Real Estate
WHY DO ASSESSMENT PERSONNEL NEED TO VISIT MY PROPERTY?
Assessment Personnel in the City of Meriden will inspect property to insure the accuracy of the information that will be used in the assessment of your property. Without accurate information concerning the size, condition and amenities associated with your property, it is highly unlikely that the appraisal of your property will be accurate. While all property owners have the right to refuse this inspection, refusal may result in an inaccurate appraisal and an inappropriate property tax burden imposed on the property owner.
Assessment Personnel will visit properties that have sold, transferred, have been issued building permits, at the owners request or to insure data is correct. The staff member will request to measure the exterior of all improvements, and to inspect the interior of the property. If you have various permits open on your property you may see us as at a minimum of once a year until the work is completed.
We do not call ahead to schedule inspections but if you would like to request the inspection at a time convenient to your schedule please call us at 203-630-4065. If you are not home at the time of the inspection you may find a card on your door requesting you contact us to schedule an appointment.
ASSESSMENT PERCENTAGE
The assessment is determined by taking seventy percent of the fair market value of a property, as previously determined by the Assessor. That assessment is multiplied by the fiscal year’s mill rate to arrive at the property tax.
For example:
Fair market value of a home is $159,670.
The mill rate for the City is 40.86
$159,670 x .70 = $111,770 (the assessment)
$111,770 x .04086 = $4,566.92 (the annual tax)
****THIS IS FOR ILLUSTRATIVE PURPOSES ONLY
Real Estate tax bills are issued annually July 1st. The City of Meriden allows payment in four equal installments. The initial bill you receive will have five coupon payments, one for your records and the others will be labeled with the due dates July 1st, October 1st, January 1st and April 1st.
REVALUATION
The City of Meriden in accordance with State Law is required to implement a revaluation every five (5) years. The City of Meriden last performed a revaluation in 2016. The primary purpose of a revaluation, which is a mass appraisal of all real property within an assessment jurisdiction, is to eliminate any assessment inequities that may have developed since the implementation of a previous revaluation. This is accomplished by updating the assessments of real property to reflect their fair market value.
According to the Dictionary of Real Estate Appraisal (Third Edition) published by the Appraisal Institute, revaluation is the “mass appraisal of all property within an assessment jurisdiction to equalize assessed values.” The objective of a mass appraisal process is to estimate the fair market value of all real estate (a term that is synonymous with the term real property) as of a common date.
Black’s Law Dictionary (Fifth Edition) defines fair market value as:
“The amount at which property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither being under any compulsion to buy or sell and both having reasonable knowledge of the relevant facts. By fair market value is meant the price in cash, or its equivalent, that the property would have brought at the time of taking, considering its highest and most profitable use, if then offered for sale in the open market, in competition with other similar properties at or near the location of the property taken, with reasonable time allowed to find a purchaser.”
Demand for property and the available supply are arguably the primary factors influencing the real estate market. Reaction to supply and demand considerations and to other economic, social and legal factors determines the prices that people pay for real estate.