General Information

 

What is the Job of the County Assessor?

The county assessor is responsible for the following:

 

Lists and maintains records on each piece of taxable real and personal property in Stephens County. Real Property includes land and buildings. Personal Property includes business furniture and fixtures, business equipment, business inventory, farm equipment, and manufactured homes. As Stephens County Assessor, is responsible for the equitable assessment of all taxable properties in Stephens County. Individual parcels now number close to 30,000 and cover an area of 891 square miles. An unprecedented amount of this information is now being made available in a variety of formats. Please follow this shortcut to view the Assessors Records.

 

Determines fair market value annually for homes, businesses and other taxable property in Stephens County. Fair market value may go up or down depending on the real estate market in the county.

 

Notifies property owners of any increase in the fair market value of their property. Assists taxpayers in filing homestead exemption and affidavits for property that is exempt under Oklahoma law.

 

Resolves questions or protests about valuation.

 

Preparation and certification of the assessment and tax rolls.

 

Appears before the COUNTY BOARD OF EQUALIZATION.

 

How Do I Figure My Tax?

The method for figuring ad valorem taxes requires four steps: You must know the taxable market value of your property, the assessment ratio(11% Real Property - 11% Personal), any exemptions, and the tax rate for your area of the county. The example is based upon a property that has a taxable market value of $60,000 with homestead exemption and a tax rate of $90 per thousand.

 

In this example, the final tax bill is $504. This could vary if the district in which the property is located had higher or lower school, city or other bond issues. Rates generally vary from $65 to $100 per thousand within the county.

 

How Are Tax Rates Set For My Property?

Tax rates or millage levies are set by procedures established in the Oklahoma Constitution or voted directly by the taxpayers. Rates are not set by the County Assessor. There are over 20 different rates in Stephens County and those vary across the county depending on which school district, city limit and vocational-technical school district the property is located. The tax or millage rate levied against a property makes a great deal of difference in the taxes paid. Rates vary in Stephens County from $65 to $100 per thousand.

 

What is a Mill?

A mill is one-thousandth of a dollar. For convenience in Oklahoma, a tax rate (the sum of all mills levied) is expressed as dollars per thousand dollars of assessed value. A Tax rate of 80 mills, for example, would be 80 tax dollars, per thousand.

 

Where Does My Property Tax Money Go?

Property taxes are an important source of revenue for local schools, vocational-technical education, libraries, city and county government. As in most states in the United States, property taxes are the backbone of funding of local government and schools. Oklahoma’s property tax with some changes has fulfilled this basic function since statehood.

 

Generally, local schools receive the largest share of the property tax. Schools are followed by city bond issues, county government, vocational-technical schools, libraries, and city-county health department. Except for those provided for in the Oklahoma Constitution, millage levies are controlled by the voters.

 

When Do I Pay My Tax?

The County Treasurer sends out a tax bill in November each year. Taxes may be paid on two installments. If exactly one half is paid by December 31, then the last half is due by March 31. If nothing is paid by December 31, the full amount is due and becomes delinquent January 1 with applicable penalties owed.