About Linda Klein

DLC Weekly Rate Minder courtesy of Starr Webb

When homeowners receive provincial Property Assessment notices, some will smile and have a bit more spring in their step, feeling the assessed value is accurate or perhaps even overly positive. Others will wilt and lament a modest gain or even a decrease in the assessed value over the previous year or period. Reactions will of course vary factoring in the potential increase in property taxes that tends to come along with stronger assessments.  The reality, setting aside taxation concerns, is that neither parties’ emotions should be tied to the ‘value’ printed on these notices. 

A provincial property assessment is an approximate value based on the (broadly) estimated market value as of the previous years. There is a lag time between the estimation of valuation and delivery of the envelope. It also fails to involve a formal site visit or viewing of the inside of the home to consider either significant upgrades or significant deterioration.

To put this in perspective, few lenders will work with a detailed official appraisal report that is even 90 days old.  Most prefer a report completed with 30 days, as markets can move significantly month over month.

For these reasons, among others, a provincial property assessment should not be relied upon as a totally concrete indicator of value for the purposes of either purchase, sale, or financing.

Always enlist a licensed professional, or perhaps even two or three, in order to get a timely and detailed appraisal of current market value. This will provide a much more accurate reflection of current market values reflecting recent comparable sales, value for zoning, renovations and/or other unique features to the property.  An appraiser is an educated, licensed, and heavily regulated third party offering an unbiased valuation of the property in question.

Think of your provincial property assessment as something akin to a weather forecast spanning far larger and more diverse areas than the unique ecosystem that is your neighborhood, street, and specific property.

The forecast may call for rain in your city, yet you might have a ray of sunshine radiating upon your street specifically.

DLC Weekly Rate Minder courtesy of Starr Webb Dominion Lending

RBC cuts mortgage rate, price war coming?
It was always going to happen, but while last week the big lenders were reluctant to pass on the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cut to borrowers, this week there’s talk of a price war. Royal Bank of Canada is the first of the big banks to cut mortgage rates, dropping its five-year fixed rate deal to 2.84 per cent and also cutting its other fixed products. Flexible rates are unchanged though along with other lending from the bank. Of course, these rates are the bank’s published deals and brokers frequently secure better ones, but a ‘battle of the rates’ creating headlines can only help the perception that now is a great time to buy. How low those rates go is anybody’s guess, but there are already predictions of sub-two per cent mortgages.

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