Associated Appraisal
The Village of Richfield's Assessor is the firm Associated Appraisal, which is a firm based out of Appleton. Associated Appraisals provides accurate and comprehensive assessments of all real estate in the Village of Richfield. To make certain that all of the properties in the Village are treated in the same manner, the assessor's procedures are standardized by their adherence to Wisconsin State Statutes which deal with property taxation. Below is a brief description of the Village's property tax process.

Step One: Begin with a Budget
The process is similar to how you must budget your paycheck to pay for housing, food, and clothing. You need to know where your money is going (expenses) and how it is coming in (revenues).

First, village departments prepare budget requests that detail how much money (revenue) is needed to cover planned expenses. These requests are submitted to the village administrator for review. The village administrator presents their recommended budget to the board in November. A public hearing is held on the recommendations, usually in late November.

Step Two: Calculate the Property Tax Levy
After determining how much revenue the village will receive from the state and other sources, we must make up the difference with property taxes. The property tax levy is the total amount of revenue needed from property taxes to cover general fund expenditures, debt service costs, and other expenses. The total village tax levy for the 2012 budget was $2,421,309.

Step Three: Calculate the Property Tax Rate
To figure out the property tax rate you must know two things: the tax levy (just explained) and the village's total assessed value. Assessed value is the value of all Village of Richfield properties for tax purposes and is determined by the village assessor. The village's total assessed value of real and personal property for 2011 was $1,475,264,099.

How to Calculate the Tax Rate

• Tax levy / assessed value = property tax rate
• So, $2,421,309 / $1,475,264,099 = $1.64

Step Four: Calculate Your Tax Bill
To calculate the Village of Richfield's portion of your tax bill, a tax rate of $1.64 means that for every $1,000 of property you own, you are taxed $1.64 for village government services.

Your Tax Bill: The Big Picture
Your property tax bill adds together the tax levy of potentially five or six taxing jurisdictions. All tax bills in the village include the State of Wisconsin, Washington County, and the Village of Richfield. Depending on where you live, it may also include a combination of the following:

Friess Lake School District Germantown School District Hartford School District Milwaukee Area VTC

Moraine Park VTC Richfield School District Slinger School District