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'A little confused' | South Knoxville man helps street appeal high property appraisals

The county said the value of some homes is eight times more than the assessment five years ago.

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee — In South Knoxville, one man is helping his neighbors appeal their new property assessments. 

His side of Scottish Pike — the one closest to Blount Avenue — saw an average appraisal increase of 561%.

On the other side of the railroad bridge — the one near Scottish Pike Park — the appraisal increases averaged closer to 87%.

"I'm fine with taxes. I think taxes are a great thing," John Cadotte said. "It's just such a huge hike seemed a little abnormal."

He created a spreadsheet to compare the appraisal values in the area. He and his neighbors are now using that to file appeals.

"It's certainly shocking... having a $300,000 appraisal for a house doesn't really reflect the current market," Cadotte said. "The neighborhood's not a wealthy neighborhood by any means."

RELATED: Homeowners appeal property value reassessments in Knox Co. after learning they rose significantly

Credit: WBIR

State law forbids the county from making money off the re-appraisal process. 

In Knox County, that means you will likely pay the same amount or less in county property taxes if your assessment went up by 40% or less.

If your home went up by more than 40%, however, you can expect an increase in your property tax bill.

Credit: WBIR

With the current re-appraisals of the homes along Scottish Pike, Cadotte and his neighbors are expecting bigger bills.

That's why he's helping them appeal with the data he collected.

"There's definitely some worry about the older neighbors that might get priced out by tax increases," he said. "A lot of these people are living pretty close to the poverty level."

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