The new appraisal increases the town's Grand List from $286 million to
$370.6 million, an increase of 30 percent. There are 1,174 pieces of
property in Fayston, including land, and the new Grand List results in
an average property value of $315,672.
When the Grand List increases and town/school spending remain static or close to static, the tax rate will decrease.
The taxes on a property valued at $315,672 using the 2009 residential
tax rate of $2.0139 would be $6,356. The same property, taxed at the
estimated 2010 residential tax rate of $1.45, would be $4,577.
The increased Grand List means the tax rate will fall, although
individual tax bills will increase or decrease based on specifics of
each parcel/property. While taxpayers have a legitimate right to grieve
their new appraisals, a new appraisal is not necessarily grounds for
panic or for storming the offices of the town listers.
Appraising is a difficult job, an inexact science and undoubtedly
difficult in an economy where real estate sales have been hit hard. The
listers had professional assistance with this new appraisal and worked
diligently to get the numbers right.
In Fayston, listers are elected at Town Meeting. They serve three-year
terms and are paid approximately $15 per hour for part-time work. In
2009, the town budgeted $18,000 for listers' salaries and spent $9,580.
The 2010 budget included $18,000 for three listers.
Reappraising is not an option, it's a state mandate (an unfunded
mandate, by the way) and towns must comply with the law. Vermont
requires towns to reappraise when a town's Grand List falls below 80
percent of fair market value.
The listers are the messengers tasked with a difficult and decidedly
unglamorous job. Treat them courteously whether you agree or disagree
with the new assessment of your property.
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