Many other states include the cost of the specials in the cost of the home. Kansas is an exception. There are some cases where the home is fifteen years or newer and the special assessments have been paid off. If you look at the statistics from the Wichita Area Assn of Realtors reports including the one generated by the WSU center for Real Estate, Wichita is still enjoying an improvement of home values around 5% annually. It has been my experience that the homes where prices have "stagnated" it is a result of having overpaid for the home in the first place. It's always important to have an experienced Realtor on your side as a designated buyers agent. Feel free to contact me if I can be of further assistance.

A few years ago, homes were selling fast and for top dollar. Our homes haven't necessarily dropped in value, but prices have stagnated and homes are taking longer to sell. That said, homes in great condition are going fast. There are more foreclosures and distressed sales than before.

Specials are taxes put onto a specific area to pay for infrastructure improvements. The city does the improvements then spreads the cost of those over the area affected. Most frequently you run into these in new subdivisions. The specials are the cost to put in the streets, curb, and street guttering. Each house is assessed a portion of these improvements and taxed to pay for them. The tax remains with the home, so you can sell it and the next buyer inherits the tax. Typical timeframe on these is 10-15 years.