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Taxable property's value may jump 8%

While officials continue to work with Progress Energy, they release a tax roll with boosts fueled by waterfront property.

By AMY WIMMER SCHWARB
Published July 6, 2004

Spurred by the continued ballooning of waterfront property values, the taxable value of property in Citrus County could increase about 8 percent this year.

That number could change substantially after the Property Appraiser's Office completes its assessment of Progress Energy Corp.'s holdings in Citrus County.

Though Property Appraiser Ron Schultz was required to certify the county's preliminary tax roll by July 1, Schultz is still wrangling with the company over the value of its equipment, such as boilers and pollution control devices, at the power plant complex in Crystal River.

While those negotiations continue, Schultz certified Progress Energy's assessment at the same level as last year. Progress Energy historically pays about one-third of the property taxes in Citrus County.

For the third consecutive year, the value of waterfront property increased by about 20 percent, a rate that is typical around Florida, Schultz said. Countywide, average single-family homes increased in value by about 9 percent, with business and commercial property trailing behind.

"We're running out of waterfront property, so that's making a scarcity factor. And then we had this tremendous impact over the past three years of the interest rates," Schultz said. "The two together have placed waterfront property in the 20 percent category."

But perhaps for the first time, the Property Appraiser's Office also noticed a residual effect near the waterfront: Homes that are near but not on the waterfront also saw their assessments rise significantly.

That trend has been visible for years in places like Pinellas County, where properties without a waterfront view were benefiting just by being close to homes on the water. For Citrus, it's new.

"It is a very recent phenomenon that we're getting, that water proximity," Schultz said. "Part of it is a general real estate principle, that if you have a lot across the street from very valuable stuff, it is more valuable than the lot across the street from nothing.

"What you're seeing, as people are building very nice homes on the waterfront," Schultz continued, "it's attracting similar homes across the street."

Other notable trends in Schultz's assessment of the county's taxable value included higher values in Citrus Springs and some sales in Pine Ridge that topped $500,000.

While most commercial property has increased in value at a slower rate than residential, Schultz noted two "hot" commercial pockets: State Road 44 W west of Inverness, near the new Wal-Mart Supercenter; and the area immediately surrounding Citrus Memorial Hospital.

Schultz's calculations for how much property values have increased only tell two-thirds of the story, considering that Progress Energy, the county's biggest taxpayer, is missing from the formula.

This year's taxable value is $7.06-billion, up from last year's $6.49-billion.

Progress Energy's taxable value last year was $1.67-billion, and that number is being used again this year until a new value can be assigned.

In April, Schultz's office received a tangible personal property tax return compiled by accountants for Progress Energy.

The return took issue with Schultz's assessment of Progress Energy's property in Citrus County, and suggested he had overvalued it by $300-million.

But when Schultz, facing the July 1 deadline for certifying the tax roll, met with Progress Energy representatives in late June, they agreed to some of his recommendations and said they would file a new return, likely sometime this month.

- Amy Wimmer Schwarb can be reached at 860-7305 or wimmer@sptimes.com

[Last modified July 5, 2004, 18:59:04]