REAPPRAISAL INFORMATION

Town of Topsham Vermont

Reappraisal FAQs

Why is this being done?  Vermont law requires cities and towns to appraise all taxable property at fair market value to ensure that every property owner pays their fair share of town and school district taxes.  The 2025 reappraisal was triggered by the Common Level Appraisal (CLA) as determined by the Vermont Department of Taxes. Most towns in Vermont are overdue for a reappraisal, so Topsham is among many who are undergoing this process together. The last reappraisal in Topsham happened in 2008, and as we all know, a lot has changed since then. Now, it’s time to review our property values to make sure they are an accurate assessment of fair market value. 

What is the schedule for the reappraisal?  The town wide reappraisal will begin in June of 2025 with completion by April 1, 2027.

Who is doing the reappraisal? Field work will be done by New England Municipal Resource Center (NEMRC) and its agents based in Fairfax VT.  The field work will include a market study that establishes preliminary valuation tables and schedules for the reappraisal.

How do I know the appraisal agent is legitimate?  NEMRC agents will provide ID, and we anticipate their photos will be available on the Topsham website for verification purposes.

When was the last reappraisal?  The last reappraisal was in 2008.  Since then, property values have changed significantly.  Any new construction and land changes since then have been calculated from the 2008 reappraisal.  NEMRC will set new values based on reasonableness, consistency, accuracy and fairness in all cases.

What will the impact of a reappraisal be on me?  It is impossible to generalize the direct impact on any individual property owner.  The cost of property taxes has resulted in our encouraging all property owners to really understand their real estate and fair market value.

Won’t my taxes go up because of the reappraisal?  Your property taxes are driven by municipal and school spending, not property assessments.  Municipal spending is approved by voters at the annual Town Meeting in March.  An increase in your assessment does not mean that your taxes will increase by that percentage. If all assessments double, the tax rate is reduced to half the current rate, and each property owner would pay the same amount of tax as before. Those who receive state payments will still pay taxes based on household income. 

What is the Common Level of Appraisal (CLA)?  The CLA for every Vermont town is the ratio of the Grand List assessed value compared to the sale price of arms-length sales in the town and surrounding communities over a three-year period.  The study considers the sales price as the best measurement of fair market value.   

How will I be notified of any changes?   A mailing of all results will be sent to all property owners after the completion of the reappraisal.

What else do I need to know?  The change in the 2027 Grand List will depend on the outcome of the 2027 reappraisal grievance process.  Taxpayers should be concerned with the fairness of the new values.  NEMRC will seek to make this reappraisal fair, reasonable and equitable.  The best way for the property owner to avoid errors is to engage with the field agents during the inspection process to ensure accuracy.

How is property value determined?  One of the most frequently asked questions about the reappraisal is how we will determine fair market value given all that has happened with the real estate market in the past few years. As always, the assessor will thoroughly analyze the past three years of real estate sales to determine the current fair market value.

There are three approaches to determining fair market value.  The reassessment for Topsham will be using primarily the market and cost approach.  Once the assessor has determined the fair market value, an assessment is calculated using the fair market value and the town's level of assessment.

The three approaches to market value are:

• Market Approach: This approach involves the sales of properties like the subject property.  These sales are analyzed, and the sale prices are adjusted to account for the differences in the properties sold to the subject property to determine the fair market value.

• Cost Approach: The cost approach is a real estate valuation method that surmises that the price a buyer should pay for a piece of property should equal the cost of building an equivalent building.  In cost approach appraisal, the market price for the property is equal to the cost of the land, plus the cost of construction less depreciation.

• Income Approach: This method is most often used in the appraisal of income-producing properties: commercial, industrial and rental properties.  To do this the income stream is analyzed in terms of quantity, quality and duration.  To conduct an income appraisal on an apartment building for instance, you would need:

• Potential gross income from the market

• Vacancy rate and collection loss from the market

• Operating expenses

• Capitalization rate