Director of Regional Assessing / Assessor
Cumberland County Government
- Portland, ME
- $55.01-60.87 per hour
- Permanent
- Full-time
- Possess 7-10 years of directly related experience in real estate or municipal assessing;
- Hold a current Maine assessor certification (CMA) or be on track to earn it in the first 6 months of employment;
- Hold a Bachelor's degree in a closely related field;
- Hold a valid State of Maine driver's license or the ability to obtain one within 6 months of hire;
- Demonstrate knowledge of principles and practices of appraisal and tax assessing as applied to the determination of land, building and personal property values for tax purposes;
- Demonstrate knowledge of applicable laws and regulations;
- Demonstrate the ability to recognize and analyze factors influencing the value of properties and to analyze and interpret laws, ordinances, rules and regulations;
- Demonstrate strengths in math, organization and frequent interaction with the public.
- Manages Assessing department staff, including regular performance evaluations, oversight of staff activities, and administration of all staff duties.
- Performs on-site inspections of land and buildings in order to gather data related to location, value, use, and building characteristics. Appraises and evaluates properties.
- Conducts inspections and reviews taxable personal property listings in order to determine the assessed value of machinery, equipment, furniture and fixtures.
- Researches recorded deeds provided by the County Registry to establish the owner of the record and to determine the correct tax liability.
- Completes annual assessment work in accordance to MRSA Title 36 mandates; prepares annual commitment warrant and certification to the municipal Tax Collector & Treasurer; calculates the municipal tax rate and completes annual ratio study used for the State Valuations.
- Maintains accurate assessment records, including computerized data on all land, buildings and personal property. Adjusts property record cards and maps to reflect transfers of real estate and adjusts assessment records accordingly
- Maintains positive public relations by responding to specific municipal taxpayer inquiries regarding assessments, parcel boundaries, exemptions, value estimates, laws and regulations, etc., via owner, real estate broker, attorney, surveyor, or potential buyer. Reviews and processes property owner’s requests for assessment changes.
- Maintains State’s assessment standards of a Coefficient of Dispersion less than 20 and a Sales ratio between 70% and 110%.
- Creates new valuation model for specific municipalities for periodic revaluations.
- Processes and compiles annual municipal tax maps changes for new lots, acreage, boundary line changes, street names and numbers, subdivision lot numbers and new building footprints.
- Processes municipal annual Tree Growth, Farmland, Open Space, Homestead, Veteran, Blind and Institution property tax exemptions. Calculates and assesses Tree Growth penalties.
- Submits department annual budget request to the County Manager and provides other reports on departmental activity as required. Determines accurate assessments for annual collection of municipal property taxes as the specific municipality’s primary revenue source.
- Executes official documents as required by Law.
- Attends meetings of Boards of Assessment Review as needed; makes reports and recommendations to the Board as required.