Homeowner dodges property taxes

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - How do you hide a house in plain sight?

The answer, according to a News 13 investigation, is pretty easily. And taxpayers, who lose out on thousands of dollars, pay the price.

The house in question is located on Atrisco Drive NW a few blocks north of Central Avenue in Albuquerque. The 2,500-square-foot home belongs to Albuquerque resident Francis Connor, who began building it nearly a decade ago.

Connor slowly constructed the house over the years. But despite the fact that the file at the Bernalillo County Assessor’s office contained regular, updated photos of the property, the county never noticed and the homeowner apparently never told the county about it.

And, because of that, Connor got a sweet deal on his property taxes because he only paid taxes on a garage and an 800-square-foot building located behind the new home.

"I cannot answer for previous administration and how the employees were," said Evelyn Barela, the deputy county assessor. She and Assessor Tanya Giddings just took office six weeks ago.

The law puts the responsibility of property taxes on the property owner.

"As a homeowner it's your responsibility to bring it to our attention,” Barela said. “It also is your responsibility to look at your notice of value every year when it comes to you to make sure that is a fair and equitable value placed on your home.”

And Connor, it seems, should have known about his responsibility because he’s a supervisor in the city of Albuquerque’s Planning Department.

Connor declined an interview with News 13 but said in a statement that he’s only been living in the home for 18 months. He didn’t explain why he wasn’t paying taxes on the 2,500-square-foot home. He should have started paying property taxes on the home once 50 percent of the construction was complete.

Still, Barela admitted that the assessor’s office should have noticed the home and put it on the county’s tax rolls.

“We have appraisers out in the field that are supposed to look at each and every parcel,” she said. “And it was missed.”

Photos News 13 dug up show the house was under construction in 2002. A dozen aerial photos over the years show the house completed. Some of those photos were from the assessor's office. So how did they not know the house existed to put it on the tax rolls?

But Francis Connor's free ride is about to end. Just last week the assessor's office sent out appraisers to inspect and measure the house and promises this house will be on the 2013 tax rolls.

The assessor is now deciding how much back taxes and penalties it can collect from Connor.