Real & Manufactured Property Assessment

Residential and Commercial Property Assessment

Bonner County’s residential appraisers manage the valuation of all residential property types, including detached single-family dwellings, attached townhomes, condominium units, multi-family residential up to four-units, and manufactured housing.  Residential appraisers analyze construction costs, sales of residential properties and, where applicable, rental information to develop their assessed values.

Our team of commercial appraisers handle valuation for all commercial property types, including, office, retail, industrial, and high-density residential (apartments) uses.  Sub-categories include medical offices, restaurants, bars, hotels, gyms, dealerships, manufacturing and repair shops, and other property types.  Data pertaining to construction costs, market sales, and income-production is used to develop commercial assessments.

Frequently Asked Questions

How is property assessed?

Idaho law requires that all nonexempt property be assessed at market value as of January 1st.Two similar properties in different areas may have very different assessed values after marketable features are considered, including: general location, distance from schools and shopping, quality of surrounding properties and neighborhood amenities such as parks. The market approach to appraisal, which is described above, is most useful in determining the value of residential properties. In addition to the market approach, other methods are used to assess commercial and agricultural properties. Remember: The assessor does not set a value for your property. He or she just estimates what a typical buyer would reasonably pay for it on January 1st.

What is the lien date?

The lien date is the date taxes are secured by the property being taxed. Nonpayment of taxes that are secured by property may result in the owner losing their property. The lien date for real property and most personal property is January 1.

How often are property values adjusted?

All property is assessed each year.  Assessed values are adjusted annually based on market (sales) data.

 What is reappraisal?

State law requires properties to be physically inspected every 5 years. Roughly 20% of the properties within the county are reappraised in any given year. During the other four years of the cycle, values are trended based on market conditions.  The reappraisal process includes both desk review and field inspections to verify property characteristics. The appraisal staff researches sales and permit history, and references aerial imagery for changes in property use and to identify potential discrepancies in physical characteristics within our records. Field inspections require curb-side visits during which information is gathered regarding the property’s physical condition and whether any changes have been made to the property since it was last reappraised. Updated photographs are also taken during field inspections and, if needed, notification is left for the property owner to arrange a more detailed on-site inspection.

What are “improvements”?

The term “improvements” is commonly misunderstood. It does not refer just to remodeling, renovating or upgrading, although these are considered when your property is assessed. “Improvements” are buildings, fences, paving or other permanent structures that add value to land, regardless of when they were put there. For example, your house or manufactured home is considered an “improvement.”

What is the difference between real property and personal property?

Idaho law defines personal property as everything that’s the subject of ownership and that isn’t included within the term real property. Examples are tools, unattached store counters and display racks, desks, chairs, file cabinets, computers, office machines, and medical instruments. Buildings, structures, and fixtures are not personal property. To determine if an item is a fixture, a “three factor test” is applied to each item. If all three factors of the test apply to the item, it’s considered a fixture. Otherwise, the item is personal property.

The three factor test consists of annexation, adaptation and intent as explained below.

1. Annexation. Although once moveable chattels, articles become accessory to and a part of improvements to real property by having been physically or  constructively incorporated therein or annexed or affixed thereto in such a manner that removing them would cause material injury or damage to the real property; and
2. Adaptation. The use or purpose of an item is integral to the use of the real property to which it is affixed; and
3. Intent. Items should be considered personal property unless a person would reasonably be considered to intend to make the articles, during their useful life, permanent additions to the real property. The intent depends on an objective standard and what a reasonable person would consider permanent and not the subjective intention of the owner of the property.

If an item of property satisfies all three factors of the three factor test, the item becomes a fixture and therefore real property

What can I do if I disagree with the assessed value of my property?

Contact the Bonner County Assessor’s Office, which maintains a file of information on your property. If you question your assessment, you should review this information with your assigned county appraiser to ensure its accuracy. If you cannot resolve your disagreement with the Assessor’s Office, you may appeal to the Bonner County Board of Equalization (BOE), which consists of your elected county commissioners. Your appeal must be filed with the BOE by the fourth Monday in June. Be prepared to document your reasons for requesting a change in your property’s assessed value. You must prove that the assessor’s value is not the current market value of the property.

When are assessment notices mailed?

Your assessment notice must be mailed by the first Monday in June. When you get it, look at it carefully to make sure all the information is accurate.

 Manufactured Housing Assessment

Bonner County’s manufactured homes are assessed the same as other residential housing. Unless expressly exempted by law, all property is subject to property taxation and must be assessed at current market value each year. Also, the value of each manufactured home is taxed at the same levy rate as other property in the same geographic area.

Manufactured homes are sometimes treated as real property and other times treated as personal property.  If you or a previous owner recorded a Statement of Intent to Declare the structure as real property, it is taxed as real property.  If no Statement of Intent to Declare the structure as real property has been completed, recorded, and filed, it is taxed as personal property.

Frequently Asked Questions

What do I need to do if I am moving or demolishing my manufactured home?

When moving or demolished a manufactured home prior to demolishing it you must have any delinquent taxes paid and prepay the current year taxes.  If demolishing we will also need the original title mailed or brought to the Department of Motor Vehicle office.  Please contact our office so we can have it noted in the property record that it is gone. 

Can a manufactured home that was declared as real property be moved?

You cannot physically move any manufactured home that is declared as real property until you first complete the process for the Reversal of Declaration of the Manufactured Home as Real Property. This is even required for property that has been destroyed.

Why declare a manufactured home as real property?

You may wish to declare your manufactured home as real property for the following benefits:

• As a buyer, you may receive a lower interest rate if you finance your manufactured home.
 • You will receive one tax bill for the combined manufactured home and land (except when the land is leased).
 • If the property taxes are not paid when due, a manufactured home declared as real property is treated the same as all other real property. This means the county treasurer will not begin the procedure to take tax deed to the property if the property taxes are paid within three years.

How do I declare my manufactured home as real property?

To declare a manufactured home as real property, you must also own or lease the land on which the manufactured home is located. Whether you own or lease the land, your manufactured home cannot be declared as real property unless it is permanently affixed to the land. Permanently affixed means complying with the current Idaho manufactured home installation standard available from Idaho’s Division of Building Safety. A manufactured home that is permanently affixed to leased land may be declared as real property, if the manufactured home is being financed according to the guidelines of the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, Federal National Mortgage Association, United States Department of Agriculture, or other entity with similar restrictions on ownership and actions affecting title and possession.  To have your manufactured home declared as real property, you are responsible for completing each step of the following process:

1. Remove the running gear and affix the manufactured home permanently to the land.
2.  Complete the Statement of Intent to Declare form. This form is available from some manufactured home dealers, some title companies, some financial institutions, all county assessors and the State Tax Commission.
3. Have an authorized official verify that the running gear has been removed and that the manufactured home is permanently affixed to the land. You can contact your county assessor for help identifying an authorized official.
4. Have the county assessor verify that sales or use tax has been paid on your new manufactured home. If it has not been paid, you must pay the tax to the county assessor who will remit it to the State Tax Commission. A used manufactured home is not subject to Idaho’s sales or use tax.
5. Obtain the signature of any lien holder showing their consent to have your manufactured home declared as real property.
6. Take a completed Statement of Intent to Declare form with all required signatures to the county recorder to be recorded.
7. Give the county assessor the following:
    • the title, Manufacturer’s Statement of Origin (MSO), or Manufacturer’s Certificate of Origin (MCO) and
    • a copy of the recorded Statement of Intent to Declare form.

The county assessor will send all of this information to the Idaho Transportation Department, which will cancel the title. A vehicle identification number (VIN) affidavit of inspection is required if an MSO, MCO, or out-of-state title is submitted. If the manufactured home dealer made an Idaho application for title, this application form may be substituted for the VIN inspection.

My manufactured home was declared as real property: how do I change it back to Personal Property?

To have a manufactured home changed from real property to personal property, you are responsible for completing each step of the following process:

1. Give 30 days notice to the county assessor in the county where the real property is located before moving the manufactured home. You give notice by submitting a completed Reversal of Declaration of Manufactured Home as Real Property form and attaching the title report with the appropriate signatures of consent. Except for owners of rights-of-way or subsurface rights, anyone with an interest in, or title to, the real property where the manufactured home is affixed must provide a signature of consent. For real property manufactured homes permanently affixed to leased land, the attached signatures of consent must include anyone with any interest in the manufactured home.
 2. Have the county treasurer verify that the property taxes are paid.
3. Take a completed Reversal of Declaration of Manufactured Home as Real Property form to the county recorder to be recorded.
 4. Give the county assessor the following:
• a copy of the recorded Reversal of Declaration of Manufactured Home as Real Property form,
 • title report, and
 • appropriate signatures of consent.

At the same time, you must apply for a new title to the manufactured home. The county assessor will send all of this information to the Idaho Transportation Department, which will issue the title. The manufactured home becomes personal property again for current and future owners unless a Statement Of Intent To Declare the manufactured home as real property is once again completed, recorded, and filed.

When are the assessment notices and the tax bills sent?

The county assessor mails the assessed values by the first Monday in June. If you do not receive your notice, contact the county assessor.

You should receive your tax bill by or soon after the fourth Monday of November. If you do not receive your property tax bill, contact the county treasurer