place, and are just barely even moved in. We mowed the grass a few times and planted 5 trees, but we definitely haven’t made any repairs yet, or done anything that would be a ‘reason’ to have nearly doubled our assessed value. Mortgage rates are crazy, no reason to kick us while we’re down.