Calgary Property Assessment

[qkslvr]

It looks like house values went up pretty well this year. Anybody knows how accurate the city's property assessment is compared to the market?

[The Cosworth]

usually 10% low from what my dad was saying.

Always lower than market at least

[The_1]

from what ive seen so far its above market
my townhouse is selling for around 350K and my assessment is 370K

[Fivewayradio]

Mine's about 50k above market this year. Last year's was about 15k below.

[rc2002]

I can see a lot of assessments being higher. The higher the assessment - the higher your property tax. The city needs any additional tax money in a bad way.

Good news for you if you're trying to sell your house though.

[reiRei]

bad news if you live in the ghetto (NE) looks like they're making lower income families pay more taxes so that the younger, richer suburbanites down south can have another Ctrain station, better roads.. and all that wonderful stuff...

[badatusrnames]

Originally posted by reiRei
bad news if you live in the ghetto (NE) looks like they're making lower income families pay more taxes so that the younger, richer suburbanites down south can have another Ctrain station, better roads.. and all that wonderful stuff...

:werd: I live in the inner city, and I love how our property tax increases go to service this city's suburban sprawl...

[malbadon]

Originally posted by richardchan2002
I can see a lot of assessments being higher. The higher the assessment - the higher your property tax.

Except you are completely wrong. Calgary works on a revenue neutral budget. They announce how much money they need, then divide that money among the assessed values of all houses in Calgary.

What your value is this year versus last year barely matters, what matters is what the city determines is their budgetary needs this year and how much of a percentage change that is.

Then sure, if your house went up 21% while your neighbours only went up 18%, well you get the screw for a buck or two, but whoopy. I think I'd calculated last year that a 10 grand disparity between my house and my neighbours amounted to 50 bucks.

Every year, same thing, people running around with their hair on fire because their house went up 80 grand in assessed value and they somehow believe that means they are going to be shelling out 40% more taxes or something....its explained on their website...its explained on the assessment brochure....yet every year same thing...

[lint]

Also, the assessment information is as of July 2007, not Jan 2008.

[bamboo403]

Really?
Mine seems to be 20k less than the average SALE price of townhouses surrounding me.
I did have around a 22% increase this year from last...ghey.

[AndrewMZ3]

My understanding was they have adjusted their assessment metrics to more closely reflect market value as of last July. Between that time and now, the market has decreased, so the assessed value will generally be higher than the current fair market value.

[qkslvr]

thanks for the info...

[Melinda]

Yeah ours is $325,000 this year. The 5 places for sale on our block are selling around $290,000 at the moment.

[max_boost]

The assessment isn't accurate for my home. When I took out my HELOC, the bank assessment was 30% higher than the City's.

Plus the City also doesn't take into account other factors that would increase the value of your home, location, upgrades etc.

[Pacman]

My assessment is inflated. It came in at 370k and it should only be 330k tops. Even for July it would have been a stretch to get 370k for my place.

[rc2002]

Originally posted by malbadon


Except you are completely wrong. Calgary works on a revenue neutral budget. They announce how much money they need, then divide that money among the assessed values of all houses in Calgary.

What your value is this year versus last year barely matters, what matters is what the city determines is their budgetary needs this year and how much of a percentage change that is.

Then sure, if your house went up 21% while your neighbours only went up 18%, well you get the screw for a buck or two, but whoopy. I think I'd calculated last year that a 10 grand disparity between my house and my neighbours amounted to 50 bucks.

Every year, same thing, people running around with their hair on fire because their house went up 80 grand in assessed value and they somehow believe that means they are going to be shelling out 40% more taxes or something....its explained on their website...its explained on the assessment brochure....yet every year same thing...



Property assessment is the estimated value of a property used for municipal and education taxation purposes. The formula used to determine your property tax is: Property assessed value x Tax Rate = Your property tax levy.



Your property tax is a function of your assessment. Say your house has gone up 10% in relation to the average. 10% on a $500,000 house equates into $273.07 as per last years tax rate of 0.005461400. With the 4.5% raise in taxes this year, that's $285.36. That's a decent chunk of change.




From the Calgary Herald
http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=1dce8d6d-cad8-4e35-9a24-74e1e79572fe&k=55491

Communities in the city's northeast, such as Saddleridge, Martindale and Rundle, as well as some in the south, such as Bridlewood, New Brighton and Copperfield, will see tax increases of between five and 9.9 per cent.

A number of older communities, especially in the northwest - such as Dalhousie, Varsity and West Hillhurst - will see their taxes decrease by more than 10 per cent.

[HRD2PLZ]

IIRC the tax assessments are based on market value from July 2007 which was for the most part, higher than it currently is. That being said, my principle residence took a fairly substantial jump over 2006 and seems to be about 5% under market. Haven't seen the assessment from the rental unit yet.

[4wheeldrift]

Mine's quite under market value (almost 60k too low) but I'm not about to complain lol My parents was quite a bit higher than their market value.

[lilmira]

Mine went up and is about 20-30g above current market value. However, tax actually went down by about 100 bucks. :)

[Z_Fan]

Mine was 413,000 but a neighbour had trouble getting 387,000 for his house which is virtually identical. Though ours is on a corner and his wasn't.

I doubt we'd be able to get 390,000 in today's market.

[kenny]

Assessed value on my rental property went up 25%, but the actual tax amount went down by a buck. :D

[4DoorGTZ]

Assessed value went up 104%, its like the city forgot to update my assessment last year :dunno: But it is sort of a fair value now. Havent seen the actual tax bill yet (out of town) just checked the assessment on the website.

They're even short changing me on a fireplace and some square footage, but I'm not gonna complain.

[black_2.5RS]

City assessment on my primary residence is about $10K over valued. The rental unit near the university is probably about $20k over as well. Anyone thinking of complaining about it? I won't do it for my primary rez....but thinking about it for the rental.

[liquid1010]

Man, I looked at mine today, and it's insane. My assessment this year is almost double of what I paid for my house in 2004 :nut:

[Swank]

My market assessment has gone from 90K to 240K over about 10 years, but my taxes have only gone from about 700 to 1000. I was sure that if my house value doubled so would my taxes, but I've been pleasantly surprised.

[malbadon]

Originally posted by richardchan2002


Your property tax is a function of your assessment. Say your house has gone up 10% in relation to the average. 10% on a $500,000 house equates into $273.07 as per last years tax rate of 0.005461400. With the 4.5% raise in taxes this year, that's $285.36. That's a decent chunk of change.




Except the rate this year is like .0043, not .0054. (don't have my assessment sheet at work, but it was somewhere down in that area). Again, as I said, revenue neutral. Assessment prices increases, so tax rate decreased.

Houses in my area (and I keep a chart of every single house on my block, as thats the only real important comparison you can make) went up between 19 and 27%. Our taxes are $60 less than last year.

People whose area only saw a small assessment increase last year are the ones seeing a larger increase this year. You can't keep giving one area a 15% assessed value increase every year when other areas got a 40% in 2007 and now a 20% in 2008.

Even on my street, the house that got the biggest increase this year (28%) was the guy who got the smallest increase last year (30%). We had a 41% increase last year and a 21% this year. This has made his house and my house worth exactly the same this year.

[rated_R]

My property assessment is more than 70K higher than what we bought it for and it's only been 9 months

But the good thing about the assessment being higher is that if you wanted to take some equity out of your house, the banks would go with the city's assessment rather than the appraised value

[malbadon]

Originally posted by black_2.5RS
City assessment on my primary residence is about $10K over valued. The rental unit near the university is probably about $20k over as well. Anyone thinking of complaining about it? I won't do it for my primary rez....but thinking about it for the rental.

The assessed value is a completely, totally, arbitrary number(imo). It doesn't matter. What matters is what your house was assessed at compared to comparable houses in your neighborhood. Check that out. If its in the same ballpark, you'll be spinning your wheels challenging it as its completely in line with similar houses in the area.

A 10,000 difference between you and your neighbor is $40. (10,000x0.00043).

[old&slow]

Does it matter that the assessment is $50000 out cause of the change since July? In other words the city is caught in the deflation of market value and that's not my fault as an owner and tax payer. So if I complain about the fact that their assessment is nowhere near correct due to market fluctuation, will I have a chance?

[Aleks]

70 bux more per year in property tax for me.

[kgeig254]

There are a ton of houses for sale in our neighbourhood and using that as a gauge, or house got assessed around $55,000 more than we could sell it for. And the market has not changed in about 5 months in the 'hood.

[phreezee]

50K above market seems to be what a lot of people are reporting.

[01RedDX]

.

[Thaco]

our assessment is probably about 10% high based on other listings in my complex (condo), it's up about 30% from last assessment, however, my property taxes dropped $12/mo this year... Strange, but who am i to complain? :D

[sukito]

Originally posted by old&slow
Does it matter that the assessment is $50000 out cause of the change since July? In other words the city is caught in the deflation of market value and that's not my fault as an owner and tax payer. So if I complain about the fact that their assessment is nowhere near correct due to market fluctuation, will I have a chance?

Assessments are governed my the Municipal Government Act. The valuation date (or effective date) is July 1, 2007 and is based on the condition of the property as of Dec. 31, 2007.

They are governed to use July 1, 2007 as a valuation date...similar to what an appraiser will do if you order one. The drop in value from July is no concern to them...they are valuing market value from July 1. (you may question if it is indeed market value...but they also use Mass Appraisal).

Wouldn't hurt to call and see if all your info is correct...call and make an appt and someone will call you back at that time. I use to work in the dept and it's their open house period for complaints.

[Kloubek]

Mine jumped from 192,000 to 276,000. It translated in my taxes going from $1010 per year to $1200something.

Units in my complex are selling for around 270,000. So I think I'm getting screwed a lil.

[Tik-Tok]

So all you people complaining about being "screwed" with a higher appraisal... are you going to ask for your 2007 Property Assessment to be re-valuated, and pay the city extra? Seeing as how you probably could have sold it for $50g-$100g over it's property tax evaulation last spring.

[max_boost]

I just got my 08 assessment.

Assessment went up $78K.
Taxes went down $250.
:clap: :thumbsup:

[lint]

Originally posted by Kloubek
Mine jumped from 192,000 to 276,000. It translated in my taxes going from $1010 per year to $1200something.

Units in my complex are selling for around 270,000. So I think I'm getting screwed a lil.

Do you not understand that the assessment is based on the market value as of July 1, 2007, and you're comparing it to sales in Dec 2007 or Jan 2008? What were units in your complex selling for in July?

[malbadon]

...and what are the other units in your complex assessed at...cause as I've said, if they are all in the same ballpark, you aren't going to get 50k magically dropped off yours.

[Impreza]

Up 25% this year.

[benyl]

Originally posted by max_boost

Plus the City also doesn't take into account other factors that would increase the value of your home, location, upgrades etc.

Yes it does.

It takes into account, traffic, views, developed basements, walkouts, decks, etc...

There are 3 houses that are the same model as mine in about a 3 block radius.

Mine has the highest assessment because I have less traffic (cul de sac). I called the city and that is what they told me. fuckers.

My assessment went up $120K this year, which is about $50K over market. Bastardos!

[kevie88]

Mine is up 30%.. fucking rediculous.:thumbsdow


Much as I would love my house to be worth 500k, it just isnt.

[Smokem]

Here's a question...hopefully one of you can help me out.

I purchased my place Jul 5, 2007 and my tax assessment (based on Jul 1, 2007 data) came in at $30,000 more than what I paid for it, do I have a standing chance if I were to dispute the taxes? Has anyone previously disputed their assessment and won?

[kenny]

Why bother wasting time disputing the assessments? The tax difference is so minor even if they redo it and readjust it a bit lower, or am I missing something?

[590221010]

My 'rents house went up a lot, like almost 90k, I think that is really off. Save around mid 200s compared to last year.

[Maddog55]

Mine went up just over 100k but my taxes went down by $50....Sweet!! :thumbsup:

[Oz-]

My assessment went up 25%, taxes went down almost $300 a year, but still about 35% undervalued from the "market" (comparing on what other similar houses have sold in our 3 block radius)

[RT16V]

Originally posted by Smokem
Here's a question...hopefully one of you can help me out.

I purchased my place Jul 5, 2007 and my tax assessment (based on Jul 1, 2007 data) came in at $30,000 more than what I paid for it, do I have a standing chance if I were to dispute the taxes? Has anyone previously disputed their assessment and won?

File the dispute. I was able to actually dispute mine on the same grounds, and was successful a few years ago.

[B20EF]

Assessment up 58%
Taxes up 14%
Mines a downtown condo, it's still under assessed for what they were selling for in July and now

[Mazstyle]

It looks like I'm the only one on here with an accurate assesment? Mine came in 2k of what my house is worth...

[Smokem]

Originally posted by RT16V


File the dispute. I was able to actually dispute mine on the same grounds, and was successful a few years ago.

Oh really? Did it make a huge difference for you? What exactly did you state to the city in your explanation (ie. how did you word it)?

Kenny, I am not too concerned about the dollars and cents today, rather I take the stance that the "residual value" of the overvaluation will carry through year over year. Despite the revenue neutral formula, I will theoretically be paying the additional marginal difference every year between what my property is really worth and what I got it for.

[malbadon]

Canada.com has a cool map that charts neighborhood and whether they overall went up in tax value or down.
http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/pdfs/assessment_map.pdf

[modded46]

My property value went up 100,000 more than last year.. However, my taxes only went up $38.00.. I'm fine with that. :) Property value is right on par with what similar houses are selling for in the neighborhood.

[bennyhanna]

Like many, mine has increased by a substantial amount.

Taxes have remained static.

[benyl]

Originally posted by Mazstyle
It looks like I'm the only one on here with an accurate assesment? Mine came in 2k of what my house is worth...

You house is only worth what someone is willing to pay.

[jeff_qu]

mine is almost double this year. Last year 240k, this year, 460k. I am going to file the complain for sure.

It sucks.

[RT16V]

Originally posted by Smokem


Oh really? Did it make a huge difference for you? What exactly did you state to the city in your explanation (ie. how did you word it)?

Kenny, I am not too concerned about the dollars and cents today, rather I take the stance that the "residual value" of the overvaluation will carry through year over year. Despite the revenue neutral formula, I will theoretically be paying the additional marginal difference every year between what my property is really worth and what I got it for.

I called and spoke with the actual appraiser. I asked how my house could be appraised for more than I paid for it around the same time (July ish). He claimed there was an error in the type of house mine was on file and sent out a new assessment.

[C4S]

When I first see my property . I was ...:eek: went up $125K ?? :banghead:

But then .. my tax actually went down $35 buck .. :D

[Smokem]

Originally posted by kenny
Why bother wasting time disputing the assessments? The tax difference is so minor even if they redo it and readjust it a bit lower, or am I missing something?

Did the math and a $30K reduction in property value equates to $130+ in tax savings, so definitely worth the fight! :thumbsup: