The Arlington County Board on Tuesday is expected to approve a half-cent reduction in the real estate tax rate.
The Board will consider tax rates and the annual county budget on Tuesday. A staff report published in advance of the meeting suggests that the Board has settled upon a tax rate reduction.
“After a lengthy public review process that included work sessions, public hearings, input from residents, employees, boards and commissions, and updated revenue forecasts based on FY 2016 mid-year and third-quarter updates, the County Board, after deliberations, has approved an FY 2017 budget that is balanced at the real estate tax rate of $0.978 per $100 of assessed property value,” the report says.
That will bring the residential tax rate to $0.991 per $100 in assessed value, including the $0.013 stormwater rate.
Despite the rate reduction, the average Arlington homeowner will be paying more in taxes, thanks to a 2.8 percent rise in residential real estate assessments.
“The average Arlington homeowner would pay $5,981 per year in real estate taxes, a $133 or 2.3 percent increase over CY 2015,” county staff writes.
Commercial property assessments this year were deemed flat, “with only 0.7 percent growth from CY 2015 to CY 2016, primarily fueled by a slight decrease in vacancy rates.”