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Alpine, Emerald properties soar in 2003 assessment

Whistler increases outdistance the rest of the province, again Property prices in the resort have jumped again this year according to the 2003 property assessments and this time it’s the older neighbourhoods around town leading the upward trend.

Whistler increases outdistance the rest of the province, again

Property prices in the resort have jumped again this year according to the 2003 property assessments and this time it’s the older neighbourhoods around town leading the upward trend.

Although all properties increased in value this year, there was a dramatic rise in areas like Alpine Meadows, where properties went up on average about 60 per cent, and Emerald Estates, where properties went up almost 50 per cent in value.

"The largest increase on land and properties in particular are the properties that are under $1-million and we’re talking areas like Alpine Meadows, Emerald Estates, Bayshores – the older subdivisions," said David Highfield, area assessor with B.C. Assessment.

Highfield would not give an overall average of the increase in Whistler because there are such significant differences between different neighbourhoods in the community, but a general estimate would put the overall increase around 30 per cent. Last year the increases ranged from 9 to 20 per cent,

A home in Alpine that was worth $445,900 in last year’s assessment is now valued at $714,900 in the 2003 assessment. Likewise, a home in Emerald Estates valued at $471,000 one year ago, is now valued at $700,000.

While higher-end neighbourhoods like Blueberry Hill and Horstman Estates had significant increases in properties values too (on average 19 and 16 per cent respectively), they were nowhere near the huge rise in prices in other parts of town.

"Probably the most significant thing that’s happened in Whistler is it’s now virtually impossible to find a piece of land for less than $550,000-$600,000 and that’s very new this year," said Highfield.

The president of the Whistler Real Estate Company was not surprised about the increase in assessments, particularly with the largest increases coming from areas like Alpine and Emerald.

"There’s always more buyers at the lower end of the pricing pyramid," said Pat Kelly.

"There’s just less people that can afford $2 or $3 million homes so now they can afford $1 million homes.

"Where the market is strong is between $600,000 and $1.5 million."

At the same time Kelly pointed out that there are currently only five lots for sale under $1 million.

"So that’s what’s really pushing it," he said.

"All markets depend on supply and demand, it’s a fairly basic economic rule and if demand is steady or increasing and supply is shrinking prices go up, and if you increase supply and demand is falling, prices go down.

"We have in our wisdom made it very simple for prices to go up very quickly because we don’t do anything to temper the demand side of the equation."

This year’s assessment roll, the total value of all properties in Whistler, increased by $2.2 billion, jumping from $6.5 billion to $8.7 billion. The overall increase in property values from 2001 to 2002 was $500 million.

The assessment roll reflects increases in market values for properties but also includes new subdivisions, rezonings and new construction.

The 2003 property assessments means that Whistler has once again by far outstripped property increases in the rest of the province.

"Generally speaking, in the urban and suburban areas in the province we’re seeing increases (e.g. properties at $200,000 have risen about $20,000) but not in the range that you’re seeing in Whistler," said Highfield.

"The Whistler corridor is outstanding when it comes to value increases, as they have been year after year."

In the past Whistler’s major property increases have been in the higher-end neighbourhoods, with prices driven by the international market.

"Generally speaking the market has been led by the high end priced properties and this year (those properties) are still moving upwards but not at nearly the same rate," said Highfield.

"Those values have started to pull up all of the other properties in Whistler."

Instead of the international market leading the trend in the high-end areas, it’s primarily the regional market buying land in the older neighbourhoods, where it’s still possible to buy property in the $1million range.

While the good news is that Whistler land keeps going up, the bad news usually comes around tax time.

"The (municipal) tax increase will depend on the budget passed by council," said Margaret Waller, manager of financial services with the municipality.

Council usually reviews the budget in December but the election and now the runoff election threw a spanner in the works this year.

Waller said council would not be looking at the budget until February or March this year.

"(Just) because the assessments have gone up 30 odd per cent it doesn’t mean that your taxes are going to go up that much," she said.

School taxes, which are set by the province, are of course another story.

"The province sets the rate for the whole school district so obviously if you have higher assessed values in one part of the school district you’ll be paying more than the areas with the lower assessed values and that’s been going on for a number of years," said Waller.

"And as Whistler values increase faster than anybody else’s it gets to be a bigger problem."

The municipality is currently in discussions with the province to work out a more equitable solution for school taxes in the Howe Sound corridor.

As single family homes have increased in value so too have the values of condominiums and the land itself.

"The condos in Whistler parallel the increase in single family," said Ted Howell, senior appraiser with B.C. Assessment.

"On the Benchlands, a typical property that was $518,000 on our previous assessment roll is now $703,000, which is a 35 per cent (increase). That parallels typically what I think would be the overall increase in single family in Whistler."

To the north and south of Whistler the property assessments are very different.

Squamish is more in line with trends in other suburban areas around the province that saw property increases along the range of 10 to 20 per cent overall. Pemberton on the other hand is riding on Whistler’s coat tails.

All houses in Pemberton are worth more now than they were the year before.

Condominiums rose by about 20 to 25 per cent while single family homes rose about 25 to 30 per cent in that community, said Howell.

The B.C. Assessment office uses the common valuation date of July 1 each year to ensure that the assessments do not reflect short-term fluctuations on a month-to-month basis.

Although property values have been spiralling upwards in the past decade, Pat Kelly doesn’t expect to see another 30 to 40 per cent increase like this in the future.

"I think you can only sustain that for a small period of time and I would expect that the rate of growth would slow if not in fact even stop," he said.

There may be isolated incidences of dramatic sales that make headline news but the chance to flip houses in a short timeframe for a quick profit cannot be maintained over a long period of time.

"An investor today should be thinking probably more along the lines of long term investment and personal enjoyment and maybe less along the lines of ‘boy, I can flip this thing like it’s a stock,’" said Kelly.

It is the market that determines the value of a property and the assessment authority reports that value to the property owner and taxing authorities.

Property owners should contact the assessment office if they do not have their 2003 assessment notice in hand by Jan. 15. If they are not satisfied with the assessment they have until Jan. 31 to request an independent review.

"We may have more appeals (this year), I don’t know, because people are worried about the values," said Waller.

"They don’t think the values are supported."

The tax rates are not usually calculated until after the final assessment roll, which comes out in March. This rolls takes into account any appeals.