Hello everyone! My name is Daniel Taylor, and I am the supervisor of personal property surgery-related accounts here at PVS. I’ve been at PVS for 4.5 years now, and I have recently moved to my new role as a supervisor about 6 months ago. Before that, I was a consultant and I worked primarily on dialysis-related accounts preparing returns and settling values with assessors when they came back higher than what we filed.

As a supervisor here at PVS, I work with consultants to help them prepare returns. For the 2024 tax season, we have three consultants on our team who handle a wide range of clients. I also assist in the settling of appeals and the negotiation of values when necessary. Right now, we are in the middle of tax season so return preparation for the upcoming April and May deadlines is foremost on our minds. As the middle of May rolls around, assessors will begin to finalize their values though, and that is when we will begin the work of fixing any values that may have come back higher than what we filed. Lowering values can be tricky at times depending on if you get an assessor who is unwilling to work with us at all and this is when we typically must formally appeal to get an account fixed. 

On the personal side, I enjoy staying active, I play basketball a few times every week and I golf a lot in the summers. I also enjoy hiking and traveling, and I usually spend a few summer weekends every year hiking and climbing mountains in Colorado. On that note, I’m planning on going up Longs Peak in the Rocky Mountain National Park this summer, and I’m looking forward to some more summer travels after the busyness of tax season eases up.

Please feel free to reach out to me with any questions you may have, and thank you for trusting us with your property tax needs!

Hello, everyone! My name is Mason Wright, and I am a supervisor in the business personal property department at Property Valuation Services. My team mostly works with clients in the medical imaging world. 

The 2024 tax season will be the first in my new supervisor position, and I am looking forward to starting to get to know some of the people behind our clients’ names more. We have been working hard to send out tax bills and resolve any issues with the values we received from the assessors in preparation for the upcoming filing season. 

I really have enjoyed my experience working for PVS, and I know my 14-pound dog loves that I can work remotely. It’s apparent we have a great group of employees with tons of relevant experience. There always seems to be an efficient and effective plan in place, and people are willing to keep learning or do the extra work when it’s needed. I am excited to see what the future has in store! When I am not working, you might find me at a local rock-climbing gym, playing basketball or catching a Friday happy hour around the Kansas City area with my girlfriend. 

Feel free to reach out with any questions! My team and colleagues at PVS appreciate your trust in us to handle your property tax needs.

My name is Sydnee Starks, and I am the team lead for the hospital personal property accounts here at PVS. This month, I am celebrating my third year at PVS. During my first two years here, I was a business personal property tax consultant who oversaw over 500 accounts. I am now transitioning into a new role as the hospital team lead.

Now, as a team lead, I help my manager, Thomas Tapko, oversee our team of six consultants. My role is to aid wherever I am needed. I assist consultants when they have questions and help to train them in their roles. I also contribute by requesting and reviewing information for the upcoming tax season. I continue to communicate with assessors around the country to reach the tax goals of our clients. Additionally, I assist our support team with tax bill issues related to business personal property taxes. 

Currently, we are working on preparing and reviewing information for our annual business personal property tax returns in Alabama. During this time, we are also continuing to analyze assessments and oversee the appeal process on accounts that did not align with PVS or our clients’ standards.

I am grateful to be working in a field that I truly enjoy. Additionally, I’m thankful for the work culture that PVS provides. We are encouraged to ask questions and continue to grow and learn more. We are all one large team working towards your personal property tax goals. 

I’m thankful for the opportunity to work with our valued PVS customers. If you have any questions or concerns, our team is here for you.”

My name is Kaylyn Taylor, and I am on the administrative team at Property Valuation Services.  The upcoming 2024 tax return season will be my third with PVS. My main responsibility is to ensure that all incoming and outgoing mail is processed promptly and accurately. soI assist staff with special projects. 

Everyone here is so welcoming and understanding. The flexibility that is offered by management is unmatched, resulting in a stress-free environment, despite the high level of importance of our work. 

I enjoy spending quality time with my family and tight circle of friends. In my free time, I always make sure I have my camera when I go hiking.

My name is Brittany Nichols. I have been with Property Valuation Services for five years. I started as a property tax support group (PTSG) member, where I would call across the country to gather commercial real estate appeal dates and value data. We also would call to gather and review tax bills and create the bill approval summary sheets. As the company has grown, I took on business personal property accounts as well. 

At the beginning of 2023, I was promoted to a team lead position over PTSG. In this new role, I can use my knowledge of how each state may differ in deadlines and mailing dates to help guide other members. This ensures we get the most accurate information to send to the consultants. I also create reports to track our progress throughout the year and follow up on refunds and supplemental bills that may be issued. In my time with PVS, I have enjoyed learning how the company and industry work and how all the departments lace together to meet our goals. I am excited to see where the road may lead with PVS. It is a company that looks out for the interests of its employees just as much as its clients.

During the last five years, I have been with PVS, I have gotten married and had two beautiful girls. My oldest daughter will be four in November and is the epitome of a wild child. My youngest turns one at the end of June and is following closely in her sister’s footsteps. Outside of work, I enjoy playing disc golf, reading and crafting. We also love to throw over-the-top character-themed parties for my daughters, niece and nephews. 

Thank you for getting to know me a little better and learning about what I do at PVS and my life outside of work.

Hello, my name is Kamree Harris, and I have been with Property Valuation Services for five years. I was recently promoted to a team lead position within the Property Tax Support Group (PTSG). 

When I first began at PVS-PTSG, I started working with the personal property team assisting the consultants with obtaining the values for properties and collecting the tax bills. After three years, I then began working with the real estate team within PT support, assisting with obtaining their values and approving tax bills. In addition to those responsibilities, I would also review several different documents. Once reviewed, I would determine whether they needed to be forwarded to the consultants and/or managers that would acquire further problem-solving. 

In my present position as a team lead, my responsibilities have expanded a great deal. Specifically, I train all new hire PTSG members on value and tax bill collection, as well as document review. I answer all field questions from PTSG and determine which questions need to be escalated to the consultants/managers. I also run daily and weekly specific data queries for PTSG and managers for the current/future deadlines to ensure we stay on top of events ensuring nothing is missed, and I provide the PTSG team with a daily goal set for values and tax bills. Furthermore, I assist in the sending of tax bill transmittals to clients and follow up to ensure all bills over 250K have been received by the clients. 

Outside of work, in my free time, I have many interests and enjoy a few hobbies I have recently picked up. A short while ago, I started my fitness journey and took up Pilates class, along with enjoying walks in the park. Now that summer is upon us, I’ll be going to concerts with friends, traveling and trying new restaurants. Lastly, my favorite reason for summer is that my birthday is in the month of June, and I look forward to celebrating with all my family and friends. 

Thank you for taking the time to learn about what I do here at PVS, as well as a little about myself. I am looking forward to learning and continuing my journey here at PVS.

My name is Dylan Cahill, and I am a manager in the business personal property department at Property Valuation Services. I have been with Property Valuation Services for the last ten years. I served four years in the United States Marine Corps, including a deployment to Iraq. Once I received my honorable discharge, I attended the University of Central Missouri where I received my bachelor’s degree in business administration with an emphasis in accounting.

My responsibilities include working with and improving client relations. This currently includes answering any pending questions by clients and providing invoices, bills, and yearly reports. Prior to filing business personal property returns, it is my job to request and obtain all the necessary documents and information. Once the information is reviewed and any follow-up questions sent, I begin the process of preparing the returns. I also review returns prepared by our newer consultants to ensure accuracy. Once the filing season has finished, I move on to gathering the appropriate values for each physical location filed. After the values are obtained it then becomes my job to agree with the assessed value or attempt to appeal or settle any values that are too far from the fair market value for the property. 

I currently manage a team of 6-7 consultants across the realm of imaging/surgical locations. I will often assist these consultants with values and ensure they receive proper training to complete their jobs in an exemplary manner. As I am recently promoted to the role of management, I look forward to continuing the relationships built by my predecessors to ensure all clients are happy with their services here at Property Valuation Services.

As a single parent of two beautiful little girls, my hobbies are fairly limited and often consist of what hobbies my children enjoy. We spend many weekends at recreational soccer games or jiu-jitsu practices. During the summer months, we enjoy hiking, going to the playground, canoeing and fishing. During the winter months, my main hobby is deer hunting. I am also an avid watcher of the Kansas City Chiefs and St. Louis Blues if there is time in my already limited schedule. 

I appreciate you taking the time to learn a little about me and my time with PVS. I look forward to another year of advocating on behalf of my clients!

My name is Jesse Cox, an account executive for the PVS sales team. My career at PVS started in 2018 as a lead generator before I became the lead generator manager a couple of years later. I was promoted to account executive in 2021.

 As an account executive, I reach out to prospective clients whose situations may require our expertise in property tax reduction, for both real estate and business personal property taxes. Our prospects span the country.

 Account executives also act as onboarding liaisons and continued resources for our clients.  More importantly, we learn more about who our clients are and their specific needs. We want to ensure this is not only a good fit but a great relationship.

 As most companies are winding down this time of year, PVS is ramping up its efforts to expand our clients. As an account executive, I know the spring tax season doesn’t leave a lot of room for error, and waiting for a tax notice to arrive before having a strategy in place can be detrimental to a proper reduction. That’s why autumn is a great time for us to start a conversation with prospects. Providing this perspective and understanding for prospects who may feel overwhelmed by the process is one of my favorite parts of the job. And if I can’t provide the answer, I have a team of knowledgeable experts who can.

Outside of the office, I enjoy wood carving. I also am an avid mountain biker who enjoys the expansive trail system around the Kansas City metro area. My 6-year-old daughter joins me on quite a few of those outings, as she just learned to ride this year. My wife doesn’t indulge in our two-wheeled adventures, so we find other family activities.

My name is Jeri Wells and I am a real estate consultant for Property Valuation Services. I previously spent eight years with Deloitte & Touche in their Carlsbad, CA office working as a real estate consultant. I have worked in most aspects of tax consulting from personal property to real estate, from sales and use tax to outsourcing development. I have assisted with the development of accounting software and processes so companies are capable of producing on a mass scale.

Currently, I work as part of the renal dialysis group specializing in medical offices. Though I have primarily worked for the health care industry, I have experience in all property types in the United States and parts of Canada. I am licensed in Texas and recently returned from attending several hearings throughout Tennessee and Oklahoma. On the west coast, I specialized in direct assessment evaluation. I also worked at the forefront of innovating processes dealing in assessment appeals and personal property filing to help clients, companies and counties move into the more technological age.

I have worked my entire life as an accountant in one form or another, but I graduated from Pittsburg State University in Kansas with a Bachelor of Fine Arts. I have been drawing and painting for as long as anyone who has known me can remember. I am also an avid traveler having driven to all four corners of this country. I have been to over 30 states and more than 13 countries. I tend to rent RVs in foreign countries and drive throughout for extended periods so I can get a real feel for the environment. I was raised in Kansas on a cattle ranch that my family has lived on since the 1850s. I spent 15 years on the west coast in Portland, OR and Carlsbad, CA.

Though I started consulting with a large firm, I am ecstatic to be working in a smaller company. Only in this environment can one get a deep sense of the companies and properties we work on. With PVS, we can get a better feel for our clients and truly understand what it is they need from us. By working on a more personal level, we can be more successful in our endeavors.

Hello, I’m Chip Saam. I’ve been with Property Valuation Services for over 20 years. I’ve been involved in property tax for almost 35 years.  In my position as Technical Director/Personal Property Appraiser, I oversee the hospital team within our personal property tax department. In 1998, I received the CMI property tax designation from the Institute for Professionals in Taxation, and in 2008, I earned the ASA designation in Machinery & Technical Specialties from the American Society of Appraisers. It’s been a rewarding experience growing with PVS — from a company of 12 employees when I joined the firm to over 75 employees today. Our mission has never strayed from working in our client’s best interest to ensure that they are paying their fair share of property taxes – nothing more, nothing less. Within the personal property tax department, our goal is to work with our clients to file the most accurate return possible based on the best information available.

A typical filing season for the hospital team includes preparing and filing close to 4,000 business personal property tax returns. Our team of one director, two managers and four consultants are well versed in the different requirements of each jurisdiction across the country that taxes business personal property. As we prepare returns, we review asset listings, general ledgers, location listings and leases to identify any opportunities to save our clients tax dollars. All returns are prepared using a software program we have developed with an outside programmer over the last 20 years. Each year we make modifications to the program to account for changes in property tax laws and statutes.

After returns are prepared and submitted, we begin the process of tracking values and reviewing accounts that may require appeals. Our software system tracks appeal deadlines to help manage the process. We make every attempt to resolve any value differences with assessor’s office informally. If we are unable to resolve our differences, the formal appeal process is started. We include our clients in this decision-making process as it may impact their image and standing in their local community. If we are unable to resolve value differences at this level, a cost benefit analysis is performed with the client to determine if litigation is warranted.

After the value collection and appeal periods of the property tax cycle are completed, we move into the tax bill collection and approval phase. Ideally, clients will allow the mailing address for tax bills to be changed so that they come directly to the PVS Corporate Office. This allows for quicker review and transmittal of a tax bill approval.  Except for extreme cases, we forward tax bill approvals to clients at least 14 days prior to the due date to allow for timely payments of taxes.

Reports provided throughout the year include a mid-year report to help clients with the review of their property tax accruals, a property tax budget report for the subsequent year for clients that request assistance with their budgeting process and a year-end report in late-December or early-January.

Throughout the year, we help clients with property tax estimates for new or acquired locations or major equipment purchases. Additionally, asset cleanup projects may be performed in the fall to identify assets that may no longer be physically located at a facility but have not been taken as disposals on the books and records. This can result in tax savings that accumulate through all following years.

One of the big issues to consider for the 2021 filing season will be the impact of COVID-19 and how the pandemic has affected the fair market value of equipment. Fair market value is generally defined as an opinion expressed in terms of money, at which the property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of relevant facts, as of a specific date. For real estate, which is often valued and assessed based on income, the answer is much clearer.

The loss of tenants, reductions in rental income and the reduced need for leased commercial real estate have all had an impact on real estate values. For equipment, the impact is not as clear as it typically is valued by placing the cost of the equipment on an assessor’s depreciation schedule, which is often mandated by the state. Also, since by definition, tangible personal property is movable, equipment, in theory, could be transferred to another location that is not being impacted by the pandemic. In some cases, such as durable medical equipment, there may be an argument that the equipment is suffering from more wear and tear due to increased usage and, therefore, the fair market value has decreased faster than under normal market conditions. On the other hand, an industry such as dine-in food service, may see a decline in their equipment fair market value due to the increase in equipment for sale in the secondary market due to so many restaurants closing.

In any case, a request for additional depreciation on equipment due to the pandemic will need to be supported by data and research. A lot remains to be seen on this front. Rest assured that PVS will be keeping an eye on any changes in the assessment of equipment across the country.

Should you have any questions or needs related to personal property tax, please feel free to reach out at any time. Thank you for your continued support.