The average property value for Lubbock County, Texas, is up again this year.
The average market value of homes in the county is increasing about $8,300 this year compared to last, according to information from the Lubbock Central Appraisal District. The average appraised values of Lubbock County homes in 2019 is $154,500, an increase of about 5.7% from 2018, when the average values was at $146,180.
Property owners in Lubbock have been experiencing this increase now for years.
Since 2010, the average appraised value — the number used in assessing property taxes — of a home in the City of Lubbock has risen more than $43,600, about 40%. It has gone from $111,600 in 2010 to $154,500 in 2019.
Tim Radloff, chief appraiser with the Lubbock County Appraisal District, points out that this is a reflection of a strong and growing economy. The mass appraisals done each year are based on the market, meaning values are largely based on the value of what a similar property in the neighborhood sold for recently.
"It's reflective of our market," Radloff said. "We've got a good market, we've got low unemployment, interests rates are really good right now. You have buyers in the market and sellers that are anxiously awaiting those buyers. Days on the market, still pretty low. We're looking at a modest increase. I consider it to be fairly stable, we're not seeing really many peaks or valleys."
But homeowners don't often see the rising cost of their home as a good thing, because the result is paying more taxes.
Although the tax rate for the City of Lubbock has risen only about nine cents per $100 valuation since 2010 — a 20% increase — the average single-family homeowner is paying roughly $350 more for city taxes than in 2010. That's an increase of about 67 percent. This is what's often referred to as "appraisal creep." The increase in home value is also impacting taxes to Lubbock County and school districts.
All this information is averages — some neighborhoods in Lubbock have experienced decreasing home values, while others have been experiencing greater increases.
The Lubbock Central Appraisal District began mailing 2019 Notices of Appraised Values earlier this month.
The City of Lubbock experienced the smallest increase on average year-over-year in the county, according to information from the appraisal district. While homes in the City of Lubbock increased 4.5% on average in 2019, home values in Shallowater increased 7.7%, homes in Idalou increased 11%, homes in Wolfforth increased 6.8% and homes in New Deal increased 6.1%.
