Washington Tax Appeals Board Revises Seattle Property Value

The Washington Board of Tax Appeals (BTA) set aside the determination of the King County Board of Equalization and ordered a revised value for the taxpayer’s commercial real property. The dispute involved the true and fair market value of the subject property, a six-story multi-tenant office building with retail space. The Owner argued for a lower value based on a higher vacancy rate, while the Assessor contended for a higher value using a lower vacancy rate. The Board found that both parties’ vacancy rate assumptions were unsupported and instead applied a 22 percent vacancy rate to the office space in ...