Assessor: earth fissures drop home value 60%

A decision by the Pinal County Assessor's Office to cut the property value 60% for a residential lot cut by earth fissures is being described as a first-ever move and by some as precedent-setting. The size of the reduction is attracting attention and may be a factor in setting selling prices on other properties with fissures that similarly affect structures.

Pinal County reduced the assessed value Joan Etzenhouser's 3.3-acre lot in the San Tan mountains area, from about $160,000 to about $64,000 last week. The decision has to be finalized by the County Board of Supervisors in July

The East Valley Tribune quotes Joan as saying the decision also froze her property value unless the fissure issue worsens, which implies the assessed value could drop more.

A spokesperson for the county however, said individual valuations are not precedent setters and that appraisals of other properties with fissures may yield different results.