In accordance with standards set forth by the State of New Hampshire Department of Revenue and Assessing Standards Board, the Town of Stratham and its assessing contractor, Whitney Consulting Group have completed a reassessment of all properties to equalize assessments at fair market value as of April 1, 2024. The results of this work are below. 2024 Preliminary Value data is being loaded to our GIS system and property cards online. You will be able to search property records on Monday August 12th morning here.
Last Updated November 15, 2024:
Reminder Explanations:
If you would like to schedule an appointment to discuss the 2024 assessed value, please call the Town Offices at (603) 772-4741 ext.141. Please remember that the individuals answering the phones will only be scheduling appointments and will not be able to answer questions about your property. Your appointment may be conducted in person or on the telephone at your preference. The appointments will be available over the five business days between Thursday August 15th and Wednesday August 21st from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Appointments will be available on Monday August 19th until 7:00 p.m.
The Town of Stratham has contracted Whitney Consulting Group, LLC to conduct a town-wide revaluation of all properties for Tax Year 2024 in compliance with RSA 75:8-a. Besides the constitutional and statutory requirements, there are many beneficial aspects to completing a revaluation. The nature of the value of real estate is that values change. Basic fairness in property taxation requires that every property owner pays taxes based on the market value of their property, and the purpose of a revaluation is to reset all assessed value of property to reflect its true market value.
Every year the Town of Stratham Assessing Department monitors qualified sales and the real estate market in general in Stratham. For the final 2023 tax year, Stratham’s median ratio of assessed value was calculated to be 65.3% of market value. The New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration requires municipalities to be within 90-110% of market value following a town-wide revaluation.
Whitney Consulting Group will review qualified sales to adjust metrics in the Computer Assisted Mass Appraisal (CAMA) System to better reflect market value based on data points already collected throughout the town. These adjustments will create a mass appraisal of all property that more accurately reflects the true market values of all properties.
Notices of preliminary draft assessments will be mailed to all property owners at the end of summer 2024. The assessed value in the notice should reflect fair market value of the property. It does not consider any exemptions or credits that have been applied for or granted by the Town of Stratham. The fair market value of a property is the price one could expect to receive if it was to sell on the open market where both buyer and seller are reasonably knowledgeable about the property, are behaving in their own best interests, and are given a reasonable time period for completing the transaction.
Following the notices of preliminary draft assessments, Whitney Consulting Group will conduct informal hearings. You may bring any concerns, questions, or get clarification on the revaluation at an appointment. Whitney Consulting Group will conduct the informal hearings in person or via telephone. Appointments can be made following the receipt of the preliminary draft notices.
The new tax rate will be established by the Department of Revenue Administration later in the year, once they have received the finalized assessed values, town budget, school budget, county budget, and state education budget. An increase in property value does not necessarily mean an increase in your property tax bill. DO NOT USE the current tax rate to estimate your taxes. An overall increase in town-wide value generally results in a decrease to the tax rate.
The revaluation does not change the normal right to appeal through abatements following the final tax bill or further appeal processes following a response to an abatement. All abatement procedures remain the same and must be filed following the final 2024 tax bill by March 1, 2025.
Previous Updates:
Assessing Data and Questions (Updated November 15, 2024)
We had over 160 residents take advantage of one-on-one meetings with our consulting contractor Whitney Consulting Group. If you have questions about your assessment, you are welcome to bring them forward. Residents are encouraged to ensure the data in your assessing card is accurate. A link can to assessing cards can be found here. If you believe you have found an error, please bring it to the Town’s attention so we can address it. Please reach out by calling 603 772-4741 ext. 141.
Previous content:
| 2024 Revaluation Timeline | |
|---|---|
| Ongoing | Visits of property sales to verify data |
| Spring 2024 | Income and Expense questionnaires will be mailed to commercial properties |
| Spring 2024 | Verified sales will be compiled to conduct analysis of values for types of property in Stratham. Values will be set as of April 1, 2024 |
| Spring 2024 | Data will be collected from a nationally recognized source to determine construction costs |
| Summer 2024 | Analysis information will be applied to CAMA system regarding cost information, sales information, and income and expense information when applicable |
| Summer 2024 | Preliminary draft values will be mailed to property owners |
| Late Summer 2024 | Whitney Consulting Group will hold informal hearings for concerns, questions, and clarification on the new values and revaluation process |
| Early Fall 2024 | Conduct any necessary property visits and process any changes from the informal hearings and finalize values |
| Fall 2024 | Final values will be set and submitted to the Department of Revenue Administration to determine the tax rate. Final tax bills will be mailed when tax rate is established |
| Winter 2025 | Abatement applications are due March 1, 2025 |
| Summer 2025 | Appeals applications due by September 1, 2025 |
Whitney Consulting Group will be conducting informal hearings following the mailing of the preliminary draft assessments. These appointments will be available in person and over the phone and dates will be announced once the preliminary assessments are mailed.
You are not required to have an informal hearing to participate in the normal abatement process. The normal abatement process involves filing an application after you receive the final tax bill. Abatement applications must be received by the Assessing Department or postmarked by March 1, 2025. If it is found that the application has merit, an abatement of taxes will be issued. If a taxpayer is still dissatisfied after the abatement decision, they may file an appeal with the Board of Tax and Land Appeals or the Superior Court by September 1, 2025.
