[vvolin]

I am looking at two houses on the market for $700,000 and almost $800,000. The assessed value is $270,000 and $240,000 respectively, the appriased value $390,000 and 340,000. My questions are:
1. could the large difference between assessed and market value mean that the houses were assessed for taxes a long time ago and, therefore, will likely be reassessed soon?; or is it normal to see such discrepancy?
2. what is the appraised value used for?
3. to calculate the property tax as of today I take 70% of the assessed value and apply the town mill to it, correct?
Thanks.

[JayCT]

vvolin - How are you? I hope all is well. Are still moving to Glastonbury? If you are, I can tell you that the town is going through their reassessment of properties right now. The reviewers were walking our neighborhood just last week.

I believe the last time we were reassessed was about 5 years ago and real estate prices have gone up a lot since then. What will happen is that the town will take the value of all taxable properties (homes, commercial properties and vehicles) and recalculate what the mill rate needs to be to obtain the amount of money they need to run the town each year. Generally what happens is the taxes on a home will go up modestly while the taxes on your cars go down. It kind of balances itself out. The real estate listing should tell you the taxes on each of the homes you are looking at. Assume that the taxes will go up maybe 10%.

As for the values you asked about. The Appraised Value is the value of the home in the year identified. In Glastonbury, that year is 2002. That is generally how much the home was worth in that. This usually does not include any value that can not be quantified, like location (lower priced home in an upscale neighborhood, or a upper priced home in a lower priced neighborhood). The Assessed Value is 70% of the Appraised Value and that is the amount that will be used to calculate you taxes. I hope that clarifies things. If you have any other questions, just ask. Good luck with your house hunt. Jay

[vvolin]

Thank you, Jay. I had the feeling that was the case. Must be the Irish luck (my husband's, that is....) Anyway, even if the appraised value goes up by 10%, the taxes will also reflect that same percentage, so nothing should really kill us that it does not kill us today.

Yes, we are still looking in Glastonbury. Actually, the town is the only real firm decision we have made so far, and we hope it is a good one. We still have our home on the market (it has been almost 4 weeks now), but south Florida must be the worst market to have to sell your house right now. We are considering buying a second house with a mortgage in CT and we are seeing our accountant tomorrow about that. There are 3 houses we are interested in right now, a third one (besides the two above) on Bell St. We like the house, but we are not sure about the neighborhood yet. It is difficult to judge that from here.....

Meanwhile we have rented a house starting from mid August and for 4 months. At least we will have a roof on top of us when we come. Thank you for asking.

Valeria

[JayCT]

vvolin - I think I know the house. Is it a yellow gambrel with a front porch and a 3 car garage? If it is, it is a very nice looking house, but definitely one of the highest priced on the street. Bell Street is mostly a lot of small older homes. It is just kind of out of place there. It is also a through street that is often used as a cut-through to Manchester, so there will be traffic on it.

That said, I too considered it because it looked to have so much to offer (size, pool, open layout, beautiful big kitchen). It is a bit out of our price range and we are not really looking but it is a nice house for the money and if you are sure you are going to stay there for a while, it would be very nice.

A way to get an idea of what the neighborhood is like is to visit and play with the Glastonbury Geographical Information System (GIS). It is a map of the town that allows you to find a property and/or adjacent properties and see what is on it. There is information about each property with a picture of each home and an interactive map that will allow you see what a particular area is like. You can access here: http://gis.glasct.org/. Good luck, Jay

PS - Where are the other homes you are considering. I believe good houses are moving pretty well right now. Seen a couple of homes that interested me get sold fast. Still listed but are waiting for closings.

[JayCT]

vvolin - Another thing to check on the Glastonbury GIS is what the house last sold for. There is a home in a newer development that is priced over $100,000 more than it was bought for 2 years ago and it does not appear that the owners did anything. When I first saw it, I thought it looked high for what you got (no deck, few scrubs, etc.) and when I checked the GIS I found what they paid for it. The market isn't dead but it has not gone up 15% in the last two years. Jay

[Iska]

Jay, you provide such helpful information about Glastonbury. Please don't stop.

[Rich Lee]

Originally Posted by JayCT

vvolin - Another thing to check on the Glastonbury GIS is what the house last sold for. There is a home in a newer development that is priced over $100,000 more than it was bought for 2 years ago and it does not appear that the owners did anything. When I first saw it, I thought it looked high for what you got (no deck, few scrubs, etc.) and when I checked the GIS I found what they paid for it. The market isn't dead but it has not gone up 15% in the last two years. Jay

It might have from 2004 - 2006. But from 2006 to 2007, it has most likely gone done!