DCTA Watchdog News
How Water Rates Compare
December 2018 Watchdog Water rates across Dickinson County have been increasing in the last few years as government requirements have tightened. Recent increased costs have resulted from the infestation of zebra mussels that could clog lake water intakes. It is hard to compare water rates because of varying rate structures. Most water rates are based…
Read MoreIowa Sales Tax
April 2018 WATCHDOG Everybody pays it, but do you really know what you are paying for and where your money goes? In 1992 Iowa sales and use tax was increased to five percent to be applied to the sale of all tangible goods, except groceries and prescription drugs. All of the five percent sales tax…
Read MoreDickinson County Zoning
December 2017 WATCHDOG The Dickinson County Zoning office is located on the NW corner of the second floor of the Court House. It is office space shared with the County Engineer and the County Roads Department. David Kohlhaase is the County Zoning & Environmental Health Administrator. The Office Manager is Megan Kardell. The telephone number…
Read MoreWho Controls The Land?
December 2017 WATCHDOG To many it is the owner of the land who controls how a piece of property is used. About fifty years ago Dickinson County and most of our cities adopted zoning ordinances to provide better control of land use. A zoning ordinance is a written regulation that defines how property in specific…
Read MoreDETERMINING MARKET VALUE
April 2017 WATCHDOG State law requires that all real property be reassessed every two years. Under the law the assessed value is to be based on the reasonable market value of the property. “Market value” is defined as the fair and reasonable exchange between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any…
Read MoreDICKINSON COUNTY FY18 BUDGET
April 2017 WATCHDOG (Updated 2019) The Dickinson County budget is managed by a five member Board of Supervisors. The elected board members are Mardi Allen, Tim Fairchild, Bill Leopold, Paul Johnson, and Pam Jordan. Tim Fairchild was elected in November to represent the Milford area (District 3) to replace long time board member David Gottsche…
Read MoreTHE ROLE OF THE COUNTY ASSESSOR
April 2017 WATCHDOG The role of the Dickinson County Assessor is to assess the market value of all taxable property in Dickinson County for the purpose of determining its value for paying property tax. There are 28,000 parcels in Dickinson County. Church groups and government agencies that own property do not pay Iowa property tax.…
Read MoreHow Property Taxes are Calculated
APRIL 2017 WATCHDOG (updated) The assessor determines the assessed value of each piece of property in the County. Market value of a property is an estimate of the price that it would sell for on the open market on January First of the year of assessment. This is sometimes referred to as the “arms-length transaction”…
Read MoreBuyer Beware
The term “buyer beware” can apply to almost anything. It is particularly true when purchasing a residential lot or a newly constructed home. The process begins with a developer making improvements to the land by plating it into individual lots. Many times the property is improved by installing streets and utilities. Of course, when it…
Read MoreProperty Tax – Rollback
November 2016 WATCHDOG (Updated 2019) More than 20 years ago, Iowa residential property values were rising quickly. To help cushion the impact of high inflation, the Legislature passed an assessment limitation law called “rollback”. The property tax rollback impact for agricultural and residential property can be substantial because they cut the property tax nearly in…
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