ST. PAUL - The Town of St. Paul will see a slight overall drop in assessed values of residential properties, according to the municipality's assessor.
When looking at the overall numbers, Bob Daudelin of Accurate Assessments explained the town will see a one per cent drop in residential assessments, accounting for a $6.7 million decrease in assessed values. Daudelin presented information to town council during the Committee of the Whole meeting, which was held online April 16.
On the plus side, non-residential assessments are up by about one per cent, which translates to about $1.4 million increase in assessed values. When expanding further on non-residential properties in town, Daudelin noted that one business in town had increased in value by about $1 million, which was the St. Paul Cornerstone Co-op, and one property decreased in value by about $1 million, which was the Hampton Inn by Hilton Hotel.
Linear and farmland assessments remain unchanged for the Town of St. Paul. Assessments are used by municipalities to determine its mill rate each year, which is part of the calculation in determining property taxes.
When showing a five-year comparison, it was noted that overtime property values have been decreasing in town.
Daudelin broke down the numbers further, stating that 84 per cent of homeowners will see a decrease in assessment of less than $10,000. While properties are assessed in mass on an annual basis, residential properties in the Town of St. Paul are physically reinspected every four years. The town is sectioned off into quadrants. In 2020, the southeast portion of town will be reinspected.
Daudelin said there will be a lot less door knocking this year, with more use of technology to physically assess homes. Residents will be contacted by phone or email if more information is required.
The same can be said for open houses that are typically held each year, allowing residents to ask questions.
"This year is going to be a little bit different," said Daudelin. Due to social distancing measures in place, open houses likely won't be held, but he affirmed his office will be available to answer questions via phone and email.
Looking ahead to 2020 assessment values, Daudelin said that based on the first three months of the year, it looks like there will be another drop in residential assessments for the town. When looking to the period from March to July, Daudelin says it's hard to predict what will happen, but he doesn't anticipate many people will be selling or buying homes in that period.
Predictions for non-residential assessments are unknown at this point, and are harder to predict given the current economic situation and challenges brought on by COVID-19.
"That is going to be really interesting," said Daudelin, adding, he honestly could not give any insight on how things may look for 2020.
Daudelin said the company continues to work to build trust with residents when gathering information, and said information collected is confidential and specifics aren't even shared with municipalities.
Town of St. Paul CAO Kim Heyman asked Daudelin if St. Paul's situation is consistent with other municipalities the same size. Daudelin noted it's hard to compare communities, and "every municipality is unique." But, he finds a lot of similarities between the towns of St. Paul and Westlock, and they've had relatively the same real estate reaction.
He noted that comparing St. Paul to a nearby community such as Bonnyville isn't useful, since there are very different "driving forces" in each of the communities.
Mayor Maureen Miller thanked Daudelin for his presentation and noted it was "food for thought" as town council moves ahead with the budget.
