Thursday, October 18, 2012

Hendry Appraiser Candidates' Homes Drop 44-55%

Hendry Property Appraiser's Home Value Down 44% In Four Years

LABELLE, FL. -- In the hotly contested race for Hendry Property Appraiser, incumbent Phil Pelletier says the county's valuation of the market value of challenger Kristina Kulpa home went down 55% since 2008, when Pelletier was elected to office, while his home value decreased by 44%.

Photo: Phil Pelletier's Fort Denaud Home

He says the "average" market value of all homes in Hendry dropped 48% in the years from 2008 to 2012. How true is this?

How Does Your Home Values Compare To Pelletier's and Kulpa's?

Pelletier says his 1,625 square foot 1995 home, on a .57 acre lot on Fort Denaud Road went down on the property appraiser's records from a valuation of $136,630 in 2008 to a $76,080 valuation this year. In comparison, Kulpa's went from a $373,340 value in 2008 down to $169,150 in 2012.

Pelletier says the total deduction resulting from the difference between 2008 and 2012 on his home was $60,660 and on Kulpa's home, $204,190 in the five year period, apparently trying to argue Kulpa got a bigger percentage deduction and percentage tax savings compared to his property.

His calculation of  "average" single family home values went from $150,350 in 2008 down to $72,043 in 2012, a drop he says of 48%.

Did The Average Home Owner See 45% Drops In Taxed Market Value?

Interestingly, Pelletier compared his 44% and Kulpa's 55% home market value drops to the "average of all homes from 2008 to 2012. But, comparing a real "average" home in Hendry other and Kulpa's and Pelletier's show a much different number.

What he didn't say was he used the "average" single family home market values on the Hendry tax rolls, and did not include manufactured homes (mobile home), which are the major type of housing unit in Hendry county.

The average home owner in Hendry, if  tax values are compared from 2008 to 2012 will find they didn't have anywhere near the percentage drop in assessments that both Pelletier and Kulpa had.  The average drop was more near 9%.

Pelletier's office explaining why the percentage drop in tax value of Pelletier and Kulpa's home had such high drops in assessed value was because their neighborhoods had higher extremes in value in the years of 2008-2012.

While homes in Clewiston's Harlem, didn't move much in value one way or the other during those years,  Port LaBelle new homes and lots had wild swings in value and subsequent large drops in the last five years. Mobile homes have lost about 25% due to market sales combined with larger depreciation than a conventional home.


The "bubble" in Hendry county real estate was considered to be around 2006, when home prices were the highest, and then declining steadily each year since then.

1 comment:

  1. Phil is a cheater and a Liar. He promised jobs to people to get their vote, only to not provide those jobs after he was in office

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