Fairfax Real Estate Assessments now available for 2012

[JD984]

Originally Posted by VRE332

It's only worth what one would pay for it. Be happy that your assesment is lowest as possible. I think the demise of Fairfax County is its tax rate.

I thought the property tax rate in Fairfax was lower than in Prince William and Loudoun, and slightly higher than in Arlington. Is that wrong, or are you suggesting it should be higher to fund more social services?

We are up 4.1%, even though McLean generally was down almost 1.0%. Knew we shouldn't have planted that garden.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by Fallout Zone

One question for everybody, how is the assessment related to what you think you could sell for? Mine is a heck of a lot lower than the comps in my neighborhood. I would probably list for 15-20% higher than my assessment, and maybe settle for 10-12% higher. Not that I'm complaining, I'm not selling and don't want to pay the extra tax.

Mine went up 1.3% from $503K to $510K. We recently moved and are waffling between selling it this spring or renting it out. I have met with my Realtor and am pretty confident we can get between $560 and $585, so I think about 10-15% higher here in Vienna, although each location is different. And since you're in Arlington County, it might be very different.

[michgc]

Originally Posted by VRE332

It's only worth what one would pay for it. Be happy that your assesment is lowest as possible. I think the demise of Fairfax County is its tax rate.

Seriously? I think Fairfax County tax rates are very fair. I just moved to North Carolina, and we're paying much more. And don't even compare Fairfax County to NJ, NY, or CT.

[djplourd]

Originally Posted by Fallout Zone

T

One question for everybody, how is the assessment related to what you think you could sell for?

The assessment is not the same as an appraisal so it's not unusual for the numbers to be different. Google "assessment versus appraisal" and you'll find some good explanations.

[VRE332]

Originally Posted by djplourd

The assessment is not the same as an appraisal so it's not unusual for the numbers to be different. Google "assessment versus appraisal" and you'll find some good explanations.

That's too advanced for them. The less educated home homeowner is overly concerned (nosey)with what's selling around them rather than taking the time to figure out the terminology, and raising the assesed value means to them they've become millionaires, and what they really should be doing is adding value to their career rather than checking what a fictious number, so that they can go buy a used luxury car where the value will drop right after they drive it off the lot.

[JD984]

Originally Posted by VRE332

That's too advanced for them. The less educated home homeowner is overly concerned (nosey)with what's selling around them rather than taking the time to figure out the terminology, and raising the assesed value means to them they've become millionaires, and what they really should be doing is adding value to their career rather than checking what a fictious number, so that they can go buy a used luxury car where the value will drop right after they drive it off the lot.

I think some people just want reassurance that they should be happy with what they think is a below-market assessment that results in a lower tax bill and that it won't come back to bite them if they decide to sell soon. Did you eat something that disagreed with you at lunch?

Fairfax is such a big county with so many properties to assess that I don't think assessments play too large a role in subsequent sales prices compared to other factors (namely, the ability of buyers, sellers and agents to point to what they believe are the most comparable recent transactions), but it wouldn't be unusual for a potential buyer to make noise about a recent assessment if that served his or her interests.

[Fallout Zone]

Originally Posted by djplourd

The assessment is not the same as an appraisal so it's not unusual for the numbers to be different. Google "assessment versus appraisal" and you'll find some good explanations.

Originally Posted by VRE332

That's too advanced for them. The less educated home homeowner is overly concerned (nosey)with what's selling around them rather than taking the time to figure out the terminology, and raising the assesed value means to them they've become millionaires, and what they really should be doing is adding value to their career rather than checking what a fictious number, so that they can go buy a used luxury car where the value will drop right after they drive it off the lot.

Odd response. I'm well aware of the difference between an assessment and an appraisal. I've had a professional appraisal for both purchase and refi in the last three years. I find that my assessment is far divorced from the appraised and market values, despite the decree that "The Constitution of Virginia requires real estate assessments to represent fair market value." Unless "fair market value" means something different to the county than it does to me, I assume that whatever algorithm they use to come up with these numbers is quite flawed. I was merely inquiring whether others are seeing the same thing.

[Fallout Zone]

Originally Posted by michgc

Mine went up 1.3% from $503K to $510K. We recently moved and are waffling between selling it this spring or renting it out. I have met with my Realtor and am pretty confident we can get between $560 and $585, so I think about 10-15% higher here in Vienna, although each location is different. And since you're in Arlington County, it might be very different.

Oops, never updated my profile. I'm also Fairfax Co.

[FCNova]

Originally Posted by Fallout Zone

Odd response. I'm well aware of the difference between an assessment and an appraisal. I've had a professional appraisal for both purchase and refi in the last three years. I find that my assessment is far divorced from the appraised and market values, despite the decree that "The Constitution of Virginia requires real estate assessments to represent fair market value." Unless "fair market value" means something different to the county than it does to me, I assume that whatever algorithm they use to come up with these numbers is quite flawed. I was merely inquiring whether others are seeing the same thing.

Yes, I've always observed this difference. They are supposed to use 'market value' for their assessed value, so you would think they'd align better. I think the problem is their algorithm to determine assessed value uses past sales to determine the market value, so it lags what true market value is. For instance a couple years ago during the crash I would see properties often sell for less than assessed value. Now it seems the opposite. Most of the sales seem to go for more than assessed.

Also they aren't really taking into account condition of the house, which has a definite affect on it's sales price.

[djplourd]

From the Fairfax County Real Estate Assessment FAQ:

What are the differences between sales prices, appraisals, and assessments?

Sales price is the actual price a buyer pays for a particular property.

An appraisal is a detailed single property valuation, and may be obtained any time throughout the year. Appraisals can have a variety of purposes, e.g. mortgage loan, sale, home equity loan, and estate valuations.

An assessment is a mass appraisal of property as of January 1 each year for tax purposes. Assessments are based on large numbers of sales that are analyzed to determine values for large groups of similar properties.

How do I know my assessment reflects fair market value?

Given the size, complexity and diversity of properties within Fairfax County, fair market value is deemed to be reasonably estimated if assessments at the neighborhood level generally average in the low-to-mid-90 percent range when compared to sale prices.


We built and moved in to our house in February 2011. Our assessed value is currently 86% of the appraised value so I feel fortunate. The 2012 assessed value is the same as 2011 since the county updated their data after the house had been built. I'm sure the assessment will go up next year.