Revaluation

Property Revaluation

The main purpose of property revaluation is to correct inequities in the tax burden that have developed since the last revaluation.

Revaluation is a revenue neutral process.  This means that a municipality’s tax levy is not changed by the revaluation, thus the total amount of taxes the Town will need to collect will be about the same, regardless of whether or not a revaluation takes place.  What does change in a revaluation is the amount of taxes individual taxpayers pay.  In July following a revaluation, the first tax payments under the new values will be due.

In accordance with Connecticut General Statutes, the Town must conduct a revaluation every five years.  Revaluation is a long process, one that takes almost two years to complete between the start of the process and the payment of the first tax bills after the revaluation.

The Town of Easton last completed a revaluation for the Grand List of October 1, 2021.  The next town wide physical revaluation will be conducted for the October 1, 2026 Grand List.

Background

This process began in 2020 when the Town of Easton undertook a Request for Proposal in order to solicit bids from state certified revaluation firms.  The bidder selected in this process was Municipal Valuation Services a Fairfield based company.  Municipal Valuation Services, is a subsidiary of Kerin & Fazio LLC who have been providing valuation services to municipalities for more than 25 years.

Revaluation Phases

There are five major phases to a municipal revaluation: Data Collection, Market Analysis, Valuation, Field Review, and Informal and Formal Appeal Hearings.  During these phases many tasks will be implemented in order to successfully complete the revaluation.

Phase 1 – Data Collection

Easton’s 2021 revaluation was an “update” type of revaluation.  This means that we will NOT be visiting all properties in town, this is only required once every 10 years and was completed during the 2016 revaluation.  Typically, during this type of revaluation on properties that were sold would be visited to verify the characteristics of the home, due to the COVID-19 pandemic we will be using alternative methods which may included sales questionnaires and or review of publicly available data online. 

Phase 2 – Market Analysis

A variety of resources are used to analyze the real estate market.  Appraisal Personnel will analyze property sales taking place over a two-and-a-half-year period to determine which market factors influence property values.  Once all the data is collected and reviewed for accuracy, appraisers will determine land values and set Neighborhoods, which rate the valuation levels of locations throughout the Town as determined by actual market activity.

Phase 3 – Valuation

Valuation is done using three recognized appraisal methods: the Cost Approach, the Income Approach and the Sales Comparison Approach.  During this phase, individual characteristics of buildings are analyzed using information gathered in both phase 1 and 2.  Each property is compared to other comparable properties with similar characteristics.  Then the contributory market value of the improvements is added to the previously determined land values.  This value is the final estimate for each parcel of property, building and land.

Phase 4 – Field Review

Field Review is the method of checking and re-checking both the values that have been determined and the data that has been collected.  During this review, properties are viewed in the field by experienced appraisers who double-check uniformity and accuracy of information.

Phase 5 – Informal and Formal Appeal Hearings

Once the data collection, market analysis, valuation, and field review phases of this revaluation are completed notices of your new assessment and prior assessed value will be mailed.  At this time, anyone with questions concerning the revaluation process, the data collected on their property or their valuation will have an opportunity to meet with a member of Municipal Valuation’s staff to discuss their property.

After the initial notice of their new assessment, taxpayers will be invited to participate in an informal hearing with a Municipal Valuation staff member if they wish to contest their new assessment.  The informal hearing is the first step in the appeal process if the property owner feels their assessment is inaccurate.  The informal hearings will take place in November 2021.  A follow-up notice will be mailed to owners who participate in an informal hearing, showing any change to the assessment.

Any property that has an informal hearing or any property were they value has been changed since the first notice will receive another assessment notice in early January 2022.  This notice will provide details on how to appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals, which is a formal appeal appeals process undertaken annually by state statute.  As with the informal hearings, owners who wish to formally appeal their assessment will have the opportunity to do so at Board of Assessment Appeal hearings in March.  Appeal applications must be received by February 18, 2022.

After all five phases are completed, all data, files, records, etc. used in the revaluation are then turned over to the Assessor’s Office.  This will allow the Town to maintain the data collected and values determined during the revaluation on a continual basis.

 

Revaluation – Frequently Asked Questions – Click HERE