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No, they must be scheduled by calling (319) 472-2450. No walk ins will be allowed

No, if the residence is unoccupied.
Yes, if the residence is occupied and you get permission to enter from the residents.

Yes, you can but please do not schedule the appointment online.  Please call into our office at (319) 472-2450 and schedule.

Yes. The new owner does not need to be present at the time of transfer. However, the new owner will have to have the appropriate forms completed beforehand. If you are transferring a title on behalf of another person, you may download Form 411007 from the Iowa DOT website. They must complete and sign this form.

Yes you may renew your driver’s license at any driver’s license location.

No, you must live in Benton County to renew your vehicle registration in the county that you live in.

Yes.  Existing data that is on file relating to the interior, MLS/sales data, as well as an exterior view, was used to establish the current assessment.

Absolutely not.

Our office does not assist with locating housing, but can provide them with a resource directory with a landlord list

The Benton County Treasurers Office is currently by appointment only for driver's license services, ID services, and testing.

To schedule a Drivers's License appointment please select the following link to schedule online. Online Drivers License Schedule or you may call (319) 472-2450. 

Building permits are not required in the unincorporated area of Benton County. However, any construction within the 100-year floodplain requires a floodplain permit and the State of Iowa requires electrical permits. In addition, there may be land use requirements that must be met prior to construction, alteration, reconstruction, or placement of a structure. Contact the Environmental Health &; Land Use office to inquire what land use requirements must be met. If a property is within an incorporated city, you should contact your local building official or city hall to inquire if they require building permits.

No, this office does not assist with any type of deposit. Referrals are made to other local agencies.

No, individuals are encouraged to use the local food banks in the county.

No. In addition, the Sheriff’s Office cannot give permission for you to enter a residence.

• on the Iowa Treasurers website
• at the counter or
• by mail

Visit the FEMA website to view flood map changes. Please zoom in on your area for controls and instructions to load.

Please use the FEMA Flood Map to check if your property is in a flood plain.

Download Form 411033 from the Iowa DOT website.

There is a 5-day waiting period if the original title is lost. (If the original has been altered or spoiled in some way, please submit the original title to us with Form 411033 and we will process a replacement title in the same day.)

Anybody whose name is on the face of the title MUST sign the replacement application. 

The replacement title must be ordered where the title was made (county specific). The fee is $25.00.

You must complete the inspection form on the DOT website and then contact the sheriff’s office to schedule an inspection with them.

Septic permit applications are available on the department website as well as in the Environmental Health &; Land Use Office which is located in the basement of the Benton County Courthouse, 111 E 4 th St, Vinton. Prior to issuing a permit, the department will conduct an initial site evaluation – preferably with the certified contractor – to determine the suitability for a septic system and which type of septic system would be allowable. If a conventional system (soil treatment lines) is allowed, a percolation test must be conducted by a certified contractor. Once the initial site evaluation has been completed, the percolation test has been received (if applicable), and the permit application and fee have been received, the department will issue a septic permit which will be valid for one year.

Private water well permits are available on the department website as well as in
the Environmental Health &; Land Use Office which is located in the basement of the Benton County Courthouse, 111 E 4th St, Vinton. Prior to issuing a permit, the department will conduct an initial site evaluation either with the driller or after the driller has placed a flag marking the desired location of the well. Once the initial site evaluation has been completed and the permit application and fee have been received, the department will issue a private water well permit which will be valid for one year. Public water supply wells are permitted by the Water Supply Engineering section of the Iowa Department of Natural resources and they can be contacted by emailing [email protected] or by calling (515) 725-0275.

Most personalized license plates can be ordered online on the Iowa DOT website.

To report a food-related illness, call the State of Iowa hotline at (844) 469-2742.

E911 addresses are assigned by the Benton County Sheriff’s Office. Contact them at (319) 472-2337 to request an address or a sign.

To estimate the market value of your property, the Assessor generally uses three approaches. The first approach is to find properties that are comparable to yours which have sold recently. Local conditions peculiar to your property are taken into consideration. The assessor also uses sales ratio studies to determine the general level of assessment in a community, in order to adjust for local conditions. This method is generally referred to as the MARKET APPROACH and is considered to be be an important method in determining the value of residential property.

The second approach is the COST APPROACH and is an estimate of how many dollars at current labor and material prices it would take to replace your property with one similar to it.  The cost approach is derived using the State's cost manual to determine the replacement value and is adjusted for every odd year.  An appropriate amount of depreciation and obsolescence would be deducted from the replacement value for aging improvements. The value of the land then would be added to arrive at the total estimate of value.  

The INCOME APPROACH is the third method used if your property produces income such as an apartment or office building. In that case, your property could be valued according to its ability to produce income under prudent management; in other words, what another investor would give for a property in order to gain its income. The income approach is the most complex of the three approaches because of the research, information and analysis, necessary for an accurate estimate of value. This method requires thorough knowledge of local and national financial conditions, as well as any developmental trends in the area of the subject properly being appraised since errors or inaccurate information can seriously affect the final estimate of value.

The judgment holder almost always starts the bidding. Generally, the judgment holder bids in writing a plaintiff’s bid on judgment. The judgment holder’s bid, if given to the Sheriff prior to the sale, is considered a sealed bid and will not be disclosed until the sale is called.

Revaluations are essential to redistribute the existing property tax burden so that all property owners pay their fair share based on the market value of their property.  The total amount of taxes levied is completely independent of the overall assessment.

These are questions for your attorney.

This is a question for your attorney.

If you purchase property with a redemption period, you will be issued a Certificate of Purchase. When the redemption period is up, you may then return the original Certificate of Purchase to the Sheriff, pay the required fee and receive a Sheriff’s Deed. If you lose the original Certificate of Purchase, you will not receive a Sheriff’s Deed until you get a court order directing the Sheriff to issue you a duplicate Certificate of Purchase. (626.96). If you fail to have a Sheriff’s Deed issued within 8 years after the date of issuance of the Certificate of Purchase, the Sheriff’s Sale will be cancelled. (626.97)

This is a question for your attorney.

Taxes stay with the property. If you made the purchase, you are now responsible for the taxes.

Clear title is not guaranteed to real property sold at a Sheriff's Sale.

Your PIN is specific to you and should not change so you can use it from year to year. The PIN is located on your renewal notice in the top right-hand corner. If you cannot find it, you can contact our office at (319) 472-2450.

Visit the Iowa DOT website for more information.

No.  A reassessment or revaluation has no impact on the total amount of taxes collected.  However, it may change your property’s percentage share of total taxes collected to increase, decrease or, have minimal effect. (In some instances, when values go up, tax rates do go down b/c there’s more property value to tax to cover the municipal budget).

There are a number of different taxing districts in a jurisdiction, each with a different levy. Each year the County Auditor determines for that district a levy that will yield enough money to pay for schools, police and fire protection, road maintenance, and other services budgeted for in that area. The tax levy is applied to each $1,000 of a property's taxable value. The value determined by the assessor is the assessed value and is the value indicated on the assessment roll. The taxable value is the value determined by the auditor after application of state ordered "rollback" percentages for the various classes of property, with other properties always compare with the value on the assessment roll of the assessor's property record cards and not the value indicated on the tax statement.

1. January 1 - Assessment date
2. April 1 - Assessors complete assessments and notify taxpayers
3. April 2 - 25 - Taxpayers may request informal review of assessment by assessor
4. On or before April 25 - Following informal review, Assessor may enter into a signed written agreement with the property owner or aggrieved taxpayer authorizing the assessor to correct or modify the assessment according to the agreement of the parties
5. April 2 - 30 - Taxpayers may protest assessments to local boards of review.
6. May 1 - May 31 - Local boards of review consider protests. This time may be extended to July 15 by the Iowa Department of Revenue Director.
7. June 15 - Local boards of review submit reports to the Director.
8. July 1 - Assessors submit abstracts of the assessments to the Director.
9. August 15 - The Department issues tentative equalization notices to assessors.
10. September - The Department holds equalization hearings, which are held for public input.
11. October 1 - The Department issues final equalization orders to county auditors.
12. October 2 - 12 - Assessing jurisdictions may apply for alternative methods of implementing equalization orders.
13. By October 8 - The county auditor must publish notice of the final equalization order by this date, and must provide notice by mail to the taxpayers if the equalization order results in an increase in valuation.
14. October 9 - 31 - Taxpayers may protest the final equalization order to local boards of review.
15. October 10 - November 15 - Local boards of review meet to hear equalization protests.
16. November 1 - The Director certifies assessment limitation percentages to county auditors.
17. November 15 - Local boards of review submit a report about the equalization protests to the Department.
18. Dec. 1 - Feb. 28 - The taxing authorities adopt the budgets based on the valuations.
19. March 1 - The county board of supervisors levies the taxes.
20. July 1 - The county treasurer receives authorization to collect taxes.
21. September 30 - First half of taxes are due.
22. March 31 - Second half of taxes are due.

Motor Vehicle
Monday thru Friday
8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.

Driver’s License
Monday thru Friday by appointment only
8:30 a.m. - 4 p.m.
To schedule testing, you must call the office.

If you disagree with the assessor's estimate of value, please consider these two questions before proceeding, as outlined below:

• What is the actual market value of my property?
• How does the value compare to the similar properties in the neighborhood?

If you have any questions about the assessment of your property, feel free to come in and discuss it with the assessor.

You may file a written protest with the Board of Review, which is composed of three or five members from various areas of the assessing jurisdiction. The Board operates independently of the assessor's office and has the power to confirm or to adjust either upward or downward any assessment.

A valid appeal to the Board of Review should not be based solely on the increase of your assessed value or the possible taxes you are paying, or will pay in the future.  It should be based on current market value or comparison to other property assessments.

Burden of proof is on the person who is appealing their assessed value, evidence of inequality should be researched and produced prior to filing a Board of Review petition - Examples include: a recent appraisal (1-2 years old; consider time adjustments to bring value to current market value), a realtor's opinion (in writing), other properties that sold nearby, or if your house has interior damage, an repair estimation from a contractor on estimated costs to repair, etc.

If you are not satisfied with the decision of the Board of Review you may appeal to district court within twenty days after adjournment of said Board, or twenty days after May 31st, whichever is later (sections 441.38 and 441.38, Code of Iowa). Or appeals to the Property Assessment Appeal Board may be taken from the board of review action within 20 days after the adjournment of the board of review or May 31, whichever is later (sections 441.37A, 441.38 & 441.39, Code of Iowa). 

The redemption period is the amount of time after the sale that the defendant has the right to redeem the real estate.

Pursuant to the Code of Iowa, 626.85, the judgment holder may proceed against you for the amount you bid. If the judgment holder does not wish to proceed against you, the sale will be treated as a nullity and the Sheriff’s Office will then proceed as mandated by the Code of Iowa.

The "rollback" is the percentage of actual value that is determined by the Director of Revenue and Finance each year on the several classes of property where the total value increase STATEWIDE, exceeds three percent for each class of property. The percentage so determined by the Director of Revenue and Finance is certified to and applied by the local County Auditor to all property in each class affected throughout the State. Percentages determined by the Director of Revenue and Finance are the same for all the assessing jurisdictions in the State.

Rollback is an assessment limitation which is calculated each year to restrict the growth in cumulative taxable value across the state to 3% per class of property.  The 3% limitation in growth is not a limitation to an individual growth in assessed property value or to new construction projects.

Increases in assessed value of individual parcels of property, as determined by the Assessor, may exceed four percent within a jurisdiction. Agricultural property, except agricultural dwellings, are assessed on the basis of productivity and net earning capacity using a five-year crop average and capitalized at a rate set by the Legislature. The rate is currently seven percent. Tentative and final equalization orders are issued by the Director of Revenue and Finance in odd-numbered years on or about August 15th and October 1st, respectively. The orders are sent to the various County Auditors who apply them to the classes of property affected if any.

The market value of a property is an estimate of the price that it would sell for on the open market on January First of the year of assessment. This is sometimes referred to as the "normal arms-length transaction" or "willing buyer/willing seller" concept.

The septic permit fee is currently $250.00 for the construction or reconstruction of a septic system and $100.00 for the repair of a septic system.

The private water well permit fee is currently $225.00.

You must provide a certified birth certificate or valid passport, proof of social security, any name change documents ( certified marriage certificate or court document) if the name on the license is different from a birth certificate or passport, and two forms of residency such as mail, bank statement, voter registration card or lease agreement.

Iowa DOT website

This is a question for your attorney.

The full legal description for your property can be found on your land abstract,
deed, or survey of your property. An abbreviated description is available on the
Benton County Online Map Service (Beacon) which is accessible on the
Assessor’s website.

You can find the Iowa DNR Flood Plain Development Permit Application on their website.

Land use regulations for the unincorporated area of Benton County are administered by the Environmental Health & Land Use Office which is located in the basement of the Benton County Courthouse, 111 E 4th St, Vinton. Contact the Environmental Health &; Land Use Office at (319) 472-3119 to discuss your proposed request so they can guide you in the next steps to be completed.

Black Hawk County Health Department is responsible for the inspection, education, investigation, and enforcement of licensed food establishments in Benton County. Contact the Black Hawk County Health Department at (319) 291-2413 to submit a complaint regarding a licensed food establishment.

State law requires that all real property be reassessed or "revalued" every two years. The current law requires the reassessment to occur in odd-numbered years. Changes in market value as indicated by research, sales ratio studies, and analysis of local conditions as well as economic trends both in and outside the construction industry are used in determining your assessment.  During a revaluation year, if values were not adjusted enough to be more in line with the market (based off of the jurisdiction's median sales ratio study), an equalization will be ordered by the state.  An equalization could be applied every two years, of any class of property, to ensure that property values are comparable/equitable among jurdisdictions and complies with Iowa Code.