As if you needed another reminder about hard economic times.

Douglas County property owners received their valuation notices this week, and according to the appraiser’s office, the average residential value decreased about 2 percent.

“We’re just seeing the effects of the economy,” said Steven Miles, an appraisal manager II. “In the Midwest, we’ve been a little bit more stable than other parts of the country.”

But the numbers do show the difficulties of the current real estate market here. The residential value decrease follows essentially no change in valuation last year.

Every year since 2003, the county’s residential property values rose anywhere from 2 percent to 6 percent.

Local governments rely on the property valuations to essentially tell them how much revenue is available before they set property tax rates during budget talks.

The county’s amount of new construction — which was much slower than past years, and included the new Wal-Mart in western Lawrence — did slightly increase the county’s overall valuation 0.3 percent compared to 2008, according to the appraiser’s office.

Miles said, though, taking out the new construction, most residential values declined based on the economic conditions.

Appraiser’s officials have said 94 percent of the 29,000 residential properties in the county will stay the same or decline.

Miles said the lower valuations reflect a slowdown in loans, building in the county and other economic factors that have made people nervous.

Property owners have until 5 p.m. March 31 to request an informal hearing with the appraiser’s office about their valuations.

The appraiser’s office staff members are expecting more people to appeal their values because the sagging real estate market is gaining so much attention nationwide.

“Our anticipation is that there might be more simply because of the national media,” Miles said.

The appraiser’s office annually expects the county to lose another 1 percent in valuation after the appeals process plays out.