PER COUNTY/STATE MEMORANDUM OF UNDERSTANDING
The taxable value of all homes in Platte County will rise by nearly seven percent over what they were assessed at in 2024.
That’s according to a signed memorandum of understanding between Plate County and the Missouri State Tax Commission. The exact amount of the increase in residential property assessments across the board will be 6.835 percent.
The assessed value increase only applies to residential property. Commercial real estate, farm machinery, and other personal property values are not affected by the agreement.
As previously reported, the State Tax Commission had ordered residential properties in the county to be assessed at a 15 percent increase.
The State Tax Commission approved the agreement on Tuesday. Platte County Board of Equalization had agreed to the terms on Aug. 14.
While county officials are describing the memorandum of understanding as a negotiated deal, the State Tax Commission (STC) is describing it in other terms.
“In our analysis, the net effect is the same as the equalization order: no increase or no decrease,” said Greg Allsberry, chief counsel for STC, to the tax commission this week. “But that language is more palatable to Platte County officials, and they have agreed to sign this.”
Earlier this month, Allsberry, chief counsel for the State Tax Commission, told the Weston Chronicle that Platte County officials had misunderstood the state’s assessment order.
In the order, issued on July 30, the State Tax Commission ordered the increase over the “last assessment,” which the county commission interpreted as a full 15 percent increase over the 2023 values.
“They misunderstood the order to raise residential property assessments,” Allsberry told the Chronicle. “The order is based on the 2025 report that shows a 7.1 percent decrease in value of existing homes.”
Half of the 15 percent increase ordered by the State Tax Commission would just bring the residential property values back to their 2023 level. The other half would bring them closer to their present day values.
“I wish they (Platte County officials) had called me to ask about it,” Allsberry said to the Chronicle. “It was a total misreading of the order.”
That explains why Allsberry said this week the “net effect” of the memorandum of understanding with the county is the same as the original 15 percent order.
In a press release, Platte County Presiding Commissioner Scott Fricker described the 6.8 percent increase as “modest.”
“This modest increase aligns more closely with actual home price increases, which were roughly 7.75% per year from 2019 through 2024 and represents a significant reduction from the STC’s original order on July 30, which mandated a 15% across-the-board increase,” Fricker is quoted as saying.
“This agreement is a clear victory for Platte County taxpayers, as it substantially reduces the financial impact of the STC’s initial directive,” Fricker said in the news release.
Some taxpayers on social media are not seeing the agreement through the same lens as Fricker, however.
“Platte homeowners are paying more because of local mismanagement. The Board of Equalization, appointed by the county commission, slashed commercial values (some to zero, even their own properties), shifting the tax load onto homeowners. Assessor Cox froze values to protect residents, which triggered the State Tax Commission’s 15 percent correction. Now we’re stuck with a 6.8 percent hike. If you want change, hold the county commission (Fricker, Vanover, Berberich) and clerk Jera Pruitt accountable at the ballot box,” posted Kole Knighton on The Landmark’s Facebook page.
