BUFFALO, N.Y. — It's no secret that housing prices have been on the rise in Buffalo, but with the city's first property reassessment since 2010, residents are unsure just how much the strong housing market will affect their property taxes.

"In Allentown in 2009, the median sale price of a home was $129,000, and the end of 2017, it was $280,000. So, that's a 117 percent market increase in value. So, in theory, the property tax for someone who purchased a home for $60,000 or $70,000 could see their taxes raise 30-40 percent after equalization," said Jonathan White of the Allentown Association.

People with questions about their property taxes packed the First Presbyterian Church Monday and peppered the city's Assessment and Taxation commissioner with questions about determining formulas for how much homeowners will have to pay, when they'll have to pay it, and why the reassessment process is taking place now.

"It's not that the city wants some kind of tax grab or anything along those lines. It's that we're only at 67 percent value for all our properties, and it should be at 100 percent so everyone's paying fairly across the board," said Buffalo Common Councilmember David Franczyk.

The assessment will affect the property tax bill sent out on July 1, 2019.

In anticipation of that, Assemblyman Sean Ryan has drafted a bill that would allow for the City of Buffalo to defer large tax increases for income-eligible households.

"If we need those tools through that legislation, it's good he's getting ahead of the curve. We can pass a local law to that effect if we need to," Franczyk said.

City officials recommend visiting the Online Assessment Roll System for more information on property taxes.