City property owners this week received their much-anticipated new assessments as part of the state-mandated revaluation that was delayed two years by the state legislature and Governor Dan Malloy at the urging of former Mayor Bill Finch who did not want to deal with the potential consequences in his 2015 election year. Finch lost to Joe Ganim in the Democratic primary. The Ganim administration is now moving forward with implementation with a new mil rate set for the budget year starting July 1.
Ganim will submit his budget to the City Council the first week in April based on the new assessments that are expected to be a mixed bag: some property assessments will rise, others will drop. Let us know your result, if you care to share.
The letter below sent to property owners by the Tax Assessor’s Office provides the process to review and appeal the assessment.
In accordance with Connecticut General Statutes, the City of Bridgeport has completed a Revaluation of all Real Property for the October 1, 2015 Grand List. Pursuant to section 12-55 of the Connecticut General Statutes, you are hereby notified of your property’s October 1, 2015 assessment (shown below) as established by the Office of the Assessor and Vision Government Solutions. Your Assessment represents 70% of October 1, 2015 market value, unless it is classified in whole or in part as farm, forest, or open space. Farm, Forest and Open space assessments are reflected in assessment shown below. Assessment exemptions (for example: Veteran’s exemptions) are not reflected in the new assessment shown below, but will be applied to the final assessments.
Do not apply the current tax (mill) rate to your new assessment, as doing so will result in an inaccurate tax calculation. The new mill rate will be determined by the City in the spring of 2016.
You may review your new assessment on the Vision Government Solutions web site gis.vgsi.com/bridgeportct/. This site will allow inquiry access to the Assessor’s database, including value summary, property data, and general revaluation information. Property owners wishing to have their new assessments reviewed with a representative from Vision Government Solutions may do so by scheduling an appointment online. Informal hearing/assessment review meetings will be held at 45 Lyon Terrace in Bridgeport, by appointment only.
To schedule an appointment please go to: www.vgsi.com/schedules and follow the instructions. You will need the Parcel ID number (PID#) at the top of this letter in order to book your appointment. If you have more than two parcels you wish to discuss, please do not schedule online, instead call the number below. If you do not have access to a computer, you may call Vision Government Solutions at 1-888-844-4300 between the hours of 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM Monday-Friday excluding public holidays. Please do not call the Assessor’s Office with new assessment inquiries or to schedule appointments.
If you wish to appeal your assessment after the informal hearing/assessment review process with Vision Government Solutions has been completed, a written appeal to the Board of Assessment Appeals on the prescribed Board of Assessment Appeals appeal form must be completed and physically delivered to the Assessor’s Office by March 20, 2016. The forms will be available in February, 2016 from the Assessor’s Office in the Bridgeport City Hall and on the City’s website.
The revaluation has been completed for a second time in several years. Your evidence for it is the new assessment notice that shows what 70% of the market valuation of your property on October 1, 2015 was according to Vision Government Solutions.
Assuming you got the letter and your neighbors did too and property owners across the City did also, it may be you see there was more dollar movement in many neighborhoods on the valuation of your LAND than on the portion of the assessment due to BUILDINGS. In my own case it raised my overall assessment about 1% while a neighbor went up almost 2% and the neighbor on the other side decreased by 7%. We are Resident A. Most stories I hear from AA zones talk about reductions. I have heard of one water-based taxpayer whose assessment is up 40%.
All the above is to be expected each time this occurs. However, what is disappointing thus far is the failure of G2 to tell the Assessor Department to publish the “current,” not official or certified, NET TAXABLE GRAND LIST TOTAL as of February 2014, February 2015 and the based on the current numbers. Predictably there will be a decrease by January 2016, but is that percentage decrease in Grand List greater or smaller than your assessment for starters? Nothing terribly official. But doable simply and without great expense in the direction of OATH. Right? Time will tell.
My assessment went down. If only my taxes would do the same. I will be paying the same (if not more) in property taxes in 2016.
My assessment went down $28,000. Big deal, the mil rate will go up.
*** My new assessment went down about $36,000 from the old assessment. This is probably one of the few times since I’ve owned my home I feel the Assessor’s Office got it right! Let’s see what the new mil rate posted by the city will be come July 1st 2016. Especially if Mayor Joe can’t get some sort of a handle on the present Red budget deficit of $20+ million in the city. ***
My assessment went down about $27,000. I’m sure my taxes will increase though in July.
Mine went down $37K. I hope that is good news.
So your assessments went down 25%. This is very, very bad.
This means the mil rate will go up 25%.
We already have one of the highest mil rates in the state. This will discourage further investment from both the commercial and residential community.
Just reading the CT Post. Seems the city is paying $15,000 a year for cable TV. The good news is the city is ending this service (maybe). The bad news is it is still a $20 Million dollar deficit (maybe).
It is like trying to plug the holes in the dam as the water flows over the top.
Roll back the raises in the ordinance and make the old salaries permanent. If the city is doing better in a year or two then you can talk about reconsidering pay hikes.
Here is a news flash for city executives: Private businesses are not giving out raises like this and neither should you.
Let’s come clean Joe, about all the hiring you have done and who is making what. Make it public for all to see if you are saving the taxpayers money or spending our money on your political patronage. What happened to the promised transparency?
What happened to the former FBI agent who put you away making sure you don’t steal again?
These things you promised, Joe.
Time to publicly live up or give up!!!
Very bad news for homeowners whose assessment went up. JML is correct–we should know the grand list total resulting from this assessment to get a better handle on estimating where we will end up. Is it really 25% down or more like 15%? Time will tell but I’d like to know NOW.
Good point, Phil.
But don’t ask; demand.
Call the Mayor’s office and demand an answer.
Don’t ask when it might be ready, demand to know now.
You will get rhetoric about how it can all change based on appeals but if the entire value of the Grand List is subject to significant change then we’re paying for a bad appraisal or games are being played.
Better yet schedule a meeting of the Black Rock Community Council and demand this number beforehand and demand the Mayor be present.
Mine was not 25%, it was 20%.
Mine only went down 15%. Crazy thing is they have the 70% value EQUAL to the full price I paid for the house just this July. What kind of market value analysis is that? And they have that sale price listed on the details when I log in. Needless to say I have an appointment scheduled. Not expecting much. I’ll probably end up battling with the assessors office.