A record year for residential property sales in Metro Vancouver has translated into a record year for assessed land values in Richmond, particularly for detached homes.
As such, owners of such homes in Richmond will pay a greater proportion of property taxes than those who own apartments and townhouses this year, following BC Assessment's 2016 report on land values.
That's because properties with detached homes in Richmond rose in value by close to 14 per cent, on average, whereas apartments and townhouse units rose by close to three per cent, on average.
Because one property tax rate is applied to all residential properties and the rate is applied to assessed land value, higher priced homes will pay a greater share of tax. Conversely, lower valued homes will pay a lower share of tax.
According to the City of Richmond, some apartment and townhouse owners may well pay less property tax this year compared to last despite a 3.1 per cent municipal tax hike.
The higher than normal increase for detached homes is in response to a record number of home sales in Metro Vancouver, as reported by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver earlier this week.
Regional sales of residential properties in 2015 reached 42,326, a 27.8 per cent increase from the 33,116 sales recorded in 2014, and a 48.4 per cent increase over the 28,524 residential sales in 2013, according to REBGV.
Notably, the record number of sales came in a year when the number of homes listed for sale was below historical averages, according to REBGV president Darcy MacLeod.
"Home buyers were active and motivated throughout 2015 despite the pressure on supply of homes on the market," said MacLeod.
In Richmond, the benchmark price of detached homes rose by 26.3 per cent from December 2014 to December 2015. The average sale price of such a property now sits at $1.3 million.
Since 2005 home prices have risen, on average, 134 per cent in Richmond, higher than any other municipality between Whistler and Hope, aside from Vancouver and West Vancouver (Richmond has also outpaced every municipality reported by the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board).
Assessed values of apartments and townhouses (reported as strata units) rose by an average of three per cent.
In 2015 the selling price of townhouses rose 14.3 per cent (to $590,000) while apartments rose 11.5 per cent ($383,000), in one year's time.
Some areas of Richmond were tagged with greater hikes in assessed land values than others.
Seafair and Burkeville homes rose by 16.5 per cent while Blundell and Steveston homes rose by 15 per cent, on average.
Meanwhile Broadmoor homes rose by 11 per cent.
Strata units in Blundell and Seafair rose six and five per cent, respectively.
The most expensive property assessed in a residential neighbourhood was one that features a four-year-old home at 6260 Gibbons Drive. At $4.1 million the property is fifth most expensive residential property overall, after four houses situated on acreages (8511 No. 6 Road is the most expensive residential property, at $4.8 million).
The Gibbons property was assessed at $3.2 million in 2015. In July 2015 it sold for $5.8 million.
Richmond's total assessment (including non-residential) increased from $59,7 billion in 2015 to $66.9 in 2016. A total of $1.61 billion is from new construction, subdivisions and rezoning of properties. There was an increase in the number of portfolios, from 77,149 to 78,918 in 2016.
