Quote:
Originally Posted by RL Lemke
I am stating that this is accurate. How infrastructure is financed is not the province of the assessor. Just as city debt, often bond sales, doesn’t influence the assessment. Nor state or federal debt.
I consider the parcel specific bond debt, within a specific unit of apportioned development debt, to be just one of a number of ways a developer finances the improvements. Guided by state law, the use of debt before or after development is common, going by different names in different states. It is my experience that the sales price of the thousands of lots I’ve developed were not impacted by the development debt. National homebuilders paid the same.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by RL Lemke
The assessed value is a function of fair market value, regardless of how development is financed. Then, after the county assessor determines the total value county wide, the cost of government is apportioned.
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So, what one pays the county in Florida for a single family home is 85% of fair market value, less exemptions, times the total of the millage rates. Any bond balance tied to a parcel has no impact. The fair market value of a home in The Villages doesn’t appear to be influenced by bond balance. Home sales prices seem far more influenced by location, size, condition and decorating.
It appears that local counties are slow to reappraise home values, unlike other states I’ve worked in.
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By Florida law, as it is in most states, real estate is required to valued for Tax purposes, at market value. As a practical matter, in a given community, the actual assessment of a property could generally be only 50% of market value, and it wouldn't matter one iota. Assessments for tax purposes, are "relative", not absolute.
Saying the existing of a CDD Bond does change the value for tax purposes or saying it's not relevant in taxation, isn't exactly correct.
If there were (2) subdivisions, side by side, equal in all respects, but one had a CDD Bond attached and other did not, the "market value" would be higher for the lots w/o a CDD Bond.
When determining Market Value for any reason, all variables should be considered. 2 apparently identical lots, side by side. One has a view of the forrest behind it, the other has a partial view of the forrest, but also looks out at a billboard for an Adult Store. Are they worth the same? An Assessor might not react to the nuances, but an application for an abatement would likely establish that they don't have the same value ... same as if one had a CDD Bond attached and one didn't.
When comparing "Assessments" between one community/county and another, it's a fool's errand to use a "rule of thumb" that homes are assessed at 85% of Market Value. Again, Assessments are merely "relative" to other properties in that same tax area. The Tax Levy, divided by the total Valuation, generates the Tax Rate, which is then apportioned.