Some local businesses see property values skyrocket

Questions and concerns are arising over changes in commercial property values in Rio Rancho.

The Rio Rancho Regional Chamber of Commerce sent an email on April 17 “urging all commercial and business property owners to carefully review their property tax statements and consider filing an appeal with the county.”

The chamber said it is concerned about “the significant increase in proposed property tax rates for 2024, which has been a cause of concern for many local businesses.”

Sandoval County Assessor Linda Gallegos said her office works hard to make sure all of the nearly 150,000 accounts they have are assessed correctly and fairly.

“My team and I work to ensure that all properties are valued at current and correct,” Gallegos said. “My staff has been mandated to review and amend all valuations to current and correct, further ensuring that the valuation of properties that are deemed non-residential does not shift the burden of taxation to residential properties.”

The Sandoval County Assessor’s Office determines property values for tax purposes.

Property owners receive valuation figures on the Notice of Value, which is mailed by April 1 each year. This notice represents the final step in the review process and determines the taxes property owners will pay after local government agencies and school districts set their budgets and adopt tax rates.

County appraisers regularly review real estate data and add new properties to ensure the values of existing land and buildings are up to date. The taxable value of property is determined as one-third of the total appraised value, minus any allowable exemptions, such as head-of-household or veteran’s exemptions. The net taxable value is then multiplied by the tax rate to calculate the actual taxes property owners are billed.

The assessor is charged with three basic duties: to identify, locate and value properties within Sandoval County.

Property owners who wish to appeal their Notice of Value assessment should contact the Sandoval County Assessor's Office for more information on how to proceed. The deadline for appeals is April 30th.

One local business that has already filed an appeal is Turtle Mountain, which recently celebrated its 25th anniversary in Rio Rancho.

“The value of my parking lot here at Turtle Mountain went from $51,024 in 2023 to $324,608 in 2024, an increase of $273,584, or 536% over the previous year,” Turtle Mountain owner Nico Ortiz said. “The taxes went from $708.20 to $4,505.56, an increase of $3,797.36, which is the same 536%. The value of the Turtle Mountain building remained the same, however. I've already been in touch with the county assessor's office and have filed a protest. We shall see where this goes.”

The Turtle Mountain parking lot was valued at $109,337 in 2017. It dipped to $102,776 from 2018-2020. In 2021-2023, the parking lot was valued at $51,024.

“Our office recently conducted an analysis of sales of lands along major thoroughfares in Rio Rancho,” Gallegos said. “Our analysis showed that the lands in that area were undervalued significantly.”

Elevate also saw its property value spike, going from $1.3 million in 2023 to $6.6 million this year.

“In 2021, the property owner (Elevate) successfully argued their valuation had diminished due to the COVID-19 pandemic,” Gallegos said. “Recent market analysis indicated that for the 2024 tax year, the parcel was undervalued. The parcel is currently being marketed for $6,842,000; while the property listing was not used to set the value, it does demonstrate that our 2024 value is accurate.”

The Albertson’s in Enchanted Hills saw its value increase by 33% this year while the Albertson’s on Ridgecrest jumped 155%. Gallegos said this is due to a mistake in 2023, while noting that property owners are required by statute to report when information concerning their parcel is incorrect.

“Through the 2023 protest process, it was discovered that the parcel had incorrect square footage reflected on our tax roll,” Gallegos said. “Once that value was realized on our 2023 Notice of Value, it could not be changed. We corrected the assessment in the 2024 tax year as mandated by statute.”

Several properties had over 100% increases in value this year, including Guerrero Village, which went from $906,462 to $2,195,886 (a 142% increase). Gallegos said the plaza recently sold for an amount that showed the property had been undervalued by more than $1.5 million while noting that state statute prohibits the selling price of the subject property to be used to value that specific property if there are sufficient market comparables to use to value the property. The Assessor is to utilize one of three approved methods of valuation or a combination of all three. The market approach is given preference by statute. In the absence of comparable sales in the market approach, then one of the other two methods may be utilized. These are the income approach and the cost approach.

"Sales of comparable properties showed that the parcel was undervalued," Gallegos said. "The recent sale of Guerrero Plaza also indicated that the 2023 value was undervalued by over $1.5 million. The sale was not utilized to value the parcel but it does show evidence of a higher market value than what was realized in prior years."

Dr. Stacey Goldstein-Dwyer, who owns GD Psych Services, said these value increases not only add stress to the property owner but that the community will also be affected.

“From a mental health perspective, with the gas company going up, the electricity company going up, and now property rates going up, it's really going to cause more depression, suicidality, anxiety, it's really going to drive up the mental illness in this area, not to mention poverty,” Goldstein-Dwyer said.

Both the chamber and the assessor’s office encourage property owners to reach out to the assessor to discuss any concerns with the valuation of their property.

For more information on how to file an appeal or to learn more about protesting property value, go to the assessor's website and complete the protest form: sandovalcountynm.gov/elected-officials/county-assessor/forms/

In addition, you can call the assessor’s office at 505-867-7562 or the Rio Rancho Regional Chamber of Commerce at 505-892-1533.

“My team is committed to reviewing whatever evidence a property owner has to support their value,” Gallegos said. “If the evidence sufficiently shows a diminishment in value, we will reflect that change.”