If you've been trying to keep up with everything happening with Buncombe County property taxes this year, you're not alone. It's been confusing—and for good reason.
Earlier this year, Buncombe County homeowners received new property values as part of the county's 2026 reappraisal. For many people, those values were significantly higher than the values they had been accustomed to seeing on their tax bills.
Then the rules changed.
On June 19, 2026, Governor Josh Stein signed Senate Bill 889 into law. The legislation delayed the use of Buncombe County's 2026 reappraisal for one year. Instead of using the new property values for the 2026 tax bills, the county must use the previous schedule of values that was already in place. The 2026 reappraisal is now scheduled to become effective for the 2027 tax year.
That has led to a very reasonable question:
"If they're using my old, lower property value again, does that mean my property taxes are going down?"
The short answer is:
Not necessarily.
Your Property Value Is Only Half of the Equation
When most people think about property taxes, they naturally focus on the value of their home.
But your property tax bill is determined by two things:
- The assessed value of your property.
- The tax rate adopted by your local government.
Both matter.
A lower assessed value doesn't automatically result in a lower tax bill if the tax rate also changes.
What Happened?
On June 2, Buncombe County adopted its FY2027 budget using the newly completed 2026 reappraisal. The Board of Commissioners approved a county tax rate of 43.20 cents per $100 of assessed value.
After Senate Bill 889 became law, the county could no longer use the 2026 property values for this year's tax bills.
County officials then evaluated two options:
- Continue using the 2026 property values with a revenue-neutral tax rate of approximately 40 cents per $100, which the county estimated would reduce General Fund revenue by about $24.8 million.
- Return to the previous schedule of property values while adopting a higher tax rate that would fully fund the budget already approved by the Board of Commissioners.
On July 14, the Board chose the second option.
The county adopted a revised tax rate of 61.54 cents per $100 of assessed value, using the previous schedule of property values.
Why Doesn't a Lower Property Value Automatically Mean Lower Taxes?
Think about it this way.
Imagine two different ways to arrive at roughly the same destination.
One uses higher property values with a lower tax rate.
The other uses lower property values with a higher tax rate.
Either approach can generate similar overall revenue for the county.
That's why looking only at your property's assessed value doesn't tell the whole story.
Your final tax bill depends on both the assessed value and the tax rate.
Why Do Counties Reappraise Property?
One common misconception is that a reappraisal automatically means local government collects more money.
That's not actually the purpose of a reappraisal.
A countywide reappraisal is intended to update property values so they better reflect the current real estate market. Over time, some neighborhoods appreciate much faster than others. Updating values helps distribute the tax burden more fairly among property owners.
Following a reappraisal, North Carolina requires counties to calculate a revenue-neutral tax rate - a rate that would generate approximately the same revenue from existing property as the previous year, before accounting for new construction and other growth.
That's why tax rates often decrease after a countywide reappraisal, even when property values increase.
What Happens to My New 2026 Appraisal?
If you received a new appraisal notice earlier this year, it hasn't been canceled.
Under current law, Buncombe County's 2026 reappraisal has been delayed and is scheduled to become effective for the 2027 tax year.
If you filed an appeal of your 2026 value, Buncombe County has indicated that those appeals will continue to be processed and applied when the delayed reappraisal takes effect.
What Should Homeowners Do?
Rather than trying to estimate your tax bill based on the appraisal notice you received earlier this year, I recommend reviewing your actual 2026 tax bill once it's available.
That's the easiest way to see exactly how these changes affected your property.
If something doesn't look right, or if you have questions about how your property's assessed value compares to its current market value, don't hesitate to ask.
As real estate brokers, we spend every day analyzing home values throughout Buncombe County. While a tax assessment and market value aren't the same thing, we're always happy to help homeowners better understand the difference and how these changes may affect them.
The Bottom Line
This year's property tax changes have created a lot of understandable confusion.
The biggest takeaway is this:
A property's assessed value and its property tax bill are not the same thing.
A lower assessed value does not automatically mean lower taxes, just as a higher assessed value doesn't automatically mean dramatically higher taxes.
To understand your tax bill, you have to consider both your property's assessed value and the tax rate.
We'll continue following these developments and sharing updates that help make sense of what they mean for homeowners here in Buncombe County.
That's all part of guiding people home.
