Assessor

Who We Are

In addition to the Assessor, the office staff consists of the:

• Administration Team
• Assessment Services Team
• Property Appraisal Teams
  • Business Personal Property (BPP)
  • Commercial/Industrial Appraisal Team
  • Residential Appraisal Team

It is our goal to appraise all property fairly and equitably, to maintain accurate and accessible property records and give prompt and courteous customer service.

What We Do

The Assessor is elected by a public vote to a four year term. The Assessor's duties and responsibilities are contained largely in state laws and administrative codes and include identifying and determining the value of all taxable real and personal property in the county. These values are used to calculate and set levy rates for the various taxing districts within the county and to equitably assign tax responsibilities among taxpayers. Property taxes fund state and county services, including:  roads, transit, schools, libraries, parks, hospitals, fire and rescue, law enforcement, environmental and social services.

Clark County updates the market value for all properties annually according to market sales. In addition, the Commercial and Residential appraisal teams perform physical inspections of every property within the county on a 6-year cycle as required by the state constitution & laws and enforced by the State Department of Revenue. Washington State law requires property to be assessed at 100% of fair market value.

Information such as parcel numbers, ownership, tax code areas, and assessed valuations for all property within the county can be obtained on-line through the Property Information Center or through the Self Service computers located in the Joint Lobby during regular business hours.

Under the Assessor's direction, the department performs many functions in addition to property appraisals.  The additional services we provide include:

• Provide information, education and assistance, including public computer access to assessment data
• Prepare annual statement of assessed valuations, tax rates and taxes levied within the various taxing districts of Clark County
• Maintain business personal property listings and audits
• Allocate value to taxing districts, calculate levy rates, and certify the tax roll to the Treasurer
• Administer and provide information for property tax exemptions and deferrals:
  • Senior citizen and disabled persons exemption
  • Senior citizen and disabled persons deferral
  • Current Use Farm & Agriculture, Open Space, Forest Land, and Timber
  • Historic properties exemption
  • Residential home improvement exemption
• Defends assessments before the Board of Equalization, State Board of Tax Appeals & courts

What we don’t do:

• We don’t mail or collect your taxes

The Treasurer does this.  You may contact them by phone at 564.397.2252 or via email at treasoff@clark.wa.gov.

• We don’t take your appeal

The Board of Equalization does this.  You may contact them by phone at 360.397.2337 or via email at boe@clark.wa.gov.

Watch an interview on CVTV's Clark County Close Up with the Assessor, Peter Van Nortwick.  In this interview, Peter describes the role of the County Assessor and gives taxpayers information on the County's audit of the lands in the Current Use tax deferral programs.  The Assessor's interview begins at 6:32 minutes into the episode.

Additional information about property taxes in Washington is available from the Department of Revenue. The Homeowner's Guide to Property Taxes (PDF - 298K) provides an overview of the programs administered by the Assessor.