Creston area property owners should not expect dramatic changes in the 2016 property assessments they should receive in the mail this week.
“Most homeowners within the region can expect an increase, compared to last year’s assessments,” according to Ramaish Shah, the region’s deputy assessor for BC Assessment. They “will see modest increases depending on their location.”
The owner of a home within Town of Creston boundaries valued in 2015 at $217,000 could see it rise to $225,000 this year, an increase of less than four per cent.
Property assessments are used by municipal, regional and provincial governments as the base for taxation rates. If a property value rises at the average rate, tax increases will likely be modest. Creston town council, for instance, has directed its staff to keep the overall budget increase the same as the rise in the cost of living.
Single-family residences — homes and condominiums — are typically rising by zero to 10 per cent, Shah said. Commercial and light industrial properties are changing by plus or minus five per cent.
Changes in property assessments reflect movement in the local real estate market and can vary greatly from property to property. To estimate a property’s market value, BC Assessment’s appraisers analyze current sales in the area, as well as considering other characteristics such as size, age, quality, condition, view and location.
The total Kootenay Columbia assessment roll rose from $36.97 billion to $37.89 billion this year. This value reflects a change due to market movement, as well as $361 million in growth to due subdivisions, rezoning and new construction. The Kootenay Columbia region includes the southeast portion of the province from Columbia to Grand Forks and from Trail to Golden.
Scott Veitch, owner of Century 21 Veitch Realty and former president of the Real Estate Council of British Columbia, said on Monday that Creston is largely unaffected by continuing property value increases in the Lower Mainland. Even the recent small rise in interest rates has not really affected the Creston Valley market, he said.
“You hear a lot about the Lower Mainland increases being a bubble,” he said. “I think that’s mostly fear-mongering — the increases have been happening for a long time.”
“Our local economy is too soft to spur dramatic increases in sales prices,” Veitch said. “In Creston we just sort of humble along — we don’t really go too high and we don’t really go too low. We’re a little oasis of uniqueness.”
Veitch said that the local real estate market has seen some recent shifts.
“I seem to see more younger families, and we may be seeing more Americans due to the change in dollar values. Still, the changes are not dramatic.”
Demand for residential properties has stayed neutral, Veitch said, but the same can’t be said for rural properties.
“Farm sales here set records last year,” he said. “We have a lineup for buyers for orchards and small farms.”
Property owners who want to research the value of their property and others throughout the province can get all the information they want for free, by registering at bcassessment.ca.
“Those who feel that their property assessment does not reflect market value as of July 1, 2015, or see incorrect information on their notice, should contact BC Assessment as indicated on their notice as soon as possible in January,” Shah said. “If a property owner is still concerned about their assessment after speaking to one of our appraisers, they may submit a notice of complaint (appeal) by Feb. 1, for an independent review by a property assessment review panel.”
Property assessment review panels, independent of BC Assessment, are appointed annually by the provincial government and typically meet between Feb. 1 and March 15 to hear formal complaints.