The BC Assessment for property values have been posted publicly online and notices have been sent out through the mail.
The fact that property assessments have increased, and increased dramatically for some, is good news.
For others, not so much.
Meet Andrew Dixon, a man who inherited his grandfather’s property in a quiet neighbourhood well outside the city centre, whose BC Assessment of the building value has increased by 174 per cent from last year.
Dixon’s family has owned the property for the last 40 years with no plans to sell so the only thing that changes is property taxes that will spike to an all-time high.
“My grandfather passed in August and I inherited the property from him,” Dixon said, a contractor who has worked on many older mobile homes. “My grandfather did some work on the trailer but it’s old. It was built in 1969 and I know it’s not worth $61,200.”
It was valued at $22,200 in last year’s assessment.
Dixon plans on tearing down the dwelling and start building a new home on the property by the end of the year but for now the fight is on to get that mobile home’s true value accurately reflected on the BC Assessment.
When Dixon first checked online for the property’s assessment he saw that it gave the comparison of last year’s assessment to this year’s assessment, breaking down the land value and building value. Dixon said on the paper copy he just got in the mail on Friday, there is no such comparison that breaks down land value and building value and he thinks people, especially those who own mobile homes, need to be aware that the increase in overall value may not because of the land but the building.
Traditionally, mobile home values decrease with age, but it’s different this year, Dixon noted.
He's been in communication with BC Assessment through email and in the prompt response by BC Assessment, it claims that the property value is in line with similar properties that have sold in the neighbourhood. Dixon was advised to make an official appeal.
Dixon does not believe his property is in line with those sold in the neighbourhood because they were not mobile homes so the comparison is not accurate, he said.
Dixon said he searched for more accurate comparables, making sure they were mobile homes of similar age within one kilometre of his property.
It took him five hours to do the research.
“It just seems weird,” Dixon said. “I understand inflation but even with newer mobile homes from the 80s and up they only seem to have gone up by about 20 per cent but the older ones, from 1968 to 1978, which really have no inherent value at all due to their age and condition – I’m a contractor and I know they have mold and water damage – so it makes no sense at all that they have increased so much in value and in reality they are actually a detriment to the property’s value. Most likely if sold they will just get demolished immediately and I know that costs money.”
Dixon said there was a reason he reached out to The Citizen.
“I want to make other BC residents aware and I want them to appeal the massive discrepancies,” Dixon said. "I understand the housing market in Prince George has risen, but this building value increase disproportionately affects residents who cannot afford a large tax increase for their older homes."
An appeal of a BC Assessment must be submitted before Jan. 31 and Dixon doesn’t want anyone to miss the opportunity to challenge their assessment as he is.
For more information about how to appeal the BC Property Assessment visit https://info.bcassessment.ca/Services-products/appeals.
Here’s Dixon’s property breakdown:
7290 Dawson Place, 22,651 sq. ft.
(1969 Mobile, 12x60 = 720 sq. ft.), (oldest mobile home in 1km area)
2022
Land: $165,000
Build: $22,200 - ($1,400 over home #4 which is a 1972 mobile, 12x62 = 744 sq. ft. - 6.7% larger)
2023
Land: $177,000 - (7.3% increase - largest increase of all six properties)
Build: $61,200 - (174% increase - 175.7% increase, second largest increase)
Below are the properties Dixon made the comparison with:
1. 7200 Dawson Road, 12,632 sq. ft. (0.2km away, backs onto Glenview School)
(1974 Mobile, 14x64 = 896 sq. ft.), (5 years newer, 24% larger)
2022
Land: $143,000
Build: $39,200
2023
Land: $150,000 - (4.9% increase - 2.3% less than Dixon’s)
Build: $45,500 - (15.3% increase - 160.4% less than Dixon’s)
2. 6923 Dawson Road, 10,890 sq. ft. (0.3km away)
(1971 Mobile, 14x56 = 672 sq. ft.), (2 years newer, 6.7% smaller, detached garage)
2022
Land: $137,000
Build: $23,800
2023
Land: $144,000 - (5.1% increase - 2.2% less than Dixon’s)
Build: $53,100 - (123.1% increase - 52.6% less than Dixon’s)
3. 7100 Dawson Road, 11,325 sq. ft. (0.3km away)
(1970 Mobile, 12x58 = 696 sq. ft.), (1 year newer, 3.3% smaller)
2022
Land: $139,000
Build: $27,000
2023
Land: $177,000 - (5.0% increase - 2.3% less than Dixon’s)
Build: $61,200 - (131.5% increase - 44.2% less than Dixon’s)
4. 6963 Adam Drive, 15,681 sq. ft. (0.4km away)
(1973 Mobile, 12x64 = 768 sq. ft.), (4 years newer, 6.7% larger)
2022
Land: $150,000
Build: $20,800
2023
Land: $160,000 - (6.7% increase - 0.6% less than Dixon’s)
Build: $57,000 - (174% increase - 1.7% less than Dixon’s)
5. 6993 Adam Drive, 12,632 sq. ft. (0.4km away)
(1972 Mobile, 12x62 = 744 sq. ft.), (3 years newer, 3.4% larger)
2022
Land: $143,000
Build: $16,800
2023
Land: $150,000 - (4.9% increase - 2.4% less than Dixon’s)
Build: $47,200 - (180.9% increase - 5.2% more than Dixon’s)
