Current HomeAwareness Info & Tips:
Yes, it's PROPERTY TAX ASSESSMENT time again...If you own property in the borough, then you've likely recently recieved a notice of proposed 2007 property tax assessment values. It is very important to review this document in a timely manner, becuase the deadline to inquire and/or challenge these figures is limited! Take a close look at the deadlines included on the form for specifics. A few items to consider when reviewing your annual tax notice: 1) Remember that the tax assessor is supposed to define the taxable value at 100% of market value (i.e. what it/similar properties are currently selling for). A lot of folks think that if their taxable value has gone up by a large amount, that they can get it reduced just by force of will--but the fact of the matter is no matter how much it has gone up...if it is still *within the range of reasonable market value* you're not going to get very far challenging it. Keep in mind that not every home is physically inspected each and every year, as a result many properties may be valued at somewhat LESS than actual value during some years, so some years may jump more than others... 2) So, you think you have a good case for arguing that your home is worth less than the assessment? If so, remember that the tax assessors lives are absolute hell during this time of year, and a little politeness goes a long way. Also realize that you will likely be asked to provide hard data to support your argument of lower value and/or will likely be required to allow the assessor a visit to your home (including the inside--which they often are not able to see!). Hard data may be more difficult to get than you think. A good source is the buyer's representative who helped you recently purchase the home--a good customer service oriented Realtor should be able to research & provide some basic sales data for homes similar to yours within a few business days with a modest amount of effort. Finally, if you think values are close, but you've done a large amount of interior remodeling and/or upgrades that the tax assesor may not be aware of, then you could end up shooting yourself in the foot by challenging values--as the result could be that the tax assessment goes up even further once they discover all of the previously unknown extras you've added! 3) Since there are currently no requirements to report the final actual sales price to the tax assessors office (everybody cheer for privacy in the Last Frontier!) and since most informed people throw away the tax assesors request for sales information you recieve a few weeks after buying or selling property...the attentive tax assessor will check to see if a property has recently sold and will often take a look at the publically available amount of the original *loan* to help them determine value. So you folks that chose to finance 100% of the cost of your home may have made it easier for the tax assessor to narrow in on the actual sales price! For those of you who may have borrowed MORE than the value of your home (for example a purchase + home improvement loan combined into one package deal), be especially careful to make sure the assesor is aware of this. 4) Do you currently live in the property for which you've received a notice? If so, then make sure you pay attention to the "Homestead Exemption" portion of the assessmen notice. What is the exemption? Essentially its a discount on the taxes you pay on your home because you live there. In the past its been $10,000 off of the "assessed value" (or a max of 10% off if your home's value was exceptionally modest), but recent changes have switched that to up to $20,000 off. For Example: If you live in an area where the tax rate is 19 mils (meaning you are taxed $19.00 per $1000 of your home's assessed value) then you could save up to $380 this year! There are also deadlines on when you can register for this exemption, so be aware. Typically if you have already registered for an exemption, it will carry forward from year to year--but it never hurts to check to verify the proper exemption is still in place. 5) Are one of the property owner's over 65, a disabled vet, or belong to another specialty group? If so, then you may be entitled to a partial or total property tax exemption! For more information, you'll need to contact the Borough offices. As with everything else...there are also deadlines for applying for these special exemptions, so don't miss them, or your next opportunity will be the NEXT tax year instead of this one! In all cases with exemptions, you need to inform the borough offices when you move-out of a property, because that will change your exemption privileges. Previous HomeAwareness Topics:
Little-Known Limitations of using a VA loan to purchase a home: This information is designed specificially designed for those buyers who plan to use a VA loan to purchase a home in our market. This particular topic is not going to be a very popular one I expect, with some VA buyers or with some real estate professionals...however it is something that should be known so that both the public and real estate professionals can make prudent, informed decisions.According to current federal VA guidelines (this section was most recently changed/updated in 1995)….veterans are *prohibited* from paying a buyer’s realtor/representative any fee when purchasing a home—even if they feel they want to or would benefit from it (see quote below).
Per a large lender's VA Regs guide:
"While the use of "buyer" brokers is not precluded, veteran purchasers may not, under any circumstances, be charged a brokerage fee or commission in connection with the services of such individuals. Since information on property available for purchase and financing options is widely available to the public from a variety of coures, VA does not believe that preventing the veteran from paying buyer-broker fees will harm the veteran"
Now take a quick look at the fact that our local well-established low-inventory market often has highly varied amounts of compensation being offered by the seller and/or seller's realtor to a buyer’s representative we have the following scenario: Compensation being offered by sellers of MLS-listings (or private sellers/FSBOs) are often not adequate to cover different individual buyer’s realtor fees (these services & fees are openly negotiable and differ with each Realtor/Brokerage) and many buyers knowingly and willingly step up at the time of hiring to ensure their skilled real estate professional is properly compensated so that they have the widest range of business & customer service available to them. Combine those two situations and what do you get? The awkward (at best) possibilities of:
A) Each individual REALTOR or their supervising Broker forced to determine if their business can support doing the same high-quality work for inadequate or in some rare cases, literally no compensation, or
B) A real estate professional or brokerage required to choose whether or not to provide a more limited level of service (only with their buyer-client's prior informed consent of course), which could easily result in the VA buyers not having access to specialty services which may be crucial to maximize their home choices ; or
C) A real estate professional forced to decide whether or not to take on VA-loan buyers as clients at all... What could this mean for the VA-buyer?
A) Well, it might have no impact at all. How? Well, if a real estate professional or the buyer, or both aren't aware of this Federal VA Guideline, then it is possible that there might be no difference at all. You can bet that if this news is realized or discovered by either party in the middle, or even at the end of a home search/evaluation/negotiation or purchase... it could create a lot of disappointment and potentiall ill-will.
B) It could mean that a highly skilled & experienced Realtor won't be able to offer the same variety of services to a VA-buyer, simply because some of their business offerings are charged on a fee-for-service basis (take contract consulting, for sale by owner property searches or an independent opinion of value for a private purchase for example).
C) Could it also result in VA-buyers having less access, period, to the most experienced & skilled Realtor's at all? Possibly. Why? Well if you are a professional (in any business) and you have a well-respected established business and are fortunate enough to have more business than you can reasonably accept, then of course the most efficient business process would be to choose those customers or clients which present the highest % to successfully complete a transaction, right? I think that's a reasonable assumption. So, what happens to those clients or customers that present a business-person with the possibility, even the probability that after weeks or months, a realtor might find themself having worked diligently on behalf of their buyer to find the best possible home, only to discover that the seller or representative of that home denies the realtor adequate compensation? My guess is that they would not be considered choice clients...Even Alaska State law says that real estate licensees are not required to work without compensation, but it doesn’t say anything about the adequacy of that compensation. How confident would you be in an employee or counselor's objectivity if they were willing to work for less than others pay them or even for free?
Don’t like what the VA is doing to limit your freedom of choice in this matter?
If so, you are strongly encouraged to contact your local VA or State Armed Services representative and make your feelings known.
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Water Holding Tank Tips Surely you've wondered what happens if you were to run out of water... The results of this can range from simple annoyance, to major damages--with the most common result being a burnt-out pump--not a cheap fix. While not an answer for every situation, here are some tips to help minimize the potential for damage if you do run out of water, as well as some other issues to be aware of in relation to living with water holding tanks. For more information on these ideas, call your favorite skilled plumber. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure... 1) For those with Truly Type "A" tendencies (that's me!) install a water meter. For most, this will require the help of a plumber. Meters range in price AND accuracy, so make sure you're not getting one that only "rolls over" once every 100 gallons...unless that's exactly what you want. Digital ones are nifty, because like a car odometer, you can have the "total" and a "reset" you can hit when your tank is filled. This way, all you have to do is press a button to see what your consumption is, and know when the time is approaching for a water delivery. (It can also help you identify usage patterns if you're trying to conserve.
2) Install a low-pressure cut-out switch for your pump. This is a device that will turn off the electricity to your pump under certain circumstances (like running out of water) so that you don't damage or destroy (burnout) your pump. Again, this is something most folks will likely want help from a plumber to place & install. So you can once again turn your dishwasher on and leave the house without fear!
3) If looking to install/re-install a buried water holding tank, consider metal & plastic. With plastic, especially shop carefully, because some are better designed than others to stand up under the dirt we plow on top of them for insulation. Also, before you consider installing one of the fill/vent tubes in an underground "L" formation (the purpose of this is so that both of your tubes stick up right next to each other, instead of 5 feet apart, making for fewer obstacles/sight nuisances), know that this section of pipe can settle slightly during install or over time, and water can sit, and *freeze* in the low spot of this underground horizontal run of pipe...if this freezes shut, then you effectively have NO venting for when the tank is filled, which can be bad for a few reasons.
4) If your tank is installed inside your home or crawlspace, then you need to know whether or not your tank vents outside the structure or inside somewhere. You also need to be careful if you have automatic delivery services because this water is delivered under high pressure and only the Delivery Man is available to judge when to shut off the water...Soooo, if your tank vents to the inside, then water could spew out the vent pipe, drenching whatever is nearby, before the Delivery Man hears or sees any signs that tell him it's time to shut the water off. That delays of a few seconds OR LONGER is enough to dump a LOT of water where it could cause a lot of annoyance or even damage. Some say that tanks should never be vented inside...but many are, so if your tank vents inside, then it is a good idea to take the following precautions:
a) Consider taking your tank off of "automatic" delivery... instead:
b) For metal tanks, figure out a system of measuring your water level. For plastic tanks, mark on your tank the level at which you know a certain gallon-size delivery will fit without spilling over. Most of you will want to choose at least the number of gallons that satisfies your water company's "minimum delivery" requirements. This way, you can simply check it at regular intervals and then order a specified water delivery when you see it will fit. If you arrange things this way, then it is STRONGLY recommended that you put a weather-proof sign next to your fill pipe that says something like "Caution, tank vents to inside. Deliver ONLY the amount of water ordered".
5) Finally, a word about delivery conditions. Remember that water companies won't deliver water if they can't safely navigate your driveway with their BIG heavy trucks, or have to force their way through snowbanks to get to your fill pipe. Keep things clear and accessible, as well as keeping any pet/animal areas well away from the pipe & and path to get to the pipe--because (thank goodness) the water delivery man doesn't want to drag the water hose through an area with pet droppings (ick). and, on that note, have a warm and cozy winter -Lori |
