This year’s jump, which is a part of this year’s property value update throughout the county, is driven by increases in crop prices over the past three years, according to the Montgomery County Auditor’s Office. But the increase in value will not result in a one-to-one increase in property tax bills.
The Montgomery County Auditor’s Office estimates that taxes for farms in Miamisburg, New Lebanon and Valley View school districts will increase an average of 15-18% due to the rise in CAUV values, while farms in other school districts will see an 8-10% average increase.
“We’re seeing big increases in CAUV with this year’s property value update,” said Montgomery County Auditor Karl Keith. “We know how important the CAUV program is for our working farmers. It has a big impact on their bottom line, which is why we make it a priority to send out notices of the new values every three years.”
Keith mailed notices to farmland owners of their new CAUV values on Monday.
Farmland owners should expect to receive the notice by the end of September, but the new values are also available today at www.mcrealestate.org, according to the auditor’s office.
Officials at the Montgomery County Farm Bureau said they’ve been working with the auditor’s office since March regarding the value change for farmland.
Steve Berk, a manager at Dull Homestead Farms in Brookville and a farm bureau state board trustee, said the rising price of crops is influenced by the rising demand for meat products. Corn — one of the most popular crops grown in Montgomery County and throughout Ohio — cultivated at local farms often is purchased and used for livestock feed, but it’s also used for ethanol creation at major companies in the region.
Also driving up the demand of crops in the Miami Valley is unstable weather in other parts of the world and the rising cost related to production.
“It really is just simple economics, the rules of supply and demand,” Berk said. “And really, demand is increasing worldwide.”
More than 104,000 acres are currently enrolled in the CAUV program, making up 35.5% of Montgomery County’s total acreage.
Most CAUV properties are in the rural townships in the western part of the county. Jackson Twp. has the most land in the CAUV program, with more than 18,000 acres.
CAUV usage and average value changes in area townships:
- Jackson Twp.: 18,000 acres, 83.9% average CAUV increase
- Perry Twp.: 17,100 acres, 79.2% average CAUV increase
- Clay Twp.: 17,000 acres, 79.4% average CAUV increase
- German Twp.: 13,600 acres, 75.9% average CAUV increase
- Jefferson Twp.: 9,700 acres, 82.9% average CAUV increase
“Even with this year’s increases, the CAUV program remains a valuable source of tax relief for our farmers, offering an average value reduction of more than 50%,” said Keith in a release. “Farm owners who believe they may be eligible should contact my office to learn more.”
The value reduction offered by the program results in lower tax bills. With an average CAUV increase from $1,570 to about $2,800 an acre, the higher values will lead to lower tax savings for farm owners.
According to the Ohio Farm Bureau, despite increases in the CAUV, the program saves significantly on most farmers’ tax bills.
“Land is input,” Berk said. “And in Ohio, where you’re within a half days drive of half of the population, that input is valuable.”
While the program offered a 75% average property value reduction in 2020, after 2023′s increases it will only offer farm owners a 58.3% reduction, according to the auditor’s office.
The CAUV program provides a value reduction on more than 3,300 parcels of agricultural land in the Montgomery County. Farmland that is at least ten acres and devoted exclusively to agriculture is eligible for tax savings through the CAUV program, according to the Montgomery County Auditor’s Office.
Tracts of land with fewer than ten acres, too, can be eligible if the land’s average yearly gross farm income for the past three years is at least $2,500.
Property owners who have questions about the program can call the Auditor’s Office at 937-225-4326.
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