Assessors vote to treat recent altered sale as a valid comparable in valuations

The Town of Lakeville Board of Assessors voted Aug. 14 to continue using a recent sale as a comparable in valuation analyses despite questions about work done after the transaction.

Discussion centered on whether a property that changed condition after its sale — because the buyer pulled building permits and performed renovations — should be excluded from sales analyses. One board member said, “I don't think we should kick out the sale value because of that,” and another noted that if the property was materially different at the time of analysis it might not be an appropriate comp. Staff explained valuation timing rules used by the office: assessment values reflect conditions through the growth date (June 30) even though the assessment date is Jan. 1.

The board debated situations in which a sale could be an invalid comp because work done after the sale altered the property's condition. Staff noted that projects not completed by the growth date could be valued at a percentage of completion, and that in practice a sale that no longer reflects the property as it was when sold may be “not used in the analysis.” Nonetheless, a board member moved that the sale be used as a comp; another member seconded, and the motion carried on an aye vote.

The action directs assessors to treat the cited sale as a comparable for the relevant analysis period. Board members said the decision focuses on the comp’s comparability for the time period under review rather than the property's later value after renovations.