By Times Staff
Assessments in District of Clearwater are going up an average of 11 per cent for single family homes, according to BC Assessment.
That means that an average home that was assessed at $214,000 last year will be assessed at $238,000 for the 2018 taxation year.
In District of Barriere, assessments are going up an average of three per cent, meaning a $233,000 average value home in 2017 will be assessed at $241,000 this year.
In rural areas of the Thompson region, single detached homes assessments are changing from -5 per cent to +25 per cent, as are residential strata units and commercial properties.
Light industrial assessments in rural areas of the region are changing from -5 per cent to +40 per cent.
“The majority of residential home owners within the region can expect a moderate increase, compared to last year’s assessment,” says deputy assessor Graham Held. “Some properties in our region were impacted by spring floods and summer wild fires. The local BC Assessment staff have identified most of these properties to ensure they receive an accurate assessment. It is still possible that some properties may still need to be reviewed, so owners may want to contact our office for more information if they have not already been contacted.”
In the next few days, owners of more than 74,000 properties throughout the Thompson region can expect to receive their 2018 assessment notices which reflect market value as of July 1, 2017.
Overall, the Thompson region’s total assessments increased from $25.87 billion in 2017 to $28.05 billion this year. A total of almost $388 million of the region’s updated assessments is from new construction, subdivisions and rezoning of properties.
“Property owners can find a lot of information on our website including answers to many assessment-related questions, but those who feel that their property assessment does not reflect market value as of July 1, 2017 or see incorrect information on their notice, should contact BC Assessment as indicated on their notice as soon as possible in January,” says Held.
“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 Jan 31, for an independent review by a Property Assessment Review Panel,” adds Held.
The Property Assessment Review Panels, independent of BC Assessment, are appointed annually by the Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing, and typically meet between Feb. 1 and Mar. 15 to hear formal complaints.