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Board grants partial abatement, says 1.25 land factor creates inequities for converted garage
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Summary
An appeals board found that applying a 1.25 land-value multiplier to a converted garage resulted in unjust discrimination and awarded a $184,594 abatement for the property at 475 Cape Mundy Road (Harrison); the assessor defended the town’s practice as a market-based adjustment for separate finished quarters.
The Cumberland County Assessment Appeals Board voted unanimously on April 7, 2026 to grant a partial property tax abatement for 475 Cape Mundy Road in Harrison, reducing assessed value by $184,594. The applicants argued the town’s practice of applying a 1.25 multiplier to land value when an accessory structure has plumbing and sleeping quarters produces non-market-based overvaluation for their property.
The applicants said they converted one bay of a four-bay garage into a sleeping quarter with a three-quarter bath (no kitchen), and that the town’s 1.25 multiplier — described in correspondence as applying to "multi-dwelling" or ADU situations — was not supported by market evidence for properties like theirs. They presented calculations showing that using the town’s published per-acre values but not applying the 1.25 factor would reduce their land valuation substantially and that a 2024 sale they were shown should not govern the April 1, 2025 valuation.
The assessor’s representative explained the assessor’s practice: assessment uses a base per-acre land price, fractional-acre calculations and adjustments to reflect additional functional utility when separate finished, plumbed quarters exist. The assessor’s agent said the 1.25 factor is applied consistently to properties with separate improved living quarters and is derived from town market data; she said the assessor must balance market value and equity across the town and that changing a factor for one property without a townwide recalculation would create new inequities.
Board members debated classification questions (whether the garage bay constituted an accessory dwelling unit), whether plumbing and fixtures alone should trigger a land-value multiplier, and the limits of applying a single percentage across a range of land values. Several members said the 1.25 multiplier is a broadly useful tool but acknowledged it can misprice high-value, unusual waterfront properties. The board considered last year’s action (a $184,594 abatement granted previously for the same property) and whether that relief had been incorporated into the assessor’s current calculations.
After discussion, a member moved that the evidence demonstrated the 1.25 factor resulted in unjust discrimination for this property and recommended restoring the prior $184,594 reduction; another member seconded. The motion passed unanimously.
The board noted the decision remedies the assessed-year disparity for this taxpayer but does not by itself change townwide assessment methodology; the assessor said it could not unilaterally alter the town’s schedules without a broader reassessment. The board adjourned into executive session to consider a related review request under cited statutory provisions.
