City-Wide Property Revaluation

As our city continues to grow and evolve, it’s important that property assessments keep pace with changing market conditions. To ensure fairness in property taxation, the City of Fond du Lac is conducting a city-wide property revaluation for the 2025 assessment year. This process, while routine, can lead to many questions and concerns among property owners. Please review the common questions to learn about the revaluation and how it affects you.

While a city-wide property revaluation can be a complex and sometimes stressful process, it is a necessary step to ensure that property taxes are distributed fairly. By understanding how the process works and what to expect, the community can navigate this change with confidence.

An assessment is the value placed upon taxable real and personal property by the assessor.  This figure determines the portion of the local property tax levy that the property will bear.

A property revaluation is a systematic process where the city reassesses the value of every property within its limits. The primary goal is to make sure property assessments stay current with market values. Over time, property values can change due to a variety of factors, including changes in the housing market, economic conditions, and local developments. A revaluation ensures that property taxes are based on the most up-to-date information, reflecting the true value of each property.

Wisconsin state law requires municipalities assess the value of properties within their boundaries in order to fairly set property tax rates.  Assessed values must be within 10% of market value in order to comply with state law. Our community has not had a revaluation since 2019, and during this time property values have fluctuated.  Conducting a revaluation now ensures that property taxes are distributed equitably across all property owners. Without a revaluation, some property owners could be paying more than their fair share, while others are paying less.

One of the most common concerns about a revaluation is how it will impact property taxes. It’s important to understand that a revaluation does not raise additional tax revenue for the City. Instead, it redistributes the tax burden based on the updated property values. Some property owners may see an increase in their property taxes, while others may see a decrease, depending on how their property’s value has changed relative to others in the city. The City’s overall tax levy does not increase because of this revaluation.

A city-wide property revaluation is essential to maintaining fairness in our property tax system. It ensures that everyone pays their fair share based on the current value of their property. The city is committed to making this process as transparent as possible, providing resources and support to help property owners understand their new assessments.

The revaluation process involves several key steps:

  1. Data Collection: The 2025 revaluation will not include any on-site data collection. The information used for this Market Update Revaluation will come from what is listed in each individual property record card.
  2. Market Analysis: Assessors analyze recent real estate transactions to understand current market trends. By comparing similar properties and considering factors like location, property size, and condition, assessors can estimate the market value of each property.
  3. Valuation: Using the collected data and market analysis, the assessors determine the new assessed value for each property. This value represents what the property could reasonably sell for under current market conditions.
  4. Notification: Once the valuations are complete, property owners will receive a notice of their new assessed value. This notice will include instructions on how to review the assessment and the steps to take if you believe there is an error. (Note: Notices were mail on April 23, 2025.)
  5. Appeals Process: If a property owner disagrees with the new assessment, they have the right to appeal. The notice will detail the procedure for filing an appeal, including deadlines and any required documentation.

The tax levy is the amount of money local governments, school districts and technical colleges are authorized by their governing bodies to collect in the form of property taxes. The City Council sets the tax levy for the City of Fond du Lac.

Yes. State laws dictate the amount tax levies can increase each year for municipalities. This is determined by the annual levy limit, which is formulated by the Department of Revenue. The only way the City can increase its property tax outside of the annual levy limit change is through approval of a city-wide referendum.

No. The amount of property taxes levied by the City is limited to what’s allowable through the City’s tax levy. Changes in assessed property values have nothing to do with the total amount of property taxes collected by the City.

A property assessment helps ensure that each property pays its fair share of the levy.

If the total assessed value in the City increases, and the levy remains the same, then the tax rate goes down.

Any individual property would only see an increase in taxes as a result of the assessment, if its value increased by a greater percentage than the City as a whole. If the City is up 53.8% and your property is also up 53.8%, you would not see a change. If the City is up 53.8% and your property is increased 35%, you’d see a decrease in your taxes.

The tax rate is the total tax levy divided by the total assessed property value. Represented on the tax bill as “Net Assessed Value Rate”.

The mill rate is the total tax levy divided by the total assessed property value multiplied by 1,000. It represents the amount per $1,000 of the assessed value of the property, which is used to calculate the amount of property tax.

Property tax is the primary source of tax revenue for local governments in Wisconsin. The tax bills in our community include the property tax amounts set by the Fond du Lac City Council, Fond du Lac County Board, School District Board and Moraine Park Technical College (MPTC) Board.

The City of Fond du Lac portion is used to fund City operations and services, including police and fire departments, road construction and repairs, libraries, and other local services that benefit the community.

Documents

After Revaluation Notices – Presented 04-23-25

Equalized and Assessed Value Presentation 04-23-25

Equalized and Assessed Value – Presented 03-26-25

Property Revaluation – Presented 03-26-25

Revaluation Letter – Mailed 04-23-25

What is a Revaluation? – Mailed 04-23-25