Property tax bills to rise in Cedar Rapids

Property taxes for Cedar Rapids homes worth $150,000 will go up about $200 in the coming fiscal year, thanks in part to proposed levy rate increases at Linn County and the Cedar Rapids school district.

With a proposed $1.75 per $1,000 in value tax rate hike, the schools are poised to take over for the city of Cedar Rapids as recipient of the largest portion of a Cedar Rapids property tax payment.

Unless the school board scales back the proposed increase, a home worth $150,000 will get a property tax bill of approximately $2,687 for the fiscal year starting July 1. The bill for the current fiscal year is $2,483.

Here's how the money would be distributed:

Cedar Rapids Community School District - $1,103

City of Cedar Rapids - $1,071

Linn County - $427

Other - $86

Cedar Rapids residents pay a small amount of taxes to support Kirkwood Community College, the county agriculture extension, and the assessor's office.

Linn County is raising its levy rate 12 cents to $6.07 per $1,000 valuation. Cedar Rapids' levy rate will stay at $15.22 per $1,000. The school board will make a final decision in April, but the proposed increase would bring the levy rate to $15.67 per $1,000.

Taxes would go up even without levy rate increases, because valuations and the residential rollback - a property tax discount for homeowners - will both rise. Each property will be worth more, and more of its value will be taxed.