Thesis (M.Comm)--University of Western Sydney, Hawkesbury, 1993.

The tax on real property continues to be a major factor in the fiscal structure of municipal governments. Therefore, justice dictates that the impact of this tax be distributed equitably, however "equitable" may be defined by the legislative authority. This is an administrative problem. In many jurisdictions the administration is directed to distribute the tax impact on an ad valorem basis of current market value. Statistical measures have been devised in order to measure the uniformity of the assessment of current market values. The random variable is defined as the ratio of assessed value to actual sale price, and the sample is the result of property sales which occur under conditions which are circumscribed by the definition of market value. The estimated parameters are then used to make direct statistical inferences regarding the level and uniformity of assessment. These parameters are then compared to pre-selected standard parameters in order to judge the relative uniformity of the assessment roll. First, market generated sales do not produce a random sample of the assessment roll. Therefore, direct statistical inferences from the sample do not apply to the assessment roll. Second, it is demonstrated that the standard parameters are implicitly based on an assumption that the universe of assessment-sale price ratios is normally distributed. The results of empirical investigation upon the Vancouver assessment roll indicate that the normality assumption cannot be justified. Therefore, the pre-selected standards are useless as measures by which to judge the relative uniformity of an assessment roll. Two alternative measures of assessment quality are proposed. First, a binomial model based on correct and incorrect valuation is examined. Though this has some practicable possibilities, it cannot, without some important value judgements, be used to measure degrees of quality or uniformity. A second alternative is proposed in order to overcome the above limitation. The alternative suggests that a good assessment roll have assessment-market value ratios which are normally distributed, and that the actual distribution of assessment-sale price ratios be tested for "goodness-of-fit" to the ideal distribution. The test parameters can be transformed to probability levels which would measure the quality or uniformity of the assessment roll. This measure may indicate that a highly uniform assessment roll on which most of the properties are under-assessed is of lower quality than an assessment roll on which more properties are correctly assessed, but less uniformly assessed. Though it is unlikely that uniformity of assessment can be achieved without correct valuation, it cannot be held that an assessment roll on which more properties are correctly assessed is of higher quality of assessments than a roll on which most properties are under-assessed, if the uniformity of assessment on the former roll is not at least as high as the uniformity of assessment on the latter roll. Since the measures of assessment quality and uniformity examined are not satisfactory, it is concluded that statistical analysis in assessment administration may be more usefully applied to the analysis of the causes of assessment errors than to the measurement of the number and size of the errors. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Construction Project Management

The real property tax has a major impact on real property owners in all Canadian municipalities. As with all systems of taxation it is important that the burden of this tax be distributed fairly and equitably. Legislators have attempted to ensure equitable treatment among real property owners by requiring that the basis of assessment should be 'actual value'. However, due to the large numbers of properties to be valued, assessors have not been able to use the market approach to value, a valuation technique known to produce 'actual values'. Rather, they have resorted to the more subjective cost approach to value. While the mechanics of the cost approach lend themselves to the mass valuation problem, they rarely produce values that can be equated with actual market values. The application of multiple regression analysis is presented as a solution to this valuation problem. Multiple regression analysis enables the assessor to produce objectively the 'actual value' of all single family homes in a municipality. After presenting multiple regression analysis as a modern application of the market approach to value, the applicability of this valuation technique is tested on actual sales data. A sample of approximately four hundred recently sold single family homes is subjected to valuation by multiple regression analysis. Various experiments, including means of stratifying the data are presented in an attempt to produce high standards of solution. While the statistical results of the experiment are not of sufficient calibre for practical assessment purposes, they do reveal how continued experimentation can improve the applicability of this valuation technique to mass appraisal. Multiple regression analysis is the assessor's tool of the future. It facilitates the application of a valuation technique that will permit the assessor to meet his statutory obligation while still allowing him to adhere to sound appraisal methodology. / Business, Sauder School of / Graduate

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Real Estate and Construction Development

published_or_final_version / Real Estate and Construction / Master / Master of Science in Construction Project Management

No description available.

No description available.

Thesis presented in partial fulfilment for the degree of Master of Management (in the field of Public Sector Monitoring and Evaluation) to the Faculty of Commerce, Law, and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, March 2018 / The purpose of this research was to assess beneficiaries’ perceptions regarding improvements in their safety and residential quality of life following a housing intervention programme in Itsoseng Informal Settlement. Initially, this study interrogated literature to comprehend assessments carried out in various housing interventions. Maslow Hierarchy of Needs, Quality of Life Theory and Max- Neef Human Needs Theory of Development were the theoretical frameworks used to understand how beneficiaries perceived the upgrading programme. Improvement in their residential quality of life is realised through the possibilities that are available to satisfy their crucial needs. For this reason, this research focused on assessing the beneficiaries’ perceptions on their safety and residential quality of life following the upgrade programme. Univariate analysis, bivariate analysis, paired sample t-test statistics and one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was utilised to analyse the perceptions of beneficiaries following a housing upgrade. The findings showed a good level of agreement between beneficiaries regarding their safety and residential quality of life, and there were no significant difference in the perceptions of male and female beneficiaries. Open-ended questions gave insight on the need to further improve beneficiaries’ satisfaction, particularly regarding services such as electricity, clinics, schools and safety walls. Pulling all these things together, the study highlighted the need to prioritise the preferences of beneficiaries, complemented by a comprehensive improvement on safety and residential quality of life to ensure user satisfaction. Insights from the findings further highlighted that holistic improvement in housing conditions, safety, basic services, building a good sense of belonging and tenure security is crucial and goes a long way towards enhancing improvement in the residential quality of life. This study facilitated the recommendations on improvement in the design of the houses in order to satisfy human needs rather than just focusing on the physical aspects of the house. This further allowed this study to emphasise that development is about people not objects, and that it is vital to steer the development process. / XL2019

The purpose was to evaluate airport impact on nearby residential property values (RPV). The hypothesis was that a relationship between noise levels, and nearby RPV could be identified and quantified. The objective was to model a relationship between housing location with respect to an airport and housing value, taking into consideration other relevant factors. Evaluation of aviation facilities impact on RPV was based on a sample of 587 single-family houses sold during 1984 and 1985. Selling price was used as the dependent variable. Independent variables included physical characteristics of a house, distance to the closest airport, accessibility of a house to the urban area, and supply and demand for houses. Distance to nearest airport was used as a surrogate for aircraft noise level. Study indicated that impact of aviation facilities on RPV could be quantified using selling price of a house as the dependent variable and distance from an airport as a primary independent variable along with physical characteristics of a house. Effect of an airport on RPV appears dependent not only on distance, but also on type of airport and selling price of a house. Davis-Monthan Airport (DM), a military airport, has a significantly greater impact than Tucson International Airport (TIA), a commercial airport. DM impact was greatest on houses priced above sample median. However, lower priced houses were effected more when the impact was expressed as a percent of selling price. DM impact area was approximately 2 miles from the airport, while TIA impact was about 1 mile from the facility. Distance from DM was the most significant variable in describing variation in selling price for houses closest to this facility. Living area of a house was also a very significant variable. Distance to TIA was not very significant in evaluating selling price variation. Living area and age of a house were generally the most significant variables describing selling price variation for TIA subset.