ORDERS:
ORDER ON MOTION FOR RECONSIDERATION
Respondent filed a Motion for Reconsideration of an Order by this court dated December 19,
1997. Respondent essentially assert that the Petitioner conceded the structure was complete, yet the
initial valuation was based on an incomplete structure and this establishes a change of condition
allowing for a reassessment of the property.
However, a distillation of the facts reveals that a county wide reassessment occurred 1993,
and the Petitioner and Respondent reached agreement over the valuation of the house. Under the
statute, only completed structures may be assessed. S.C. Code Ann. § 12-37-670 Supp. 1996). It
follows that for any assessment to be made on the residence it must be complete as a matter of law.
At the time of the 1993 reassessment, the residence was deemed "complete" as a matter of
law by its addition to the tax roles and the fact that the residence was being occupied and therefor
completed for its intended purpose. S.C. Code Ann. § 12-37-670 (Supp. 1996). The residence
should have been assessed at the full value at that time, regardless of minor additions and
renovations needed for the residence. See 90 Op. Att'y Gen. 2854 (1970). The Petitioner appealed
the assessed value, and the Respondent agreed to lower the valuation. Ostensibly, the valuation was
lowered because the Petitioner alleged the house was "incomplete." However, the Respondent erred
in allowing an adjustment for this factor. Therein lies the fatal mistake.
In non-assessment year, the Respondent can only reassess under limited circumstances. S.C.
Code Ann. § 12-37-90 (d) (Supp. 1996). The Respondent asserts the completion of the interior of
the residence constitutes a change of condition therefore allowing reassessment. However, because
the interior renovations and modifications should not have been a factor in the 1993 assessment and
the residence was deemed "complete" as a matter of law, this argument fails.
ORDER
Therefore, the Motion for Reconsideration is denied and the subject property valuation is set
at $177,000 until the next tax reassessment year.
AND IT IS SO ORDERED.
____________________________
ALISON RENEE LEE
Administrative Law Judge
January 23, 1998
Columbia, South Carolina |
