Assessor of Property Bill Bennett said it is "really close" on whether overall property values have risen or fallen in the recently completed reappraisal.
He noted that appeals of appraisals are still being heard by the Board of Equalization through the end of the month at least.
Mr. Bennett said, "It might go down a penny or so, or it could rise by a penny or more. We are still analyzing all the figures."
In Bradley County, property values went down by six percent. That will cause the Bradley County Commission to raise the property tax rate in order to reach a "certified tax rate" based on the new values. Always in past years, it has been necessary to lower the tax rate in order to deal with growth in values and not gain a "windfall" from the growth. That has always been the case in Hamilton County as well.
Mr. Bennett said the drop in values came "when the housing market went down for two or three years."
But he said Hamilton County "has a better economy than a lot of places."