Glossary of PVA Terms

PVA Terminology

Ad Valorem Tax	A tax levied in proportion to the value of the property being taxed. Ad valorem simply means "based on value".
Appeal	The process by which a property owner contests an assessment either informally or formally.
Appraisal	An estimation of value, or the price a property would bring in an open market.
Appraisal Date	The legal date for which the assessments are made. In Kentucky the appraisal date is January 1st.
Arm's-Length Sale	A sale between two unrelated parties, both seeking to maximize their positions from the sale transaction.
Assessed Value	The monetary amount at which a property is put on the assessment roll for a particular assessment year.
Assessment Year	The 365 days beginning with the appraisal date, which is January 1 in Kentucky.
Assessor	The head of an assessment jurisdiction. In Kentucky she or he is called the PVA.

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Board of Assessment Appeals	Locally appointed three member board that hears protests from property owners who disagree with the PVA assessment.

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Cadastral Map	A scale map showing the dimensions of each parcel and related information.
CAMA	"Computer Aided Mass Appraisal" - Statistical formulas that allow a computer to generate assessment data for multiple properties.
Chronological Age	The number of years elapsed since an original structure was built, or its actual age.
Comparable	Recently sold properties that are similar to a property being appraised which provide an estimate of value.

Cost Approach	"Principle of Substitution" - seeks to determine the replacement cost of an improvement-less, depreciation-plus land value.

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Date of Sale

The date on which the sale was agreed upon.

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Easement	A right held by one person to use the land of another for a specific purpose, such as access to other property.
Economic Life	The period of time during which a given building or other improvement to property is expected to contribute (positively) to the value of the total property.
Economic Obsolescence	Loss in value of a property that stems from factors external to the property.
Effective Age	The typical age of a structure equivalent to the one in question with respect to its utility and condition.
Equity	The degree to which assessments bear a consistent relationship to market value.

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Fee Appraisal	Appraisal of properties one at a time for a fee.
Fee Simple	In land ownership, complete interest in a property, subject only to governmental powers such as eminent domain.
Field Review	The practice of reviewing property from the exteriors.
Fixture	An item of equipment that, because of the way it is used, has become an integral part of the building or other improvement.
Functional Obsolescence	Loss in value of a property resulting from changes in tastes, preferences, or market standards.

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GIS	Geographic Information System (i.e. Computerized Mapping).
Gross Income Multiplier	The factor by which gross income is multiplied in order to obtain an estimate of value.
Gross Rent Multiplier	The factor by which gross rent is multiplied in order to obtain an estimate of value.

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Improvement	Anything done to raw land with the intention of increasing its value.
Income	The payments to its owner that a property is able to produce in a given time span.
Income Approach	Uses capitalization to convert the anticipated benefits of the ownership of property into an estimate of present value.
Intangible Property	Evidence of ownership of value or the right to value, for notes, bonds, stocks, etc.

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Land Contract	A contract for sale in which the seller retains title until the buyer completes installment payments for the property.
Leasehold	The interests in a property that are associated with the lessee as opposed to the lessor.
Legal Description	A statement in words or codes identifying land for all purposes of law.
Location Obsolescence	Loss in value due to sub-optimal siting of an improvement.

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Market	The place in which buyers and sellers interact.
Market Price	The price a particular buyer and seller agree to in a particular transaction.
Market Value	The most probable sale price of a property in terms of money in a competitive and open market.
Mass Appraisal	The process of valuing a group of properties as of a given date, using standard methods, and allowing for statistical testing.

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Neighborhood

The environment of a subject property that has a direct and immediate effect on value.

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Parcel	A contiguous area of land described in a single description or as one of a number of lots on a plat.
Parcel Identification System	The scheme by which parcel identifiers are generated.
Parcel Identifiers	A code, usually numerical, representing a specific land parcel's legal description.
Plat	A map intended to show the division of land into lots or parcels.
Property	An aggregate of things or rights to things. These rights are protected by law.
Personal Property	All property other than real property - moveable.
Property Split	A result of the sale of a piece of property held by a single owner such that different pieces of the property are owned by different owners.

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Real Property	The rights to land and its improvements.
Remaining Economic Life	The number of years remaining in the economic life of a building or other improvement as of the date of the appraisal.
Replacement Cost	The cost, including material, labor, and overhead, that would be incurred in constructing an improvement having the same utility to its owner as the improvement in question.

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Sale Price	The price for which a property was sold.
Sales Comparison Approach	Estimates a property value by reference to comparable sales.
Sale Data	Information about the nature of the transaction.
Sales File	A file of sales data.
Site Characteristics	Characteristics of a particular property, such as land size, shape, topography, etc.

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Tangible Property	Actual physical property.
Tax Base	The total of all the assessed values in a given community.
Tax Rate	The percentage of assessed value at which each property is taxed in a given district.
Title	The union of all elements constituting proof of ownership.

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- V -

Valuation	The process or business of appraising.
Value	The estimate sought in valuation.

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Warranty Deed

A deed conveying to the grantee title to the property free and clear of all encumbrances except those stated in the deed itself.

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