Evening Republican, Volume 23, Number 196, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 14 August 1920 — HORIZONTAL INCREASES. [ARTICLE]

HORIZONTAL INCREASES.

While some county boards of review are declining to accept the horizontal increases on taxable property values imposed by the state board of tax* commissioners/ the Bartholomew county board of review has legalized the action of the state board. AU' lands, lots and improvements in all townships, not including cities and towns, were raised 15 per cent over the figures returned by the assessing officers. Lands, lots and improvements in the cities and towns were increased 25 per cent. Personal property was increased from 30 -to 60 per cent., depending <on the location of the township, or town. ... Before arriving at this decision, the Bartholomew county board made an investigation of the sale of farm land and town property last year, and compared prices with assessments. In this manner it was found that land sold in the townships was assessed for 82 per cent of its selling price; property in Columbus had been sold for 25 per cent more than its assessed value, and in Hope the assessments had been 47 per cent of the cash value, as shown by sales. •In 122 sales of farm land, including 7.711 acres, the selling price was found to be $875,165, and the assessed valuation of this land was 8724,627. This was a difference of $161,588, or an average of s2l ah acre. Eighty-two pieces of city and town property which brought $169,630 were assessed at $118,780, or $55,850 less than ito sale price. Th»e is realisation that property values are higher than formerly, but there is opposition to listing such property at higher figures. In some counties the increases made by the state board have been rejected without investigation. In Bartholomew county comparisons showed that no general injustice would have been done had the. increases been still greater.—lndianapolis News. •' / - I