Opinion ID: 1913947
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Interim Year Assessment Protests.

Text: We recently set forth the general principles governing protests of real estate assessments: Pursuant to our biennial system of real estate tax assessment, the year 1989 would have been an assessment year and 1990 an interim year. Iowa Code § 428.4. In an interim year, assessments of real estate are made only to the extent that the property was incorrectly valued in the assessment year, not listed in the assessment year, or experiences a change in value as of the assessment year. Id. To the extent a taxpayer is dissatisfied with the assessor's valuation, the aggrieved taxpayer may lodge a protest with the appropriate board of review. Iowa Code § 441.37. To this end, Iowa Code section 441.37 establishes six grounds on which a property tax assessment may be contested by the taxpayer. These six grounds correspond with the basis for protest enumerated on the petition for protest distributed by the board. Significantly, Iowa Code section 441.37 limits protests on the basis of the first five grounds to petitions filed with the board of review on or after April 16, to and including May 5, of the year of assessment.  Iowa Code § 441.37(1). Montgomery Ward Dev. Corp. v. Board of Review, 488 N.W.2d 436, 438 (Iowa 1992). This is an appeal in an interim year. It would appear Eagle is limited to the sixth basis for protest in Iowa Code section 441.37(1), as elaborated in Iowa Code section 441.35. This, however, is not the case. The 1989 assessed valuation of Spring Village was increased by the city assessor for 1990. This was not an increase assessment applied to a class of property or to correct a clerical or mathematical error. The assessor stated the revaluation of the property in 1990 was made because of the 1989 sale of Toys R Us, a nearby commercial property. Based upon the sale, the assessor increased the land value from $1.75 per square foot to $2.50 per square foot. Where the assessor revalued and changed the 1989 assessment in 1990, Eagle is entitled to protest the reassessment on any of the grounds set forth in Iowa Code section 441.37.