With the tax deadline just five days away, a New Brunswick family says they are grateful their overpriced assessment was remedied, after their property tax assessment went through the roof.
CTV News has been following the Sooley family of Naugwigewauk over the past two months, after they appealed their property tax bill. Service New Brunswick added $100,000 to the assessment, making it twice what it was in 2016.
Christene Sooley lives with cerebral palsy, and says her homes front veranda isn't easily accessible.
“I’m hoping we can move the stairs off to the side, so that I can enjoy the front of our property.”
Christene’s dream renovations may now be within reach. On Friday, the family got the news that their property has been reassessed.
“They dropped it from $236,000 to $165,000,” says Christene. “It's more in line with what the property's worth, in my opinion.”
The decrease came in a letter sent to the family two weeks after an assessor from Service New Brunswick visited the property for the first time in 15 years.
Sooleyis grateful her reassessment came before the May 31 deadline, because she says the stress was unbearable.
“Very stressful, beause we thought we were going to have to come up with an additional thousand dollars. It relieves my stress greatly.”
Service New Brunswick has hired three additional staff to help with the backlog of appeals. They have not said how many appeals have been made to date, saying a progress report will be issued in early June.
Justice Joseph Robertson’s investigation into the tax assessments is due in August.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Laura Brown
