By Any Measure, a Decline in Home Values

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Thursday, March 6, 2008; Page VA05

The newly released assessments for Fairfax County reflect the widely talked-about economic downturn and the slippage of property values, which is one of the downturn's root causes. The average assessment, countywide, of most single-family detached homes for 2008 is $617,541, down 3.12 percent.

With the tax rate remaining at 89 cents for each $100 of assessed value, the new map, broken down by Zip code, shows declines across the county. The exception is the Great Falls Zip code, where average assessed home values appreciated by 0.5 percent. In other areas, decreases in the average assessed values ranged from 0.1 percent in Vienna to 8.07 percent in Centreville and 8.06 percent in Chantilly.

This continues a slide first seen last year, the first substantial break in the upward spiral of average assessed home values over the past several years.

To Calculate Your Tax Bill:

Divide the assessed value of the property by 100, and multiply by the tax rate.

Example:

¿ Step 1: For a property assessed at $500,000, divide by 100:

$500,000 ¿ 100 = $5,000

¿ Step 2: Multiply the result ($5,000) by the tax rate (89 cents):

$5,000 x 0.89 = $4,450

To calculate your home's tax bill, use the assessed value of your home instead of the $500,000 figure, and follow the steps.