I, Laurence Holland, has been the Assessor for the Village of Spring Valley since December 2001.  I am in my office on Tuesday and Thursday, 10am -5pm.  If you have any questions, please call me at 845-517-1154.

         Below is a brief description of my job responsibilities and key dates in the assessment cycle.

Who is the Assessor?

         The Assessor is a local government official who estimates the value of real property within the village boundaries. This value is converted into an assessment, which is one component into the computation of real property tax bills.

What Training does the Assessor have to take?

         Assessors must obtain basic certifications by the State of New York within three years of taking office. This requires successful completion of orientation, three assessment administration course components and five appraisal components.

What does an Assessor do?

         The assessor is obligated by the new York State to law to maintain assessments at a uniform percentage of market value each year. The assessor must certify to a tentative assessment roll each year. The physical description and value estimate for every parcel is required to be kept current. Where assessments need to be changed, in some cases your assessor will be able to increase or decrease assessment of a neighborhood or a group of properties by applying real estate market trends to those properties. In other cases the assessor or the assessor's representative will need to conduct physical re-inspections for reappraisals of properties.

What kind of property is assessed?

         All real property, commonly known as real estate is assessed. Real property is defined as a land and any permanent improvements attached to it.

How is Real property assessed?

         Before assessing any parcel of property, the assessor estimates its market value. Market value is how much would the property sell for on the open market, under normal market conditions. Once the assessor estimates the market value, its assessment is calculated. New York State law provides all property within a municipality be assessed at a uniform percent of market value. This is known as the Equalization Rate.

What else does an Assessor do?

         The assessor performs many other administrative functions such as inspecting new construction and major improvements to existing structures. The assessor also approves and keeps track of tax exemptions. Among the most common for the village are Senior Citizen, Non-Profit Organization, Religious and Business Improvement. All exemptions are due in the Assessors office by December 31.