Combining condos into an apartment

[Isabel Yang]

I own 7 residential condos as part of a mix use property with 11 condominiums. There are 7 residential units and 4 commercial units on this property. I own all the residential units. The water and sewer are shared. 3 of my residential condos are on the second level of two commercial units. The other 4 condos are almost stand alone two story building sharing one wall on the first floor with another commercial unit.

My property taxes increased more than 120% after I bought the condos. The seller own all the commercial and residential units and decided to break them into condo and put them up for sale. I submitted a tax protest to the assessors office. The assessor recommended that I recombine the units into an apartment and my taxes my be lower because the valuation would be lower for the apartment.

The condo declaration allows me to recombine the units if I have first mortgagee agreement in writing. I actually have two first mortgagees, one portfolio loan for the 3 condos on the second floor on top of the commercial units, and a second loan for the almost stand alone 4 units.

My question is has anyone done this before, and what are the pros and cons from property taxes and mortgage refinancing perspective?

Thanks for any insights.

Isabel