BOARD OF LISTERS
The past year’s work in the Lister’s office has been fairly routine with no town-wide reappraisal and fewer building permits and property transfers than in some years in the past. Building permits do seem to be increasing in number. We currently have 120 or so permits that range from small additions to completely new homes. We will visit these properties before April 1, 2010 to check on the status of the permits to insure that the assessed value in the new Grand List reflects any progress made.
During the assessment year, which runs from April 1, 2008 to March 31, 2009, we recorded 145 property transfers, including 47 valid residential sales with the rest being transfers between family members, transfers into trusts, or sales to abutters. The Woodstock Current Use Program enrollment remains stable with over 15,000 acres enrolled for an exempt value of $69,627,287. Throughout the year we update the Grand List with new addresses, changes of ownership and any changes in property value that have occurred during the year.
Residential sales ranged from slightly under $200,000 to nearly 2 million dollars, with the majority being in the $250,000 to $500,000 range. The key number to look at, though, is the sales/assessment ratio, which indicates how close the assessment is to the sale price. Sales/assessment ratios for this year ranged from 75 to 130, with an average sales/assessment ratio of 94. (The average sales price was 6% more than the assessment.) Although there have been the extremes and outliers, this past year the sales in general are clustered more tightly around that sales/assessment ratio of 94. These factors all play a role in determining our CLA (Common Level of Appraisal). The state determines the CLA by a three year study of sales. This past year our CLA dropped from 93.25 to 92.25. This is a very good position for our town as it shows relative stability over a three year period of sales and does not indicate an immediate need for reappraisal.
After Town Meeting 2009 we welcomed Charlie Degener as the newly elected Lister. We wish to thank Margaret Brady for her service on the Board from July to March. Charlie has been Assistant Town Clerk since March 2008, and in his new job as Lister has learned about what happens to documents after they travel to our office, and he has been on some site visits. Charlie is learning our computer program, has taken some new Lister training courses and continues to learn what we do in the Lister’s Office.
Woodstock Listers are elected by and work for you, the taxpayer. At the same time, we are required to work within the guidelines of constantly changing and increasingly complex Vermont legislation and mandates. Each of us in the Lister’s Office is a Woodstock taxpayer and understands completely the huge burden placed on property owners, especially since the inception of Act 60, followed by Act 68 and whatever follows. Please feel free to call or visit or e-mail us (Woodstocklisters@townofwoodstock.org) with your questions or concerns. Our office hours are 8:00 am until 12:00 noon, Monday through Friday. If you wish to visit our office, please call ahead (802-457-3607) because the very nature of our work takes us out of the office for site visits and we understand the frustration of coming to Town Hall and being unable to conduct your business.
Respectfully submitted,
Paul Wildasin, Carol Wood & Charlie Degener
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