After new state laws were passed affecting the property tax reappraisal process, Buncombe County Board of Commissioners recently held a special meeting on July 14th, 2026 to review options for property owners. In this blog, we will break down the context and what this means for property owners in Buncombe County.

What is the Property Reappraisal Process?

All counties in North Carolina are required to reappraise real property every eight years. Real property is considered land, buildings, structures, and improvements. Properties are appraised at 100% of market value based on the most recent qualified sales that occurred leading up to the reappraisal date. It’s designed to provide equalization across all property owners and types of properties. 

In Buncombe County, this process is completed every four years due to an ever-changing market. The last reappraisal was completed in 2021 and was delayed for the 2025 fiscal year due to Hurricane Helene. Finally, Buncombe County conducted its 2026 reappraisal and released updated values effective January 1st, 2026. 

State laws were then passed requiring counties to delay the use of the updated 2026 values. A second bill was passed that allowed counties to use the new values and reduce the tax rate to a revenue-neutral rate. These bills affected very few counties across North Carolina and were put forward in order to provide economic relief for property owners.

The Board of Commissioners were faced with two options: use the outdated 2021 schedule of property values and amend the tax rate, or use the updated 2026 schedule of property values combined with a revenue-neutral tax rate. This would have led to a reduction of Buncombe County’s adopted budget by more than $24 million. 

As the county continues to experience growing demand for services across departments, including public safety, health and human services, and economic and community development, amending the tax rate was a serious matter. Citing the need to maintain the funding outlined in the FY27 budget adopted on June 2, 2026, commissioners voted to amend the FY27 budget with prior values and the following tax rates: 

• Buncombe County: 61.54 cents per $100 of assessed value
• Unified Fire District: 17.38 cents per $100 of assessed value
• Asheville City Schools: 11.75 cents per $100 of assessed value

Additionally, the City of Asheville met to amend the tax rate for city residents to 50.78 cents per $100 of assessed value. 

What Buncombe County Property Owners Need to Know

The 2021 Schedule of Values will be used for 2026 tax bills. Unless improvements have been made to real estate, the value used on last year's tax bill will remain the same this year. 

The value used on last year’s tax bill reflects any adjustments made due to impacts from Tropical Storm Helene. If a home sustained damage from Hurricane Helene and had a lower valuation, that value will remain unchanged. 

If you filed an appeal, you do not need to file a new appeal unless you have received a decision and were not satisfied with the result. All pending appeals will be held and applied to the 2027 reappraisal. The recently passed legislation also extends the appeal process for 2026 values through 2027 for owners that have yet to appeal.

Naturally, the mailing of tax bills will be delayed. You can find your tax bill online as soon as possible at tax.buncombenc.gov. 

Property tax relief is available for qualifying residents living in Buncombe County who are 65 years of age or older, those who are totally & permanently disabled, and for Veterans with a permanent and total service-connected disability. More information is available at tax.buncombenc.gov or by calling 828-250-4915.

Source: https://www.buncombenc.gov/m/newsflash/Home/Detail/1049