UNIFORM ASSESSMENT OF PROPERTY: RETURNS FROM INSTITUTIONAL REMEDIES

Abstract

Differences in property tax assessment uniformity among Virginia assessing units are studied using four sets of explanatory variables—assessment system, property tax intensity, local housing market, and local economy. While assessment-system features—the focus of traditional property tax reforms—account for little of the assessment-quality variation, we nevertheless find strong support for some traditional reforms. Still, about 70 percent of the variation is associated with relatively uncontrollable factors.