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EDUCATION MSD to save taxpayers nearly $10.5 million by refinancing Comment By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 5, 2015 at 11:44 AM By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 5, 2015 at 11:44 AM » Social News By 2018, a Medford property owner with a $225,000 house can expect to pay about $31.50 — the price of a large gourmet pizza — less in property taxes than they did in 2014, thanks to a bond refinancing by the Medford School District. The refinancing, approved Tuesday by MSD’s Chief Financial Officer Brad Earl, will save taxpayers nearly $10.5 million over the remaining course of the bond debt, which expires June 15, 2034. In November 2006, voters approved a $189 million bond measure to cover the cost of replacing South Medford High School and Lone Pine Elementary School; remodeling North Medford High School and Jackson, Oak Grove, Roosevelt and Washington elementary schools and improving 11 other campuses. This work was completed in 2010 and ultimately cost about $200 million with the remaining balance covered by interest made from investment accounts, Earl explained. According to the measure, the district could charge taxpayers up to $2 per $1,000 of assessed value. Last year, taxpayers paid $1.95 per $1,000 of assessed value, but under the new bond purchasing agreement, that rate should drop by about 7 percent over the next three years. By 2018 property owners will be paying roughly $1.81 per $1,000 of assessed value. “We chose to keep the term the same but get a lower interest rate, but we have to pay some financial obligations in the first three years on the previous bonds,” Earl said. However, there will be less of a dollar savings if the assessed cost of homes continues to rise, Earl added. Nonetheless, property owners should see a little bit of a reduction when they open their tax statements later this year. When the bond measure was first approved, the board promised taxpayers it would be responsible with their money and, if the market allowed, seek a more favorable interest rate, said Board Chairman Jeff Thomas. “We've sat on the refinance for the entire time that I’ve been on the board, which is six years —until research showed that the time was right,” Thomas said. In 2006, the School Board appointed Dale Okerlund, senior vice president of Salt Lake City-based securities firm Lewis Young Robertson & Burningham, Inc., as the district’s financial adviser. Since then, Okerlund has tracked interest rates and the call dates of the bonds to determine the best time to refinance. “We got a call this last summer from him saying it’s time,” Earl said. “At that point, we started putting together the framework for the refinancing, and here we are. If we’d waited even six weeks, we might have missed out on the window of opportunity to refinance.” “The savings right now across the board will be about $634,000 a year, and then in 2018, it’ll go up to over $800,000 in savings each year from there on out.” The savings, after accounting for inflation and deducting interest owed to current bond holders, will be about $10.5 million. Reach education reporter Teresa Thomas at 541-776-4497 or [email protected]. Follow her at www.twitter.com/teresathomas_mt. By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune MailTribune.com By Teresa Thomas Mail Tribune Posted Mar. 5, 2015 at 11:44 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Southern Oregon Directory Featured Businesses Loading... 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