Assessment Review Board

Commission de révision de l’évaluation foncière

ISSUE DATE: November 23, 2020

FILE NO.: WR 166892

Assessed Person(s): Walter J. Zimmerman

Appellant(s): Walter J. Zimmerman

Respondent(s): Municipal Property Assessment Corporation Region 23

Respondent(s): Township of Blandford-Blenheim

Property Location(s): 84641 Township Road 8

Municipality(ies): Township of Blandford-Blenheim

Roll Number(s): 3245-020-050-29100-0000

Appeal Number(s): 3323265, 3365889 and 3410169

Taxation Year(s): 2018, 2019 and 2020

Hearing Event No.: 736464

Legislative Authority: Section 40 of the Assessment Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A.31

APPEARANCES:

Parties	Counsel/Representative*
Walter J. Zimmerman	Self-represented
Municipal Property Assessment Corporation	Michael Radan
Township of Blandford-Blenheim	No one appeared

HEARD: November 6, 2020 by telephone conference call

ADJUDICATOR(S): Carly Stringer, Member

DECISION

OVERVIEW

1Walter Zimmerman (the “Appellant”) has filed an appeal for the 2018 taxation year with the Assessment Review Board (the “Board”), pursuant to s. 40 of the Assessment Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. A31 (the “Act”) relating to 84641 Township Road 8 (the “Subject Property”) in the Township of Blandford-Blenheim. Pursuant to s. 40(26) of the Act, the Appellant is deemed to have brought the same appeal in respect of the 2019 and 2020 taxation years. The Subject Property is a vacant piece of land roughly 50 acres in size, containing a garage and a smaller secondary structure.

2The Appellant is appealing the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation’s (“MPAC’s”) current value assessment of $377,000. MPAC asks this Board to confirm the current value assessment. Neither party raised apportionment as an issue.

Issues for the Hearing

3At issue in this proceeding is:

1. A determination of the current value of the Subject Property.
2. Whether an equity reduction in the current value should be made.

Result

4The current value of the Subject Property is confirmed as follows:

a. The 2018 assessment is $377,000 Residential (full); b. The 2019 assessment is $377,000 apportioned as $84,500 Residential (full) and $292,500 Exempt (Non-assessable unit); and c. The 2020 assessment is $377,000 apportioned as $84,500 Residential (full) and $292,500 Exempt (Non-assessable unit).

ANALYSIS

Issue 1 – What is the current value of the Subject Property?

5It is MPAC’s burden to prove current value.

6MPAC’s expert, Dave Legge, provided evidence that the Subject Property was valued using a direct comparison approach, looking at sales of comparable vacant land. Mr. Legge provided a list of six (6) sales that he relied on in determining current value.

7Although all of the sales cited by Mr. Legge in his comparison are inferior to the Subject Property insofar as they have much smaller acreage, Mr. Legge testified that it was not possible to locate comparable sales at a large acreage like the Subject Property. That said, Mr. Legge testified that he considered the time adjusted cost per acre of the comparable properties on his list and multiplied that by the Subject Property’s acreage, reducing the amount in part to reflect economies of scale for increased acreage and adjusting the amount on the basis of the costed value of the buildings to arrive at $377,000.

8The Appellant’s main concern relates to transparency in the assessment process, and a feeling that MPAC did not sufficiently disclose information relating to its assessment of vacant land. The Appellant was provided with MPAC’s methodology guides and Mr. Legge’s valuation and equity reports, and I cannot find there was insufficient disclosure for the Appellant to challenge the current value assessment of the Subject Property.

9The Appellant did not produce evidence sufficient to challenge Mr. Legge’s analysis, and I accept Mr. Legge’s evidence of current value.

10Therefore, MPAC has established the current value of the Subject Property at $377,000.

Findings on Issue 1

11MPAC has established the current value of the Subject Property at $377,000.

Issue 2 – Is an equity adjustment required and, if so, how much?

12The Appellant did not produce evidence or otherwise argue that an equity adjustment should be made. The Appellant has not met his burden of proof in that regard.

13In any event, I am satisfied based on the evidence in Mr. Legge’s equity report that no adjustment for equity is required.

Findings on Issue 2

14No adjustment for equity is required.

CONCLUSION

15The Board finds that the current value of the Subject Property is $377,000.

ORDER

16The Board orders that the current value of the Subject Property be confirmed as follows:

a. The 2018 assessment is $377,000 Residential (full); b. The 2019 assessment is $377,000 apportioned as $84,500.00 Residential (full) and $292,500 Exempt (Non-assessable unit); and c. The 2020 assessment is $377,000.00 apportioned as $84,500 Residential (full) and $292,500.00 Exempt (Non-assessable unit).