KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Preston Smith says that this year, he's helped hundreds of people file a property assessment appeal with Jackson County.
“It’s been a tough, tough year. It’s been heartbreaking because there are so many people still concerned today about losing their homes,” Smith, a Jackson County resident, said.
VOICE FOR EVERYONE | Share your voice with KSHB 41’s Megan Abundis
For months, he’s pushed hard for an audit of the Jackson County assessment process, like the one Missouri Auditor Scott Fitzpatrick is conducting.
On Monday, Fitzpatrick released the preliminary results of the audit, which stated the assessment process violated state law.
“They made the process hard; they made it nearly impossible for older people to comply and jump through every hoop,” Smith said. “We’ve seen people take off work, take vacation, and pay for appraisals.”
KSHB 41 has heard the same sentiments from many people across Jackson County for the past 10 months.
Reporter Megan Abundis called some of those people today, checking in about their appeals and the looming Dec. 31 deadline to pay them.
In March, Abundis spoke with Steve Parker, who lives in Lee’s Summit, about property tax appeals.
“I admit I am very concerned of what’s going to happen this time,” Parker said in March.
On Monday, he called the results of the audit a victory for Jackson County homeowners.
“It’s a roller coaster; you don’t know what’s right, what’s wrong — it's disjointed. You hear numbers coming from places you don’t understand,” Parker said. “We did pay because we felt like we had no choice.”
But still, both Smith and Parker want to see a rollback before the end of the year.
“About 10 years ago, the assessment was found to be flawed; they threw it out and rolled the values back to the previous assessment, and I think that makes the most sense,” Smith said.
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