Assessing
Assessing Agent: Mark Gibson is contracted by the Bradley Town Council to act as an independent assessing agent.
Mr. Gibson’s normal business hours are the last Friday of each month 10:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Please contact the Town office at 827-7725 to arrange an appointment or contact with Mr. Gibson.
2024 Bradley Revaluation
Mark J. Gibson, Assessors’ Agent
This year Bradley has finished a revaluation project with the adjustment of land and building schedules for the 2024 commitment. The changing real estate market has altered values and created an inequity that Maine law requires be corrected.
The first revaluation performed by this Agent was completed for the 1990 tax year. A second multi-year project was completed for the 2009 tax year. The schedules for land and buildings have not been adjusted since. Recently, ratio studies performed annually by the Maine Revenue Service and my own studies have indicated that another adjustment was required. The overall change in values for the community is significant due to staggering sale prices over the last few years. In my opinion, this is due partly to the COVID panic, the restriction of domestic energy production, and the printing of money by the federal government.
The Maine Constitution requires that property taxes be assessed equitably and according to “just value.” Maine courts long ago equated just value with market value. This is ad valorem taxation, meaning that property will be assessed according to its real (or market) value – “what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller.” Of course, mass appraisal or revaluation, is more complicated than that, since the assessor looks at many properties – some of which have sold recently, others that have not.
This is a restoration of equity and not a back-door tax increase. A revaluation has nothing to do with the size of the overall tax commitment; it merely adjusts how it is apportioned. The Bradley commitment is decided by residents at the town meeting and school budget meetings. All Bradley properties are valued from the same land and building schedules. No one is catching a break nor is anyone being treated unfairly.
It should be noted that this Agent considers the new values to be somewhat conservative. Future adjustments or fine tuning may be necessary depending upon subsequent ratio studies.
It is noted that due to location some properties do not receive the same municipal services. Maine courts have ruled that “the equal taxation requirement does not carry an implication that the benefits arising from taxation should be enjoyed by all people in equal degree, nor that each person should participate in each particular benefit” (Sawyer v. Gilmore).
Tax Assessing Information:
The Bradley Town Council is dedicated to accurately determining the value of property located within the Town of Bradley for the purpose of taxation. The Town Council acts as the Bradley Assessors, they do however have an independent contractor, Mark Gibson, to prepare the Town’s assessment.
As per State statute, the ownership and taxable valuation of all real and personal property subject to taxation, shall be fixed as of April 1st of each year.
The Assessor maintains accurate parcel ownership (data) based upon recorded property transactions we receive from the Penobscot Registry of Deeds and all map data pertinent to accurate parcel identification.
Please feel free to view our Real Estate Commitment Book or our Personal Property Commitment Book for the 2024-2025 Fiscal Year.
Bradley Tax Rate Information:
The mill rate in Bradley is currently $11.00 per one-thousand-dollar valuation.
Bills for the fiscal year July 1, 2024, to June 30, 2025, due dates are set for September 27, 2024, and February 28, 2025. Interest at 8.5% per annum will be charged after each of the above dates.