NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Ray Throckmorton was shocked when he received his latest property appraisal in the mail.
Metro said his home doubled in value.
So, like many Davidson County residents, he called to appeal.
Throckmorton was surprised again when he received an email stating his appearing hearing date was set for the federal holiday on July 4th.
Davidson County's Assessor of Property Vivian Wilhoite said the July 4th date was a "misunderstanding," and confirmed that all Metro offices are closed on the holiday.
Wilhoite said her office has since called everyone who received a similar email in an effort to ensure people don't show up expecting to attend a hearing on the 4th of July.
Throckmorton is one of many homeowners appealing the newly reported property values, which increased by a median of 45% county-wide in the recent re-appraisal.
Throckmorton lives in an older ranch house in Oak Hill, known to be one of Nashville's nicest neighborhoods.
Four years ago, his home was valued just over $1 million at $1,010,300.
This year, it shot up to $2,002,800.
"I was very shocked to see it had gone up that much," Throckmorton said.
"The land is worth way more than the house," he continued.
Homes in Oak Hill sit on acre lots.
Throckmorton said he often gets offers on his home, but only by those who want to tear it down.
"They don't want a brick ranch. There is nobody that wants this architectural style. This is a totally outdated floor plan," Throckmorton said.
Throckmorton used to be Mayor of Oak Hill and was an attorney until a stroke left him disabled and unable to work.
Despite the massive increase in value, he said he has no interest in selling his house and relocating.
"I can't afford to move for one thing. I can't be that far away from all the doctors at Vanderbilt," Throckmorton said.
He can see signs of change right outside his window - a big new home is going up across the street.
"I would estimate it will sell for between 4 to 5 million dollars," Throckmorton said.
While he navigates his own property assessment, he said he's also concerned about others in Metro who cannot keep up with skyrocketing housing prices.
To go back even further, in 2000, his Oak Hill home was appraised at $281,600.
Again, this year, it soared to more than $2 million.
When asked about the assessment results, Wilhoite said her office's job is to value homes according to what they would sell for on the open market.
She has encouraged people to appeal if they disagree with their appraisal.
So, that's what Throckmorton did.
He called to set up the appointment.
"Then I get an email that, to add insult to injury, sets the appeal for the 4th of July," Throckmorton said.
NewsChannel 5 Investigates looked at the email he received which states "Your appointment is on Friday July 4 at 8:40am."
It asked for Throckmorton to "please arrive early" and provided the property assessor's address.
"It sort of speaks to me that Metro—the 4th of July doesn't really mean anything to them and that's sad," Throckmorton said.
In regards to Throckmorton's situation, Wilhoite said, because he is disabled, he received the July 4th email as a "placeholder" while they work to set a date for a future hearing at Throckmorton's home.
Wilhoite said Throckmorton should have been told that on the phone.
But those details were not included in the email sent to him.
After receiving questions from NewsChannel 5 Investigates, Wilhoite said her office contacted all 22 appellants with disabilities who received the email to confirm they did not have a hearing scheduled on July 4th.
Wilhoite reiterated that July 4th was simply a "placeholder" and assumed people would know all Metro offices would be closed.
Throckmorton said he will continue with the appeals process and now has the help of a retired real estate appraiser, Tom Noonan, who believes he has a strong case to prove his property has been over-valued.
"The research indicated there are some of these bigger homes that are valued at the same price as this home," Noonan said, as he stood in front of Throckmorton's home.
Noonan said he found some newer homes, some built in 2021, that were appraised at nearly the same price as Throckmorton's older home.
"How do newer homes have a similar overall appraised value?" Noonan asked.
It is likely a question Throckmorton will include at his appeal, which will occur some time after July 4th.
