property tax data now available on-line

From Lesley Stedman Weidenbener's article in Friday's C-J, a useful data source becomes easily available.

Amid the turmoil of statewide property reassessments based in part on sales, Hoosiers can now find out the sale prices of their neighbors' homes with a few clicks of the mouse.

The Indiana Department of Local Government Finance announced yesterday a searchable database on its Web site that allows anyone to put in names or addresses and find sales information from 2003 through 2006.

The database is at www.in.gov/dlgf.

The system also provides information about property assessments but is dependent on data provided by counties. That means information may be missing for some counties or some years, although it will be updated as it is submitted to the state.

Department Commissioner Cheryl Musgrave said she hopes the data will help homeowners with appeals of their assessments, which are based partly on area sales data. She called it a one-stop source for assessment information.