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Home My WebLink AboutM111412�1 • ok EQU44�� O Dave Garing Mike Smith Henry Krist 1820 Jefferson Street P.O. Box 1220 Port Townsend, WA 98368 Dave Daring Henry Krist MINUTES November 14, 2012 Michael Smith Chairman Vice - Chairman Member Chairman Dave Garing called the meeting to order at 10:00 a.m. in the presence of Member Henry Krist. Vice - Chairman Michael Smith was absent. ASSESSOR'S CERTIFICATE OF NEW CONSTRUCTION VALUE The Board reviewed the Assessor's Certificate of New Construction Value. Member Krist moved to accept the Assessor's Certificate of New Construction Value for 2012 in the amount of $26,681,435. Chairman Garing seconded the motion. The motion carried. HEARINGS Gerald Kress & Susan Auer BOE: 12 -44 -R PN: 931 402 305 604 12th Street Juneau, AK 99801 Gerald Kress and Susan Auer were not present. Appraiser John Pray represented the Assessor's Office and was sworn in by Chairman Garing. Under appeal is the land and improvement value of property located AT 404 Redwood Street, Port Townsend. Currently, the property is assessed at $312,890 ($62,500 for the land and $250,390 for the improvements). The appellants estimate the value is $247,500 ($62,500 for the land and $185,000 for the improvements). On the petition form the appellants wrote the following reason for appealing the valuation of their parcel: "Downturn of the market since first assessed. Building incomplete. Only painted plywood flooring throughout including stairs interior and exterior. Only one bedroom two baths. Second story just sheet rocked and painted. Exterior siding incomplete. Porch incomplete." Phone (360)385 -9100 Fax (360)385 -9382 jeffboccoaco.jefferson.wa.us Board of Equalization Minutes — November 14, 2012 Page: 2 Appraiser Pray stated the appellants are appealing their improvement value only. The assessment date is January 1, 2009. However, the appellants' improvements were valued as new construction as of July, 2010. Appraiser Pray has the appellants' home valued at 85% complete even though the City of Port Townsend issued a certificate of occupancy in November, 2009. The Assessor's Office uses the Marshal and Swift handbook to determine the percentage of completion. He provided four comparable property sales that occurred in 2008 and 2012. Chairman Garing stated that the number of bedrooms and bathrooms have been reduced by one and asked how that impacts the improvement value. Appraiser Pray replied that improvements are assigned a quality rating which determines the dollar amount per square foot. If there are fewer bathrooms /bedrooms, then a lower quality rating is assigned. Based on the value listed on the permit application and the square footage of the home, he feels the current value is correct. Hearing no further testimony, Chairman Garing closed the hearing. The Board will make a determination at a later date. George & Agnes Barker Trust BOE: 12 -45 -LO PN: 921 043 021 Robert McIntosh 12 -46 -R 921 051034 1740 Aurora Avenue, #301 12 -47 -R 921051 035 Seattle, WA 98109 Robert McIntosh was present on behalf of the George and Agnes Barker Trust. Appraiser John Pray represented the Assessor's Office. After explaining the hearing process Chairman Garing swore in both parties. Under appeal are three parcels of property located on Marrowstone Island, Nordland. Following is the current assessment and the appellant's estimate of value for the parcels under appeal: Parcel No. Current Assessed Value Appellant's Estimate of Value 921 043 021 $394,300 (Land Only) $330,000 (Land Only) 921 051 034 $823,385 ($784,645 land/$38,740 imps) $538,740 ($500,000 land/$38,740 imps) 921 051 035 $683,905 ($610,255 land/$73,650 imps) $548,650 ($475,000 land/$73,650 imps) The appellant stated the properties under appeal have been in their family for 99 years and in the George and Agnes Barker Trust for 25 years. Originally, the family owned 17 acres and currently owns 11 acres. There are no reserves in the trust to pay the taxes on the property. In the past, the property taxes have been approximately $3,000 per year and have been paid from income from harvesting shellfish off the tidelands. Currently, the property taxes are over $17,000 and the income from harvesting shellfish is $500. The trust has sold six acres to help pay the property taxes. They have recently gone through a boundary line adjustment to reduce the amount of waterfront to the two improved parcels. There has been a 24% increase in the value between 2011 -2012. Over a year ago the appellants listed the bare land parcel for sale for $329,000. There have been two parties who expressed interest in the property, but they have yet to receive an offer. Their Real Estate agent recommended they reduce the listing price to Board of Equalization Minutes — November 14, 2012 Page: 3 under $300,000 if they want it to sell. The other two parcels have improvements, however, only the value of the land is being contested. Chairman Garing asked how many feet of waterfront the bare land consists of? The appellant responded that the bare land parcel consists of 1.2 acres and has 329 feet of waterfront. Appraiser Pray replied that the Assessor's records show the bare land parcel has 265 feet of waterfront. The appellant stated they recently conducted a boundary line adjustment which increased the amount of waterfront footage of the bare land only parcel and will hopefully increase the sale value. Appraiser Pray stated that the appellant's property was assessed as of January 1, 2011. Marrowstone Island property values decreased on average 20 % -30 %. The appellant's property value increased from the 2011 assessed value due to the boundary line adjustment where one parcel was divided into three parcels. Parcel # 921 043 021 The Assessor's representative cited four comparable property sales, three of which are located near the appellant's property on Marrowstone Island. Comparable property 41 sold in January 2011 for $750,000 and includes 400 feet of waterfront and 6.43 acres. Comparable property #2 sold in November 2009 for $354,000 and includes 150 feet of waterfront and 1.18. Comparable property #3 sold in October 2012 for $590,000 and includes 419 feet of waterfront and 8.74 acres. Comparable property 44 sold in October 2010 for $765,000 and has 85 feet of waterfront and .71 acres with a 2,000 square foot home and two garages. As of January 1, 2011, the Assessor valued the appellant's land at $394,300. The medium bank rate of $2,350 per waterfront foot was applied with a negative 39% adjustment for excess front footage. Tidelands were valued at $20 per front foot with a negative 14% adjustment. He also applied a negative 35% adjustment for depth and shape. The appellant clarified that in the past the property was two separate parcels. At some point the County merged those two parcels into one without their approval. They had to hire an attorney to ensure the County corrected the error. Appraiser Pray stated the recent boundary line adjustment negated a previously applied negative adjustment for excess waterfront footage. Therefore, the value increased. Parcel #921051034 The Assessor valued the improvements of this parcel as of January 1, 2011 at $38,740 with the land assessed at $784,645 for a total valuation of $823,385. The low bank rate of $2,500 per waterfront foot was applied with a negative 46% adjustment for excess front footage. Tidelands were valued at $20 per front foot with a negative 10% adjustment. He used the same comparable property sales listed above. Board of Equalization Minutes —November 14, 2012 Page: 4 Chairman Gating asked the Assessor's representative why he used a comparable property sale that occurred in Port Ludlow? Appraiser Pray replied that he needed to expand his search to find a sale that included low bank waterfront. Chairman Garing asked what guidelines are used by the Assessor's Office to determine the different levels of bank elevation (high, medium, low). Appraiser Pray responded that there is not a set rule or guideline. He estimates that 0 -10 feet is low bank; 10 -30 feet is medium; and 30+ is high bank. Parcel # 921 051 035 The Assessor valued the improvements as of January 1, 2011 at $73,650 with the land assessed at $610,255 for a total valuation of $683,905. The low bank rate of $2,500 per waterfront foot was applied with a negative 46% adjustment for excess front footage. Tidelands were valued at $20 per front foot with a negative 6% adjustment. He used the same comparable property sales listed above. The appellant stated he feels the comparable property sale located in Port Ludlow and the recent sale in October 2012 should not be taken into consideration. Appraiser Pray responded that the Port Ludlow sale has a waterfront foot rate of $3,000 which is greater than the rate used for the appellant's property. The recent October 2012 sale shows that values are correct. Hearing no further testimony, Chairman Gazing closed the hearing. The Board will make a determination at a later date. Karl & Sandra Jacobsen BOE: 12 -58 -LO PN: 977100 802 4372 South Discovery Road 12 -59 -LO 977100 811 Port Townsend, WA 98368 Karl Jacobsen was present. Appraiser Charley Hough represented the Assessor's Office. After explaining the hearing process Chairman Gating swore in both parties. Under appeal are two bare land parcels located on Cape George Road, Port Townsend. Following is the current assessment and the appellant's estimate of value for the parcels under appeal: Parcel No. Current Assessed Value Appellant's Estimate of Value 977 100 802 $17,500 (Land Only) $12,000 (Land Only) 977 100 811 $35,000 (Land Only) $12,000 (Land Only) The appellant stated he purchased these two lots from a family member in 2006 for $10,000 each. The lots Board of Equalization Minutes — November 14, 2012 Page: 5 have no view, noise from road traffic and are overgrown with brush. Neither parcel have access to a community septic and the cost to install a required mound system would be approximately $20,000 each. Parcel #977 100 802 The appellant stated in order to develop this lot it would require access from Cape George Road resulting in a very steep driveway and limit the amount of area required to build a home and /or install a septic system. Parcel #977 100 811 The appellant testified that this parcel has a Puget Sound Energy underground power vault located on the property. New regulations require a 20 foot buffer on all sides of the vault which limit the building area. The appellant feels the comparable property sales provided by the Assessor's Office are not comparable because they are improved properties. He provided the Assessor's assessment of six lots located in Ocean Grove that he feels are comparable to his lots. Chairman Garing asked if the six lots provided by the appellant are currently listed for sale. The appellant replied no. He obtained the assessment information from the Assessor's webpage on lots that he feels are comparable to his lots. Appraiser Hough stated that he received information from the Ocean Grove Association Manager that shows some lots are coded incorrectly. The Public Utility District (PUD) #1 has an off -site septic system that only allows a certain number of hookups. For example, if a person is allowed to build a three bedroom home on their lot and they only build a two bedroom home, then they are allowed to sell the allowance for the remaining bedroom. The assessment date of the property under appeal is January 1, 2012. The following comparable property sales were reviewed: Comparable Property Sale 41 Parcel No.: 977 100 810 Location: Ocean Grove Estates #2, Block 8 Lot 46 Value: $293,355 Sale Date: November, 2011 Sale Price: $395,000 Comparable Property Sale #2 Parcel No.: 977 100 720 Location: Ocean Grove Estates #2, Block 7 Lot 12 Value: $206,870 Sale Date: March, 2011 Sale Price: $310,000 Appraiser Hough also provided a packet of information showing the background documentation for the appellant's comparable properties. Appellant's comparable property #1 has a base rate of $28,000 but received a negative 75% adjustment for difficult topography. Appellant's comparable properties 42, #3, #4, Board of Equalization Minutes — November 14, 2012 Page: 6 and 45 have a base rate of $28,000 but received a negative 50% adjustment because they are valued as excess adjoining lots, as is the appellants' property. The PUD #1 system is allowed only a certain number of bedrooms and is reassessed periodically. When he received information that some lots were coded incorrectly, Appraiser Hough re -coded the area to ensure uniformity. Both parcels currently have water access. However, they have no bedrooms. Chairman Garing asked if the bedroom designation increases or decreases the value? Appraiser Hough responded the value increases if a parcel is allowed to hook up to the PUD 41 system. When asked about the view of the parcels, Appraiser Hough explained that the appellant's parcels are coded as property with a good water view. The appellant presented photos showing the subject properties do not currently have a good water view. Appraiser Hough acknowledged the code should be changed to reflect a territorial view. The appellant stated he feels the fair and equitable value would be the 2004 value of $15,000 each. Hearing no further testimony, Chairman Garing closed the hearing. The Board will make a determination at a later date. NOTICE OF ADJOURNMENT: Member Krist moved to adjourn the meeting at 12:20 p.m. Chairman Garing seconded the motion. The motion carried. ATT S c eshe R. Locke, Clerk 4of the Board JEFFERSON COUNTY BOARD OF QUALIZ, Dave Garin' r Mike Smith, Vice'C-h Henry Krist, Member