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<br /> The Machinery Act provides for a refund or release of a tax if the tax was a)imposed
<br /> through clerical error,b)an illegal tax,or c)was levied for au7 illegal purpose. I do not
<br /> believe the tax,in this case,was levied for za1 illegal purpose. It is apparent that the tax
<br /> imposed was,however,the result of a clerical error or an illegal tax.
<br /> Easily accessible county records show that the Lake Orange,Inc. (hereafter LOI)
<br /> property has been.taxed at an assessed value of$547,700 from 2017 through 2020 and at
<br /> an assessed value of$550,784 from 2011 through 2016. Without access to county
<br /> assessment records,it is not possible to determine if a clerical error was made,but a
<br /> likely scenario is this:When the Tolars conveyed the ten-acre parcel to LOI,it was
<br /> combined,for tax purposes with the rest of the LOI property(as was common in that era
<br /> for the convenience of both the owner and tax office).Although a distinction should
<br /> hat*e been made.e-weQn thn valy�r.of.the.fl.nod• l.at,,.prapexty (approximately 45 acres)
<br /> and the ten-acre addition,it apparently wash t. The value assigned per acre to the entire
<br /> property,through a clerical error,was derived from the value per acre of the ten-acre
<br /> addition.
<br /> been charged to LOI through the years have simply
<br /> Alternatively,the taxes that have
<br /> been illegal;illegal in the sense that they have been the result of appraisals arrived at
<br /> and applied not in compliance with the law. N.C.G.S. §105-286 requires that"All property,
<br /> real and personal,shall as far as practicable be appraised or valued at its true value in
<br /> money." The statute goes on to explain that the value is that of an "arms-length"
<br /> transaction,and that like properties must be appraised and taxed alike,in accordance
<br /> with an adopted schedule of values..
<br /> Flood plain is classified by the Schedule of Values as"wasteland," which is assigned the
<br /> same base price per acre as the surrounding land,with the explicit caveat that an
<br /> "influence factor"be applied to reduce the price per acre to account for its non-buildable
<br /> status. Here,nearby parcels have sizes and values;for example of:45 acres,$306,000;28
<br /> acres,$173,000;68 acres,$349,000;and 61 acres,$313,000. Applying the Land Size
<br /> Adjustment Table to these properties yields a base rate per acre of$2.1,250,$18,175,
<br /> $17,700, and$17,100,respectively. Using the average of these rates,$18,550, and the 55
<br /> acre listed size of the LOI parcel would suggest a valuation,after applying the Land Size
<br /> Adjustment,of$311,200 for the LOI land before any application of an influence factor.
<br /> However,the historic valuations for the years at issue are almost$200,000 higher!
<br /> Certainly there are factors that can contribute to different valuatiou7s for apparently
<br /> similar parcels-shape, soils,ease of access,development potential,marketability-all of
<br /> which can increase the value of one parcel relative to another. But none of these factors
<br /> add to the value of the LOI parcel. In fact,each factor,taken in turn,decreases the value
<br /> of the LOI parcel. 'The parcel is 8000' long,in places only several feet wide,with most
<br /> parts separated by wide expanses of water owned by others.The soils are all in flood
<br /> plain and thus unsuitable for installation of any sewage treatment systems. There is only
<br /> one practical point of access to a portion of the property, at Lake Orange Road, and most
<br /> of the parcel.can otherwise only be accessed by boat or through the property of other
<br /> property owners.Because the property is almost entirely in flood plain,it is completely
<br /> unbuildable;the property has no development potential.The marketability of the
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