Values go through the roof

Assessed property values across the Wasatch Front are skyrocketing to highs never seen before.

In Salt Lake County, assessed property values jumped 22.3 percent in the past year, while Utah County values went up 25 percent. In Davis County, property values are up 19.5 percent.

"I've been here 30 years, and I don't think I've ever seen growth like this in my time," said Richard Burgi, real property division director at the Salt Lake County Assessor's Office. "It's unreal."

Utah residents statewide recently opened their property tax notices. Either that or they are too afraid to open it and it is still sitting on the counter.

And while some are happy to see the value of their property going up, others are angry that their taxes are going up as well.

Linda Savage was shocked when she opened her tax notice earlier this week. As a Cedar Hills resident who's living on a fixed income, Savage said she's concerned that she won't be able to keep up with the mounting taxes and stay in her home.

"I am very, very frustrated," Savage said of her property tax, which has increased by $700 since it was last paid. "I'm in a position where I'm going to be staying here, if I'm lucky, until I die. It makes no difference to me as far as my property value increasing. ... As you get older, it's just another worry that you have, and it's a worry you don't need."

No one is immune to such tax increases, not even the Davis County assessor. James Ivie lives in Bountiful and also saw his taxes jump $700 a year on his family home.

Rising property values

Utah's rising property values shouldn't be a surprise to many people, especially those who bought or sold property in the past year.

In June, the U.S. Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight reported that Utah had the highest rate of home appreciation in the nation during the first quarter of 2007.

Three Utah metropolitan areas ranked in the nation's top five: Provo-Orem was second, Salt Lake City was third and Ogden-Clearfield was fifth.

Though Davis County saw a 19.5 percent jump in real property values overall, a few cities in the county saw their values go up by more than 25 percent since 2006.

Bountiful led the county with a 30.5 percent increase, followed by Farmington at 28.5 percent, North Salt Lake at 27 percent, Kaysville at 25.8 percent, and West Point at 25.3 percent.

Salt Lake County real property values are up 22.3 percent.