A familiar face is the new director in the Rock County Land Records department.
Rachel Jacobs began her new duties Aug. 2, taking the reins from former assessor and Land Records director Tom Houselog, who retired after 46 years, 21 of those years in Rock County.
“It’s a little intimidating,” Jacobs said. “But it’s a good and exciting change.”
Jacobs has been a technician in the office since 2015 and said she had hoped to eventually head the department.
The Land Records Office assesses property for real estate taxes and it records real estate transactions, births, marriages and deaths within the county.
Jacobs is no a stranger to Rock County.
She is the daughter of Dan and Colleen Nath of Luverne and graduated from Luverne High School in 2009.
She earned her math and computer science degree from the University of South Dakota in Vermillion and took a job in the business department at C&B Operations in Luverne.
“I really got to know the ag industry while I was there,” she said.
This has also helped her through the years-long licensing steps through the Minnesota Department of Revenue toward becoming an assessor.
She recently finished the 60-page report for the Accredited Minnesota Assessor (ASA) licensure and will take the final test later this month.
Within a year, she hopes to have her Senior Accredited Minnesota Assessor (SAMA) licensure, the highest assessor training level.
Jacobs lives in rural Ellsworth with her husband, Brock, and their three daughters, Allison, 8, Jennifer, 6, and Samantha, 2.
Sehr appointed temporary county assessor
As Land Records Office director, Jacobs oversees a staff of three.
Assessor Jeff Sehr is SAMA certified, and Scott Adams is currently working on his ASA. Katie VanGrootheest is the department’s administrative assistant.
Until she achieves AMA certification, Jacobs cannot be appointed as county assessor.
At their Aug. 3 meeting, Rock County commissioners appointed Sehr as the interim county assessor during the next few months until Jacobs completes the ASA test.
The county office currently has assessing contracts with seven county townships and with each of the municipalities in Rock County.
The area consists of about 8,500 parcels.
Jacobs was one of two candidates who interviewed for the director position.
Due to stringent licensing requirements, commissioners were concerned that a qualified applicant couldn’t be hired for the director and appointed as assessor.
“We are pretty fortunate to have had the talent in that office,” said commissioner Jody Reisch, who served on the hiring committee.
Retired director Houselog encouraged each of the technicians in the office to pursue the advanced licensing requirements.
In the future, Jacobs sees the land records office undergoing a structural change with the possible addition of a deputy county assessor.
“It’s good that the public doesn’t always see me as the only face of the assessor’s office,” Jacobs said. “We are a team.”
A replacement for Jacob’s former technician position will be first advertised in-house.