· Oversees the general reassessment process.

· Serves as member/secretary of the Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals.

· Insures countywide uniform property assessment equalization.

· Acts as the Inheritance Tax Appraiser and represents the Inheritance Tax Division.

· Discovers and identifies omitted property.

· Calculates the total assessed value of each taxing district.

· Certifies current assessments to the County Auditor's Office.

· Utilizes recent sales of land to establish base market value in each neighborhood, adjusts the base values for location, nearness to amenities and other influence factors.

· Is responsible for the selection of assessment software and computer systems.

The Wells County Assessor is issuing a reminder to all personal property owners in Wells County, IN.  March 1st is the lien date for all personal property in the State of Indiana.  May 15th is the filing date for this property.  To avoid a late penalty, a taxpayer must file a personal property return with the Wells County Assessor's Office by May 15, of each year.

The penalty imposed for failure to file a timely personal property return is $25.00.  If the return is not filed within thirty days of the filing date, there will be another penalty of 20% of the tax finally determined.  IC 6-1.1-37-7.

Motor homes, travel trailers, truck campers, trailers over 3,000 lbs., snowmobiles and off-road vehicles, are no longer required to be reported to the Assessor's office.  This will now be taken care of through the BMV; however if there is a recreational vehicle used for farming purposes, that is not plated through BMV, it must be reported on the Form 102- Farmer's Tangible Personal Property Assessment Return.

All business tangible property is also to be filed at this time.  Leased property is included in these filing requirements.  If the taxpayer has leased equipment in their possession or own property that has been leased to someone else, they must report this on a Form 103-N or 103-O.

Farmers are no longer required to report livestock or grain. The machinery and equipment on hand as of March 1, of the current year, is still required to be reported. This includes all leased equipment and machiner.

Wells County has eliminated the tax on inventory, grain and livestock.

Forms may be acquired from the Assessor's Office or by clicking here

None at this time

Should a property owner disagree with their assessment, they are entitled to an appeal. A review of the property record card is important to ensure that the features of the property have been reported correctly. These include square footage, number of plumbing fixtures, finished and unfinished attics and basements. Any discrepancy of the objective portions of the assessment may be handled anytime. If, however, there are subjective aspects of the assessment that need to be appealed, a Form 130 should be filed with the County Assessor for further review. You may access your property record card by going to our GIS web site at www.wellscountygis.org.

A Summary of the Various Levels of Appeal:
Within 45 days of the date of the Notice of Assessment (Form 11), file the Form 130 with the County Assessor. The Assessor will attempt to hold an informal hearing with the taxpayer; if the appeal is not settled in the informal hearing, the appeal then goes to the Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA).
If the taxpayer disagrees with the Final Determination of the PTABOA, they may file an appeal (Form 131) with the Indiana State Board of Appeals. This form must be filed with the County Assessor within 30 days of the Final Determination from the PTABOA. Along with the Form 131, the taxpayer must submit a copy of the appeal documents filed with the PTABOA and a copy of their determination.

This application must be filed before May 15. An application must be filed in 2000 and every even numbered year thereafter. However, an application must be filed in any other year if the property was not exempt in the immediately preceding year, or if there have been any changes to the property. Churches and cemeteries are only required to file once, unless there is a change in the property, or any changes in their bylaws or articles of incorporation. An application should be filed in any year in which property is pending from any preceding year.

Form 136: Application for Property Tax Exemption

Time for Filing Inheritance Tax Returns
For decedents dying after July 1, 2001, an inheritance tax return is required to be filed within nine months of the date of death, rather than one year as was previously required. The Probate Court still has authority to extend the time for filing and to waive the penalty for late filing.

Time for Payment of Inheritance Tax
For decedents dying on or after July 1, 2002, payment of inheritance tax must be made within nine months of the date of death to obtain the five percent discount. Payments made more than one year after the date of death are subject to interest from the date of death until the date of payment at ten percent per annum for decedents dying on or after July 1, 2001. The Probate Court still has authority to reduce the amount of interest from ten to six percent.

Time for Payment of Indiana Estate Tax and Indiana Generation Skipping Transfer Tax
Payment of Indiana Estate Tax and Indiana Generation Skipping Transfer Tax is one year after date of death for decedents dying on or after July 1, 2001. For decedents dying earlier, the due date is 18 months after the date of death.

Affidavit of No Inheritance Tax Due
An affidavit of No Inheritance Tax Due may be used to state that, after the exemptions, no inheritance tax is due. Pursuant to 2001 legislation, the Department and the County Assessor may rely on this affidavit in determining whether a transfer of funds will jeopardize collection of inheritance tax and if the County Assessor should allow the transfer of funds.

Family Allowance
The family allowance provided by the I.C. 29-1-4-1 is now $25,000.

Inventory of Sale Deposit Boxes
Lockboxes no longer have to be inventoried at decedent's death.

Exemptions and Rates
Class A Beneficiaries Exemptions:
Adult Child: $100,000
Minor Child: $100,000
Parent: $100,000
Other lineal ancestor or descendent: $100,000

Tax Rates
$0 - $25,000:
1% of net taxable value
$25,000 - $49,999:
$250 plus 2% of net over $25,000