BC Assessment has now sent out its 2024 notices and homeowners throughout the Lower Mainland can expect to receive them in the mail in the next few days, the Crown corporation announced on Tuesday.
In the Lower Mainland region, the overall total assessment value increased from $1.94T to nearly $2T, with about $27.2B coming from new construction, subdivisions, and the rezoning of properties, which represents an increase from the $23B last year.
The total number of properties included on the 2024 roll is 2,184,692, which represents a 1% increase from 2023.
In terms of home value, individual homeowners can expect "modest changes in the range of -5% to +5%," says BC Assessment Assessor Bryan Murao, which is less than the typical range of change last year, when some regions saw increases over 10%.
"These assessment changes are notably less than previous years," Murao said. "Commercial and industrial properties are generally increasing in value at a higher rate than residential, especially in areas such as the Fraser Valley where properties are up in value as a result of limited industrial land."
As is the case every year, these latest assessments reflect the market value of properties as of July 1, 2023, and thus does not take into account any of the new pieces of legislation — the transit-oriented development and small-scale multi-unit housing legislations, most notably — that could potentially impact home values.
For the City of Vancouver, the average assessed value for single-family homes is now $2,209,000, which represents a 4% increase compared to last year's $2,124,000 (reflecting the value as of July 1, 2022).
Vancouver's total is the second-highest of all municipalities in the Metro Vancouver region, after West Vancouver's $3,050,000, which actually represented a 2% decrease.
Other municipalities that saw their average assessment value decrease include Hope (-13%), Harrison Hot Springs (-6%), Sechelt (-6%), Chilliwack (-5%), Gibsons (-4%), Lions Bay (-4%), and other municipalities in more rural areas of the province.
For townhouses and condos, which BC Assessment groups together, average assessments increased in all municipalities except for Abbotsford (-3%), Squamish (-2%), Langley (-1%), Whistler (-1%), Port Moody (0%), and North Vancouver (-0.5%), while all other municipalities saw an increase of 4% or less.
In Vancouver, the average assessment value for townhouses and condos rose from $804,000 to $807,000.
BC Assessment notes that although many homeowners will likely see their assessed values go up, that doesn't always translate into an increase in property tax, with your property tax impact more dependent on the change in your assessment value relative to similar properties in your neighbourhood.
As usual, homeowners who believe their properties have been assessed inaccurately have a few options to challenge their assessments. First, they can speak to one of BC Assessment's appraisers about their assessment. If they remain concerned after that, homeowners can then submit a formal appeal, by January 31, which will go to the Property Assessment Review Panel for a decision.
The Property Assessment Review Panel is appointed by the Province and acts independently of BC Assessment. A full list of members on this year's panel was made public in October and can be found here.
Homeowners can also visit the BC Assessment website to see their assessments online before they receive their notices in the mail.
