County Assessor Clarifies Property Tax of Common Areas

Recently a citizen posted on Facebook information ostensibly derived from the Los Alamos County Parcel Viewer, the online feature of the Assessor’s Office that displays parcel maps and data on each parcel of land in the County. Our office discovered the post, which referenced a large non-residential parking lot downtown and stated incorrectly that the lot was taxed at $2,853 (no tax year was stated).

Our office discovered the post, and we attempted without success to determine exactly how the citizen derived his incorrect information from the data on the parcel viewer.  However, in the process we discovered that some information on the parcel viewer about this particular parcel was incorrect because of a special method we use to assign property taxes on common areas like a parking lot and common areas of condominiums, where several owners are individually responsible for portions of the taxes.

The upshot is that the parking lot was taxed $25,572 in the 2024 tax year. The tax was divided among the 10 owners of the lot according to a formula that assigns a portion of the land area of the parking lot to the land area of each owner’s parcel in the adjoining buildings. The model we use to derive values and taxes for each parcel did robotically post erroneous values for valuation and taxes for the parking lot, but we have determined that those values were not used in any calculation of taxes or valuation—or by the citizen.  

Since these events we have updated the data on the parcel viewer to the current tax year (an annual occurrence at this time of year), and adjusted the model so that the erroneous values are no longer shown.  In addition, we have added a disclaimer to the EagleWeb page where you can access the parcel viewer and the EagleWeb app that gives the same information in a different format.  The disclaimer explains a little about the two apps and the database that they access, and an appropriate caution about the use of the data by people not familiar with the field of property appraisal. 

You can access EagleWeb and the parcel viewer from the county’s web site.  If you have any questions about EagleWeb, the parcel viewer or any other issue regarding property taxes or the functions of the Assessor’s Office, especially if you think something looks fishy, please call our office: 505 662-8030, or visit us in Room 210 in the Municipal Building.