Buying A Totally Renovated Property?
On top of that, if the reno was done by a flipper you're very likely to get a hastily and cheaply updated house.
xavier67 said:
On top of that, if the reno was done by a flipper you're very likely to get a hastily and cheaply updated house.
Not necessarily. I bought a totally renovated, flipped house (not in the MAPSO area) and not only are all the materials top quality and tasteful, but my taxes remained the same (although renovated, the footprint wasn't altered). But it is good to have it checked out before you sign on the dotted line.
With the up-coming reassessment in SOMA, all property valuations are subject to change in the immediate future, flip or not.
Good point RobinM2: in 2014 my Daughter was looking at a fully renovated house in Maplewood that the listing reported as having $11,000 yearly tax.
I checked with the town and determined that, after issuance of the CO the taxes would sooner or later be raised to anywhere from 16k to 20k.
Some flippers go really cheap, using ugly vinyl siding that is improperly installed and cheap hardware throughout, some use beautiful high quality work. Here is a great example of good work (disclaimer, I have nothing to do with that house nor do I have any interest in it selling, just a beautiful job): http://www.zillow.com/homedetails/66-Walker-Rd-West-Orange-NJ-07052/38744071_zpid/
If you look on google maps you can see the previous version of this house from a few years back and it is night and day...
I am trying to remember what that house used to look like, because we use to live just a few doors up the hill from that place. It has been done very prettily, but how does that guarantee quality materials or craftsmanship?? It's easy to make something look good even if it is not the best work.
assessments are based guard footage and rooms, the specific finishes have nothing to do with assessed value. A new bathroom or a/c will impact. Removal of layers of wallpaper, new paint and flooring, etc. will not
Unfortunately, this is not actually the case. I purchased my house last year and when the assessed value went up this year, I went and talked to the Maplewood Tax Assessor to determine why. It turns out that they took the cosmetic changes into account, based on comparing the real estate listing photos from the last two times that the house sold. No renovated bathrooms or kitchen. No changes to heating or cooling. Cosmetic changes only.
peteglider said:
assessments are based guard footage and rooms, the specific finishes have nothing to do with assessed value. A new bathroom or a/c will impact. Removal of layers of wallpaper, new paint and flooring, etc. will not
My memory from the last full revaluation in SO is that houses are rated low, average or luxurious (may not be correct wording), and adjust valuations accordingly (after starting with square footage and room count).
If you didn't set up an appointment for them to look inside, they defaulted to luxurious, so it was important to be home! (I'm guessing that two valuations ago, the previous owners failed to show up, thus getting us an overly high valuation as new homeowners)
Really? Not my experience in South Orange. For instance taxes went up adding central air. But renovated bath and kitchen, made no difference. Changed description in tax record to "modern" for bath and kitchen.
cmarym said:
Unfortunately, this is not actually the case. I purchased my house last year and when the assessed value went up this year, I went and talked to the Maplewood Tax Assessor to determine why. It turns out that they took the cosmetic changes into account, based on comparing the real estate listing photos from the last two times that the house sold. No renovated bathrooms or kitchen. No changes to heating or cooling. Cosmetic changes only.
peteglider said:
assessments are based guard footage and rooms, the specific finishes have nothing to do with assessed value. A new bathroom or a/c will impact. Removal of layers of wallpaper, new paint and flooring, etc. will not
If the cosmetic changes can reasonably be expected to affect the sale price of the home, they could contribute to the valuation placed on that property.
If you are thinking to purchase a totaly renovated property, understand the current property taxes most likely do not reflect the value of a complete renovation and when the town is asked to issue a certificate of occupancy, it will do a reassessment and come up with an accurate property value which is likely to be much higher. If you want an early warning of that you can call the town assessor' office and ask them for an idea of what the new higher amount will be. There is no need to be caught unprepared.