Taber property values increase from last year

By Cal Braid
Taber Times
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Lance Wehlage from Benchmark Assessment Consultants appeared before town council on April 14 to provide a breakdown of property increases/decreases due to development growth in Taber. His report also included market change increases/decreases due to inflation or deflation. The assessed property values showed an overall increase from last year.

 The 2024 assessments for the 2025 tax year reflected market changes, assessment growth, and municipal comparisons of single family dwellings. In Alberta, each assessor is legislated to prepare assessments annually based on market value. The assessments must reflect the market value of property as of July 1, 2024 and the physical condition as of December 31, 2024.

 Benchmark’s report accounted for improvements, renovations, or additions to a property (ie. the physical characteristics). It also accounted for changes in the overall market. The assessment included both residential and non-residential properties.

 Wehlage said single family dwellings are commonly used as an indicator of the market within a municipality as “the most homogenous property type.”

 “The majority of residential properties this year are going to be in that 9 to 11.5 per cent change, and that is if you didn’t do anything to your property – it remained the exact same as last year,” Wehlage said.

 He told council that it was a very strong year for non-residential properties. Those showed a 13.3 per cent increase in assessment change. The number of transactions were up and the sale prices were higher, he said.

 “You’re seeing a year over year change due to market value, quite a bit higher than in previous years,” Wehlage said, noting that there was a wide range in percentages. “There are even a number of properties that are going up over 29 per cent. So, just a heads up to council, there are specific property types within the non-residential that are increasing a little bit higher than the norm.”

 Those specific property types are vacant lands, both industrial and commercial, as well as the downtown commercial properties, which have been historically low in value. He said any dollar change on a lower value property tends to have a higher impact on the percentage change.

 The comparison to previous years was notable. Two years ago, residential properties were up 4.7 per cent; last year, up 5.9 per cent; and now this year, up 10.7 per cent. On the non-residential side, two years ago it was fairly flat at a 0.4 per cent increase; last year, up 7.9 per cent; and this year it was up 13.3 per cent.

 “Again, assessment growth is anything new to the assessment role that hasn’t been previously assessed. Additions, new construction, renovations, those types of items,” Wehlage explained.

“On the residential side, we’ve actually had a number of four plexes that are progressive state and a couple of eight plexes that are now in a progressive state. So more of the multi-family type of development has been coming online to feed into the almost just over $16 million in assessment growth as a percentage.” That total is about 1.8 per cent of the previous assessment base.

 On the non-residential side, over $10 million in assessment growth accrued, mostly due to the addition of three particular properties: the Shoppers Drug Mart and Dollarama completions and the progressive construction of No Frills. The commercial strip containing Starbucks and the incoming Subway and Marble Slab Creamery added to the growth as well.

 Wehlage showed council municipal comparison graphs for additional context. The median single family dwelling assessment in Taber for the 2025 tax year was roughly in the middle of the graph at $289,000.

 That median was slightly higher than places like Redcliff, Brooks, Fort McLeod, and Cardtson, and slightly lower than Raymond, Claresholm, Magrath, and Coalhurst. Coaldale and Lethbridge represented the high end of the graph at $335,000 and $368,000.

 However, Taber’s median single family dwelling year over year growth was higher at 11.2 per cent than either Lethbridge (8.2) or Coaldale (5.7). The highest growth rates occurred in the towns along Highways 3 and 2 going east and north towards Calgary. Nanton was the furthest northerly point included in the graphs and had the highest year over year growth of 20.5 per cent.

 Taber was also near the midpoint for median municipal taxes for a single family dwelling, at $2,080. That tax rate was nearly identical to both Bow Island and Medicine Hat while being about $700 more than Redcliff and $600 more than Vauxhall. Coaldale’s median rate was $2,246 and in Lethbridge the single family median rate was $2,780.