Date: Fri 29-Dec-1995

Publication: Bee

Author: KAAREN

Quick Words:

revaluation-tax

Full Text:

Revaluation Notices Go Out

BY KAAREN VALENTA

The results of the 1995 revaluation will be mailed to property owners by the

end of this week, according to Tax Assessor Mark E. DeVestern.

While property market values have increased an average of 40 percent since the

last revaluation was done in 1985, the revaluation doesn't necessarily mean

that tax bills will be higher. As assessments go up in a revaluation, the mill

rate typically goes down, Mr DeVestern said.

In fact, most property owners won't see a big change in their tax bills as a

result of the revaluation process itself, he said.

The new assessment of a property is 70 percent of its appraised market value

as of October 1, 1995. To compute this appraised market value, divide the new

assessment by .7 (or multiply it by 1.43).

The new assessment does not reflect any exemptions, such as those for

veterans, the blind or disabled, nor does it reflect assessment adjustments

for the elderly, such as the freeze or circuit breaker programs. All valid

exemptions and assessment adjustments will be applied by the tax assessor and

will be reflected in the July 1996 tax bill.

Do not multiply the assessed value of a property by the current mill rate to

determine your tax bill, Mr DeVestern said. The mill rate will not be

determined until after the Grand List is finalized, and the new town budget is

approved.

A special telephone line, 270-1939, has been set up by the revaluation firm,

Lesher-Glendinning Municipal Services, to schedule informal hearings for

property owners who believe the new assessment is not reflective of the

current value of their property. Do not call the tax assessor's office for

appointments or information about the assessments because the files are all in

the hands of the revaluation firm, Mr DeVestern said.

Operators at 270-1939 will only be able to schedule hearings, not answer

questions. Hearings are by appointment only. The hearing days and times are

January 3, 4, 9, 10, 11 and 16 between 10 am to noon or 1:30 to 6:30 pm. Other

special arrangements may be made if necessary, such as if someone expects to

be out of town on all of those dates. The hearings will be held in the

Alexandria Room at Edmond Town Hall.

Mr DeVestern said most residential property owners in Newtown will fare well

compared to homeowners in many larger towns.

"The good news for homeowners is that there will be little, if any, shifting

of the tax burden in Newtown from commercial/industrial properties to

residential properties," he said. "That has been a problem for homeowners in

the bigger cities."

"If a homeowner has done a lot of remodeling, or put on an addition since the

last assessment was done, this will increase the market value of the

property," he said. "Some houses have actually deteriorated, however,

resulting in lower market value. And some styles, or age groups of houses, are

less popular, with lower market values."

Market value is defined as the most probable price that a property should sell

on that date in a fair sale in a competitive market.

A house built in 1994 for $250,000 would have been appraised that year as

though it existed in 1985 when the last revaluation was done. So it could have

had an assessment of $125,000 last year, and increased to $175,000 under the

new revaluation.

Property owners will be notified by mail after the informal hearing whether

their assessments will be changed. A property owner who still objects has the

right to appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals, formerly known as the

Board of Tax Review. The property owner must write to ask for an appointment

to appear before the board. The board can reduce the assessment amount, leave

it unchanged, or even increase it.

A failure to resolve the dispute, or cases that involve properties of more

than $500,000 assessed valuation, may go directly to the Hartford/New Britain

Superior Court, not to Danbury Superior Court as in past revaluations.

For assistance on other matters, the tax assessor's office is open 11:30 am to

4:30 pm Monday, Wednesday and Friday, and from 8 am to 4:30 pm on Tuesday and

Thursday.