Dan's Bucks County Real Estate Blog

A lot has been happening on the assessment appeal front in the Central Bucks School District. The Bucks County Board of Assessment appeals earlier this month rejected the school district's appeals of assessments on properties that had recently sold. The county Board of Assessment Appeals ruled that the district did not provide enough evidence, that sale price alone was not enough to warrant a new assessment of a property. About a week or so ago, the school district announced that it would not appeal those rulings.

And though the school district will not appeal those cases that were rejected by the assessment appeals board, it did not rule out future appeals of sold properties that the district believes are under-assessed. The school district could elect to have properties appraised and present that information to the assessment appeals board in any future appeals. The district would of course have to pay for appraisals of the properties. But even with an appraisal, there is no guarantee that the assessment appeals board would approve the reassessment. The last countywide reassessment was in the '70s.

One of the measures broached by the Deficit Reduction Commission last week was the possibility of modifying the mortgage interest deduction. The 18-member bipartisan commission is supposed to present its recommendations this week.

Phipps drew on NAR analysis of previous efforts to change tax policy, including 1986, 1996, and 2005 tax reform efforts, to show the detrimental impact such changes would have on the housing market. Speaking for myself, that measure is going to be a tough sell.To be part of the final report, the measure must get the approval of 14 of the 18 members.

Buckingham Townhship has a reputation for taking a hard line with developers who want to build anything within its borders. And the township is evidently willing to put its money where its mouth is. The township wants residents to authorize a $20 million loan that would pay for purchasing and preserving more open space. That money is in addition to the township's share of an $87 million loan that was approved by county voters in November. That share is evidently running low, which is why voters in Buckingham will see this question on the ballot for the April 22 pirmary.

My guess is that it will pass easily. I will let you know how it goes after the primary.

And speaking of high property taxes, a recent article in the New York Times revealed the name of the man who pays the most in property taxes in New York City. He is David Martinez, a financier and art collector who was born in Mexico. He owns an apartment in the south tower of the Time Warner Center. Apartment doesn't really describe it, though. He paid $54.3 million for 16,3000 square feet in two penthouses, then combined them. He will pay the city $442,000 in property taxes this year.

Billionaire Ronald Perelman's townhouse on East 63rd street is valued at $37.5 million. It is the highest taxed single family home in the city. He is expected to pay $213,000 in property taxes this year. Ouch!

Last weekend during an open house, a visitor asked me why the taxes on the house were so high.

I explained to her that a house listed at $675,000 with 4,900 squre feet on half and acre was going to have a pretty hefty tax bite wherever you lived. Expensive houses pay more in taxes because they are assessed at a higher value. The higher your property is assessed, the more you pay.

Montgomery County reassessed all of its properties about 8 years ago. Bucks County has not reassessed since 1972 and has no plans to do so unless forced by the courts. So if you live in Bucks, the newer your home, the higher your assessement. Newer homes are assessed at a 2008 value, while older homes get the lower rate, depending on how close to 1972 they were built.

I also explained that school taxes take the biggest bit of the tax pie. Their school district had the good fortune to have a huge regional mall within its borders, plus industrial properties and business parks. The district of the home they were visiting lacked the commercial and industrial base, and so depended more on homeowners to pay for the schools.

Mortgage interest rates have been dropping all month. In last week's Philadelphia Inquirer, some companies and banks were advertising 30-year fixed-rate mortgages at 5.1 percent. Now, not all banks and mortgage companies are offering that kind of rate, but some are. And with the Federal Reserve cutting key interest rates on Wednesday, mortgage rates could go under 5 percent for the first time in quite a while. If you have a mortgage that is above 6 percent, it might be worthwhile to think about refinancing. In the long run, it could save you a lot of money every month, so keep an eye on those rates. If you have questions, give your mortgage lender a call and find out what their rates are and what kind of fees they charge for refinancing. And remember, it pays to shop around to get the best deal.

Everyone knows the real estate market is going through a tough time right now. But not everyone is feeling the pinch. As a matter of fact, the Philadelphia Inquirer just published a story today about one segment of the market that is capitalizing on those conditions: first time home buyers. The article points out that with a ton of homes on the market and mortgage rates hovering at or below 6 percent, this is actually a great time to buy a home. First-time buyers don't have to sell a house to purchase another, so they are sitting pretty as far as purchasing goes. But anyone who does not have to sell another home to make a purchase is in much the same shape. Mortgage companies and banks are still lending money, though the requirements for loans as far as documenting income and credit risk have tightened. But the deals are out there, especially for the buyer who doesn't have to unload a home to buy the next one.

States handle the sale of real estate in different ways. In New York, for example, the settlement date can be an approximation of when the settlement will actually occur. Here's why. In the contract, the language of the agreement states that settlement will occur on or about a certain date. That gives both buyers and sellers some flexibility.

In Pennsylvania, however, the contract plainly states that "time is of the essence,'' and that the dates mentioned in the contract are binding. That means that we have to adhere to those dates, unless both the buyer and the seller agree to a change. That happens, but when it comes to changing the settlement date, things can get dicey, because the side not requesting the change is wary of it. For one thing, it can signal that the deal is in trouble. Secondly, because the dates in the contract are binding, each side in the deal has an expectation the deal will be settled on the date previously agreed to. They have made arrangements for housing, movers, help, etc., and changing those things can be extremely tough.