Market Value vs Assessed Improvement Value (taxable)

[Kenneth Bradford]

I went on the city government site and looked up a property with a market value at 91k, And the assessed improvement value (taxable) is at 81,800. This property has fire damage but the structure is sound. Is  the assessed improvement value based on a true # because the city inspected the property after the fire? Or is it an estimate based on the surrounding area. I'm in the Philadelphia market. Thanking you in advance!

[Vince Rosario]

The assessed value accounts for the land, the exterior condition of the building, and the floor plan. It doesn't account for the specific features and materials contained inside the home. Neither does it account for the future potential value of the home, the community, interest rate environment and so on; all of which are factored into the fair market value (comparable sales). That's why you can always bet the FMV will come in significantly higher than the assessed value.