Across Iowa, residential market values are expected to see double digit increases. 15, 17 and even 22% in some areas, it's a massive jump that assessors are calling unusual.

Julie Carson, city assessor for Cedar Rapids says, "in a typical year it's, you know, we will see a 5 to 6% increases."

A hot housing market, nationwide, means homeownership is more valuable and hard to come by.

"Mixture of the low interest rates for how low they were for such a long time, the amount of available listings out there could also contribute," says Carson.

Cedar Rapids is looking at a 15% jump and they're not alone. Polk County anticipates a 22% increase in property values, followed by Dallas County up almost 17%.

Ames assessor, Shari Plagge says, "what we are anticipating is about a 20 to 25% increase for residential."

While these assessments do contribute to Iowans property taxes, it's just one component.

"So just because your assessment increases 20% doesn't necessarily mean your taxes will increase 20%," says Carson.

However, the Polk County Housing Trust Fund worries that an increase in property assessments could leave Iowans who are already struggling, on the hook for higher costs across the board.

Matt Hauge, communications director for the Polk County Housing Trust Fund says, "if you are financially on the edge for example making your house payment prior to the pandemic or you experienced lost of income or other disruptions, [or] got behind on a mortgage, that kind of thing. This type of increase in property tax assessment could really be a shock to your budget."

There's even more components, like local tax levies and rollback percentages to be calculated, that will factor into your property taxes, but numbers won't be finalized until next year.