Full Disclosure: Controlling Property Tax Increases During Periods of Increasing Housing Values

Abstract

This paper examines the outcome of a non-binding full disclosure process to control increases in the property tax. The data used in the study cover a 20-plus-year period in five MS As in Utah. During the period of our analysis, metro areas in Utah experienced rapid increases in the market value of residential housing. The results of our analysis suggest that local assessors in Utah captured this increased value in their appraisal and reappraisal processes. However, our results also demonstrate that the effective property tax rate did not keep pace with increases in assessed property values, implying that a non-binding full disclosure law did limit growth in the property tax. Furthermore, it limited the property tax while avoiding some of the unintended consequences imposed by binding property tax limitations.