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Sometimes an increase in value isn鈥檛 ideal for a property. These days, that鈥檚 particularly true for properties with fairways and greens.

鈥淭he golf industry, business-wise, has been in a declining state for the past few years,鈥� said Barb Trammell, chief executive officer of the Oregon Golf Association, a nonprofit comprising more than 270 clubs in Oregon and Southwest Washington, and the operator of a for-profit, 18-hole course in Woodburn.

To help mitigate losses, the OGA last year successfully appealed to the Marion County Board of Property Tax Appeals to lower the appraised value of its land. Trammell said the organization was paying more than $100,000 a year in property taxes, and was able to reduce that amount by approximately $40,000.

As a Dec. 31 deadline draws near for parties to submit property tax appeals, industry experts say many golf course operators are among the commercial property owners hoping to downgrade their assets.

Neil Bryant, an attorney and a shareholder of Bryant Lovlien & Jarvis, and a former state senator, is representing five golf courses in the Bend area.

鈥淎 lot of people in the recession just couldn鈥檛 afford memberships anymore, so they dropped them 鈥� and this lowers the value of these courses dramatically,鈥� Bryant said. 鈥淭hat happened nationwide, but in particular in the Northwest these values have not stabilized and they鈥檙e worth a lot less than they initially were.鈥�

Since 2005, the number of golfers in the United States has dropped 14 percent to 25.7 million, according to the National Golf Foundation. Since 2006, nearly 356 golf courses have closed.

Part of the reason for the decline is that while the number of 18-hole courses has grown 30 percent since 1991, the number of golfers has grown only 6.5 percent. Bryant said this was especially true in Bend, where many courses and resort homes were built before the bubble burst.

This year, Bend Golf and Country Club 鈥� one of the oldest courses in Central Oregon 鈥� is appealing to the Oregon Tax Court to lower its appraised value from $8.4 million to $2.56 million, according to public records. Awbrey Glen Golf Club, also in Bend, is seeking a reduction in value from $5.7 million to $207,033. And another Bend golf club, Tetherow, is seeking a reduction in value from $8.4 million to $658,942.

But golf course owners aren鈥檛 the only ones looking to drop their property values.

Chris Robinson, an attorney specializing in commercial property tax law, said business from clients looking to appeal appraised property values has increased steadily since 2009. This year will likely parallel 2011 in volume, he said.

鈥淲hen we have a recession, we have businesses closing (and) vacating space; the law of supply and demand applies,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he more supply of vacant space, the more downward pressure there is on rents and the more aggressive landlords have to get to fill space.鈥�

Robinson said that trend is evident for most income-producing properties other than multifamily. Some clients with prime office parks have vacancy rates greater than 20 percent.

Those properties are prime candidates for appeal if their owners are paying taxes on values that appraisers assessed when the market was stronger. Those assessments also tend to occur in fell swoops by appraisers with limited resources, Robinson said.

Cynthia Fraser, an attorney and owner in the Portland office of Garvey Schubert Barer, said owners of economically obsolescent industrial manufacturing sites also have pursued appeals. She said that as manufacturers have moved production operations overseas, some large, single-use sites have dropped in value.

Fraser added that she is representing a couple of golf courses this year 鈥� one in Portland and one in Bend.

Trammell believes that although the golf business has hit the rough, it will soon chip its way out.

鈥淲e鈥檙e not in dire straits like what has been communicated in the past few years,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think everybody has been in the mode of hang tight (and) cut expenses where we can 鈥� It鈥檚 been rough for a while but the game is not going away, and golf courses are not going away.鈥�