MILTON ASSESSORS HAVE hiked the value of Sen. Brian Joyce’s home because of a real estate listing that showed an opulent finished basement, a livable attic, and more bathrooms than officials were aware of, adding more than $6,000 to the departing lawmaker’s residential tax bill.
The new assessment increased the value of the home from $867,500 to $1.33 million, a nearly 54 percent increase. But the assessment still fell far short of the $1.725 million that Joyce and his wife had listed the home for and what some anonymous critics say should have been a baseline assessment because of the undocumented amenities.
The change in assessment came as a result of a Boston Globe story last summer that claimed Joyce made wholesale changes to the home without the required building permits and without the knowledge of building and assessing officials in Milton. The story pointed out that Joyce had listed the home at $1.725 million and offered the realtor brochure as evidence that the century-old home was far more valuable than town records indicated.
The Globe story said unnamed town officials said Joyce had been “shortchanging Milton on taxes for years by tens of thousands of dollars” and that his home’s value should have been more in line with that of his neighbor, former governor Deval Patrick. Patrick’s home was valued at more than $2 million with an annual tax bill of $27,459, nearly two-and-a-half times Joyce’s $11,700 bill. Patrick sold his house in June for $1.2 million and the 2017 assessment values that home at $1.54 million. The new assessment for Joyce will increase his annual bill by about $6,300, far below the estimates in the Globe story.
The Globe story also claimed Joyce had added 2,500 square feet to the home without the proper permitting, based on the real estate listing.
“The sales brochure clearly describes a house far larger and nicer than the town records show,” said the Globe story. “According to Coldwell Banker, Joyce’s home has 13 rooms on four levels, six bedrooms, five-and-a-half baths, with a total living area of 6,444 square feet. Town records describe it this way: eight rooms on two levels, five bedrooms, four-and-a-half baths, with a total living area of 3,854 square feet.”
But the new assessment, which goes into effect January 1, still lists it as an eight-room, five-bedroom home with a finished area of 3,854 square feet, though it now shows five-and-a-half baths. In August, the town’s chief assessor Robert Bushway told CommonWealth that standard assessing practices did not include finished basements or attics in square footage.
Joyce had earlier been cleared of wrongdoing by both the Board of Assessors and the town administrator, who said all the necessary permits had been obtained to do the renovations on the home. But no town official had been inside the home in more than 14 years to assess the changes so the value reflected what inspectors only knew existed.
The increase in value was triggered by the brochure, which shows an attractive finished basement with a recreation room and a “media room,” as well as a fully utilized attic, neither of which were listed in prior assessments.
“In addition to the finished basement, the land value increased 16.7 percent (similar to other land values in this neighborhood), the condition, addition of a bathroom, the grade of the property (quality of construction), kitchen and bathroom quality, and the garage with living area above increased 38.7 percent,” Bushway said in an email in response to questions.
The new assessment was completed by Bushway based solely on the real estate brochure. He had said in the past that assessors were unable to get into the home to evaluate its value and Joyce has declined requests to acceess the home for interior inspection. Homeowners are not required to open their doors to assessors.
In his email to CommonWealth, Bushway said the new bills have not been sent out yet but that Joyce is aware of the increase. He added that it is not unusual for valuations to fluctuate based on new information and sales on comparable homes in the area even if assessors cannot get into a home.
“It is not uncommon for properties to experience considerable increases (and decreases) in their valuation based on information we deem reliable (including MLS) if an interior inspection is not achieved,” he wrote.
Joyce, who has until February 1 to appeal the assessment and seek an abatement, did not return a call for comment.
It has been a rough year for Joyce, who is the focus of a federal investigation into allegations of crossing the line between his official duties and his legal representation of clients. In February, he announced that would not seek reelection to the Senate seat he has held since 1997.
While clearly it would appear that Senator Joyce has long enjoyed a much less than appropriate assessment value on his residence, the new assessed value is reasonably in line with his for sale asking price of $1.725 million as assessed value. Short explanation: for a variety of legitimate reasons, assessed values typically run less than market value AND an assessed value of around 80% of market value or thereabouts is a typical assessed value.
The real problem in this instance is all of the years that Joyce appears to have enjoyed a lower assessment and thus also a lower tax bill AFTER he made all of the improvements to his house. That and how comprehensive answers as to why continue to appear to be lacking.