Gonzales, LA

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Tax Assessment Appeal Home Appraisals Offered For Pelican Point Gonzales Louisiana Ascension Parish

This morning, 11/15/08, The Advocate Newspaper is reporting on a homeowner protest of excessive property tax assessments. To read the full article, see: Pelican Point Assessments Protested

Above - Former Parish President, Ronnie Hughes, discusses his unfair tax assessment @ $140/sq. ft.

A Summary of the article is that the current Ascension Parish Tax Assessor, Rene Mire Michel, was mandated by the State of Louisiana to reassess all property in the Parish between 2006 and 2007 based on current sales - when the Pelican Point housing market was "HOT". The method used for this reassment was "Uniform Mass Appraisal", which is a legally acceptable option for the assessor. The Mass Appraisal technique is one which attempts to lump all properties in an area or subdivision as the same and assess them with on the same dollar per sq. ft. figure. According to Mr. Hughes, that figure was $140/sf applied to homes in The Greens section of Pelican Point. According to Mr. Hughes, this wouldn't make logical sense because some homes are located with lake views, some are not, with lot prices from $39K up to $100K. Some homes have higher quality within the 6 different floor plans within The Greens. To the credit of the assessor, she says that the Louisiana Tax Commission appraisers bumped the assessment to $145/sf and she lowered them to $140/sf.

**********However, the Pelican Point housing market has slowed drastically in the past 12 to 18 months. As of this morning, there are 55 homes on the market in Pelican Point, per multiple online sources. As with many upscale subdivision in our market, marketing time periods have increased. In other words, the Pelican Point market is not as "HOT" as it was when homes were reassessed in this "Mass Appraisal". This appraiser is not saying that home values have plummetted or declined significantly, but that it's taking longer to sell a home in Pelican Point. Pelican Point remains the "Premier" residential development to live in in Ascension Parish. **************

My Commentary: One can certainly understand how homeowners, under the Mass Appraisal method, may have been received excessive home assessments and may be paying too much in 2008 property taxes. One can certainly understand how unfair the Mass Appraisal method would be applied in Pelican Point Golf Community where home values range from $210K up to $670K. How can any professional valuation expert apply mass appraisal techniques to a variance of $460,000 between the low sales price and high sales price without mis-representing true value? In my opinion and experience, they probably can not. Based on my experience appraising homes in Pelican Point Golf Community, some homes are located on just the golf course, some on a superior golf course and lake views. Some homes are custom built with many extras. I think you see my point here.

If you believe that your Northern Ascension Parish home was over-assessed and you're paying too much in Ascension Parish Property Taxes, I would like to help!

I have over 17 years Experience in Real Estate Home Valuations, have appraised numerous homes in Pelican Point over the years and can assist you with your Tax Assessment Appeal.

E-Mail me so we can get your property taxes Lowered.

I cover Northern Ascension Parish, Western Livingston Parish, East Baton Rouge Parish and West Baton Parish.

Bill Cobb, CREA
P.O. Box 40515, Baton Rouge, LA 70835
225-293-1500 (Office)
1-888-678-3544 (Toll-Free Phone)
1-866-663-6065 (Toll-Free Fax)
225-953-0638 (Mobile)
http://www.getfastvalue.com (Website)
fastvalue2@cox.net (Email)

Accurate Valuations Group Appraiser, William D. Cobb, has operated as a home appraiser for 17 years now primarily in the Greater Baton Rouge, Louisiana market. For more information on Accurate Valuations Home Appraisal Group, visit: http://www.getfastvalue.com

http://appraisersinascension.info/ - Gonzales Louisiana Real Estate: Housing Market Direction For Old Dutchtown ?

Old Dutchtown Market Direction: Up or Down? I recently completed a home appraisal On Babin Mill Ave in Old Dutchtown Subdivision and made this discovery below. The results below have combined both sections of Old Dutchtown. There are 2 sections within Old Dutchtown - the 1st and 2nd filings (older section), with 1-3 year old homes and the 3rd filing (newer section) which has new homes. There is a difference in the prices of lots and homes in the older versus newer section. Currently, in older section, there are 6 active listings from $255,900 to $299,900. Currently, in newer section, there are 9 active listings from $247,900 to $298,500.

Solds In Old Dutchtown from 9/16/06 to 9/16/07 reveal:
Average Sales Price: $270,957
Average Sold Price Per Sq. Ft.: $130.68/sf
Median Sold Price: $265,420
Low Sales Price: $215,300
High Sales Price: $343,083
# of Sales: 66
Average # of Days On Market: 82 Days On Market

Solds In Old Dutchtown from 9/16/07 to 9/16/08 reveal:
Average Sales Price: $277,726
Average Sold Price Per Sq. Ft.: $133.68/sf
Median Sold Price: $274,850
Low Sales Price: $250,000
High Sales Price: $334,266
Average # of Days On Market: 128 Days On Market
# of Sales: 30

Therefore, based on the median sale price barometer (the barometer used by the NAR National Association of Realtors) within Old Dutchtown, the market direction appears to be increasing, from $265,420 to $274,850. This increase is mostly attributable to the higher prices in the newer sections of Old Dutchtown. The average sales price has increased by +$6,769 and average sold price per sq. ft. +$3.00/sf. This market had slowed from 66 sales in the first period to 30 sales in the second period, which may have more to do with the current "credit crunch" than the local market itself.

Author's Bio:

Bill Cobb, CREA, is Greater Baton Rouge's favorite and most reputable home appraiser frequently called upon by banks, homeowners, and savvy real estate investors to assess property values. A home appraiser with 16 years experience, Bill Cobb brings a wealth of knowledge to the table as a home appraiser.

Bill's company, Accurate Valuations Home Appraisal Group, serves Greater Baton Rouge (East Baton Rouge Parish, West Baton Rouge Parish, Western Livingston Parish and Northern Ascension Parish).

Contact Bill Cobb and Accurate Valuations Home Appraisal Group for your next home appraisal:

Office: 225-293-1500

Fax: 1-866-663-6065

fastvalue2@cox.net

http://ascensionparishfhaappraisers.com/

Ascension Parish FHA Appraiser, William D. Cobb, Reports On Pelican Point Golf Community

An MLS CMA of this Subdivision from 04/10/2007 to 04/13/2008 reveals:
The Average Sales Price: $345,416
The Average Sold Price Per Sq. Ft.: $130.65/sf
The Median Sold Price: $335,000
Low Sales Price: $232,500
High Sales Price: $523,000
Average # of Days On Market: 123 Days On Market
# of Sales: 43
Listing Price To Sales Price Ratio Has Been: 97.31%

Is there an "Over-Supply" of housing within Pelican Point? It appears so. According to MLS, there are currently 70 listings from $189,000 up to $1,500,000. Also, if one drives through Pelican Point, they see more than a few FSBO signs in the yards. As of 4/13/08, there were 13 listings in http://www.fsbobr.com/. This means that there is currently 83 listings in Pelican Point Golf Community, almost double the amount of homes that sold in the previous 12 month marketing period. This would appear to indicate an over-supply of housing for sale in Pelican Point.

This information was provided with the permission of the Greater Baton Rouge Board of Realtors.

Ascension Parish Real Estate Appraisers