Dooley Real Estate
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Revaluation Revisited
Final thoughts on Kent's property tax revaluation

Kent’s Board of Assessment Appeals has wrapped up its work of evaluating the claims of property owners who believed their new assessments to be too high. After having worked with approximately two dozen property owners who experienced sticker shock when they received their original revaluation notices, we’re of the opinion the Assessor and Vision Appraisal did a substantially good job, but there are some troubling elements in the template used in the revaluation process.

So what is this template? Basically, it’s a set of standards that attempts to assign dollar values to such elements as size of houses, lots, additional acres, and extra features like outbuildings, swimming pools, fireplaces, etc. These component values are then applied to individual properties with adjustments for such things as age and condition.

After reviewing dozens of new assessments, we found that the template created by Vision works pretty well for houses. If the recorded description of the house (size, number of rooms, baths, etc.) is accurate, the computerized valuation of the house is fairly accurate. It’s the valuation of the land that has caused the most problems.

The Vision template has two elements intended to adjust differences in land values: the SA (site adjustment) and the C (condition) Factor. The SA can be elevated to raise the assumed unit price of the primary lot from $120,000 per acre to a maximum of $420,000 per acre if such things like views, mature trees, stone walls and open meadow are present. The template reduces the assessments of parcels compromised by wetlands and severe slopes by means of the C Factor which is expressed as a percentage reduction, typically 25 to 35%.

Yet another multiplier applied to land is the ST (or street) Index. Ranging from 5 to 9, this factor increases the land valuation from 0 to 100%, depending upon the road on which the property is located. Granting that real estate is all about “location, location and location,” multiplying the land value for all properties on a given road seems inappropriate in a rural town where most roads have properties of distinctly different quality from one end to the other. That said, the Assessor and Vision are unlikely to reduce an elevated Street Index unless several property owners on the same road make a case for the reduction.

Finally, the Town budget was passed last Friday night. The Board of Finance met afterwards and set a tax rate of 14.11 mills. To calculate what this means for your tax bill, simply multiply your new assessment by .01411 and then compare the result with your current tax bill. Generally speaking, if your assessment increased by approximately 35%, your 2009/10 taxes should be roughly the same as your current taxes.

Since the new assessments will be the basis for real property taxes for the next five years, it makes sense for property owners to review the nuts and bolts of their property valuations to make sure that they’re not paying an unfair premium for their address, and if it appears they are, to seek to have the Street Index modified next year.

We hope this has been helpful. If you have any questions, feel free to call us.