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If you see someone taking photos of buildings, even homes in Prince Edward County, that’s entirely normal right now. The real estate reassessment has started in the county and the town of Farmville. 

To tackle that project, the county staff hired a team from Wampler-Eanes Appraisal Group, which has been tasked with updating property information and taking up to date photos of each building, be it a home, shed or barn. 

First off, why is this happening? You can thank Virginia law. The Code of Virginia requires that a general reassessment of all real property (that includes residential, commercial, industrial, even vacant land, etc.) be conducted by every county to update the assessed value to reflect current fair market value.  A “reassessment” is the process by which the assessed value of real estate property is periodically updated to keep the value consistent with what the property is worth on the open market, also known as Fair Market Value, and to assess properties fairly in comparison to each other. 

Why does the property value need to be adjusted? Adjustments in value are necessary in order to more equitably distribute the tax burden among the citizens and businesses of Prince Edward County. This reassessment will continue through the fall of this year, with the new property values taking effect as of Jan. 1, 2025. 

Identify reassessment workers

So now for the big question. How do you know someone is an assessor? We’ve asked both the Prince Edward County Sheriff’s Office and county staff on this one. First off, any vehicle driven by Wampler-Eanes staff will have a car magnet saying “County Reassessment” on it. The assessors will knock on your door and be wearing yellow safety vests with the words “Real Estate Assessor” on the back. They will also have personal identification cards, labeling each individual as a representative of Wampler-Eanes. 

Now here’s what they won’t do. At no point will they ask to come in your house. They do not need to see the interior of the home to do a real estate assessment and all county staff agree there is no reason for any assessor to even ask. 

If you get a weird feeling or just want to know who they are, each assessor should be able to leave contact information with you. Then if you want to check on the person, the Prince Edward County Sheriff’s Office will have the correct names and vehicles of each assessor on file. You can give them a call, share the information provided and learn if someone is or isn’t telling the truth. 

Prince Edward residents can also contact the county’s Commissioner of Revenue’s Office at 434-392-3231 or the County Administrator’s office at 434-392-8837.