Well I went and did some research in the county records for information on the two houses and figured out what is going. It does not appear to be the county but the seller of the second home:
First house:
Asking: $699,000
Taxes: $11,378
Assessed Fair Market Value for 2012-2013: $595,600
(2011 tax year)
Assessed Fair Market Value for 2010-2011: $657,600 (2009 tax year)
Second House:
Asking: $998,000
Taxes: $11,817
Assessed Fair Market Value for 2012-2013: $622,800
(2011 tax year)
Assessed Fair Market Value for 2010-2011: $700,100 (2009 tax year)
There is only a $27,200 difference in assessed valuation between the two hence the $439 difference in taxes. However, the seller of the second house is looking for $375,200 over the assessed value. Whatever they are drinking down the block I wonder if they are willing to share. It must really distort reality. Even the seller of the first house is looking for $100K over fair market assessed value. They still seem to be living in 2009.