Values still rising
Summerland leads regional gains with 12% bump in assessed property values
An 8,500-square-foot home in Trout Creek valued at $4.6-million is the most expensive residential property in the South Okanagan, according to fresh data released Tuesday by BC Assessment.
Built in 2005, the home on Dent Street boasts seven bedrooms, five bathrooms and a private beach on Okanagan Lake.
No one answered when a Herald reporter visited Tuesday afternoon, but the home appears to be occupied, with a modest SUV in the driveway and kids’ bikes to the side of the house.
The home gained just four per cent in value over the past year, well off the average 12 per cent bump seen by property owners in Summerland, which led the South Okanagan in price gains.
Deputy assessor Tracy Wall was unable to pin down exactly what caused Summerland values to spike, other than heightened demand from buyers.
“We base our assessment on market value or what (properties) theoretically could have sold for on July 1, 2016. We just had lots of sales information that indicated an increase — a pretty significant increase — in Summerland this year,” she said.
“I think there’s just a lot of demand when people are moving to the Okanagan, (and) these are the areas they choose to relocate in. It’s just a very desirable area,” said Wall.
Detached dwellings in Penticton are up an average of seven per cent in value, while strata units have climbed eight per cent. Commercial properties increased in value an average of four per cent. Assessment notices are in the mail this week.
Mayor Andrew Jakubeit cautioned, however, that an increase in assessed property value won’t necessarily result in an equivalent jump in property taxes.
“As part of the budget process the city determines the amount of tax revenue that is required. It then sets the tax rates across the various (property) classes . . . based on the assessed values to generate the required revenues,” he said in a statement.
The city has not yet received complete assessment roll data, so it’s still too early for staff to start running numbers, meaning council will start budget discussions later this month with a proposed tax increase in the range of two to five per cent.
“The tax numbers have not yet been vetted by council or deliberated; however, the cost of inflationary costs is closer to two per cent, so that is probably a reasonable starting point,” he said.
For the Okanagan as a whole, the assessment roll has increased from $89 billion to $98 billion, with $1.7 billion of that gain attributed to new construction, rezonings and subdivisions.
Despite its charms, the home on Dent Street ranks as just the 48th most expensive in the Okanagan. Top spot belongs to a $9.2-million mansion on Hobson Road in Kelowna.
Even that pales in comparison to B.C.’s priciest residential property. That title goes to the $75.8-million mansion in the Point Grey area of Vancouver owned by Lululemon founder Chip Wilson.