Study: Delinquent Taxes Dramatically Spike In Jackson County

First and foremost, we all owe a debt of gratitude to Jackson County tax fighter Preston Smith who keeps pressing the courthouse for information and accountability that he graciously shares with followers and the community at large. 

The basics of his latest research . . .

JACKSON COUNTY SUFFERS AND EPIC SPIKE IN DELINQUENT TAXES & TROUBLE DIFFICULTY FROM THE ASSESSOR'S OFFICE CLASSIFYING PROPERTIES!!!

We agree with the assessment of Mr. Smith . . . If all of these properties were forced into foreclosure we'd see a collapse in the local real estate market. 

And so . . .

This info/analysis is an important read and offers some insight into so much frustration with the the Executive and a hostile attitude toward any additional taxes foist upon voters . . . Here's the word: 

"Last month I asked the County Collector to provide me a complete list of all properties that had delinquent taxes, and to classify those according to risk of being sold on the courthouse steps. I made a similar request in 2020, and received a list of 2,171 properties with delinquent taxes since 2006.

"The new list had 26,047 properties listed!! The huge increases in assessments since 2023 have made this list to nearly 10% of all the properties in the county. If all of these properties are sold on the courthouse steps, we would see the housing market for the county collapse. It would be so wrong to toss all these people from their homes, especially since nearly half the delinquent taxes due are less than $1,000 per property.

The Collector's office color-coded the list as red, most at risk at being sold by the County; gold; medium risk; and yellow, lower risk. The red list had originally 1,636, but I took out those properties that were already auctioned off within the last few years.

"Just as the Assessor has a difficulty getting values correct, she also has a problem correctly classifying the properties. Usually, churches are considered tax-exempt and do not pay taxes, but this list has 102 churches listed. There are also 2 fire stations, 8 public schools and 4 parks. Also included is the Raytown Water Company, the Boys Clubs of Greater KC, and the Kansas City Moose Lodge. It is the Assessor's job to classify these properties accurately, but that has not apparently happened."

Read more via www.TonysKansasCity.com link . . .

Preston Smith: 2025 DELINQUENT TAXES ANALYSIS

Developing . . .