NANTUCKET PROPERTY VALUES AND ASSESSMENTS
The Town of Nantucket has been working on the revaluation of all property on-island. The revaluation is the process of conducting the data collection and market analysis necessary to equalize the values of all properties within a municipality for the purpose of a fair distribution of the tax burden. If you own Nantucket property expect a notice of your new assessed value within the next few months.
What is market value and who determines my property value?
Market value is determined by the activity in the real estate market and the general economy. The value of your property is based on an analysis of the entire market for the full two calendar years before the completion of the Revaluation Project. The market can generally be defined as you, the person who sold the property to you, and the person willing to buy it from you. It is the Appraiser’s job to research and analyze the values in any particular area or neighborhood. In effect, they do what you would do to determine the selling price when putting your property up for sale. The Appraiser has specific guidelines to follow. Factors that are examined for each property are: Location, size, quality of construction, age of improvements, topography, utilities, and zoning restrictions, among others.
What happens during a Revaluation?
A physical inspection of each property is conducted where building dimensions and characteristics are noted. While the Data Collection phase is going on, appraisers are studying sales and determining where the actual increases and decreases in value are occurring. This study of recent property sales allows comparisons to be made and appraisers to establish parameters to estimate the value of property that has not been sold. The appraisers then review this collected data and apply the determining factors of the sales analysis to come up with a value of each property. Each property owner receives an individual notice of the new assessment. Property owners can also review the entire public assessed values, so that the property owner can see what the values are around his/her property. All property owners are given the opportunity to discuss their values with the appraisal staff at an appointed time which will be publicly announced (hearings) towards the end of the revaluation. At a hearing, the property owner can voice concerns, discuss inaccuracies or discrepancies with a qualified appraiser who will review the property record card and explain the value. Should an inspection or revaluation need to be done, the appraiser will make that determination and any changes that result will be sent to the property owner.
How will I know if my assessment is equitable?
There are two very good methods of determining this. First, compare your property to similar properties that sold in the previous year. Your value should be in line with these sale prices. Second, if no recent sales are available, compare your assessment to other similar properties in your area using the Street Listing of Values available in the Assessor’s Office. Your value should be in line with these similar properties. Remember, very few properties are exactly alike. Your value should be comparable, but it seldom will be exactly the same as what seems to be a similar property.
Will a Revaluation increase taxes?
A revaluation may result in an increase of nearly each individual assessment; it does not mean that all property values will increase. Assessments are only the base that is used to determine the tax burden. The tax burden is the amount that the municipality must raise to operate the local government and support the many services each of us has come to expect such as schools, police, etc. If the same amount of money is to be raised after the revaluation as the previous year and each assessment doubles, the tax rate would merely be cut in half.
It is very likely that the assessed values will drop on Nantucket but that the tax rate will increase in order to continue to pay for municipal services. The information above is provided by the Town of Nantucket. For more information please visit the Assessor’s web site: http://data.visionappraisal.com/.
