The Daily News. SATURDAY, MARCH 30. LAND VALUES, ETCETERA.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8073, 31 March 1906, Page 2

The Daily News. SATURDAY, MARCH 30. LAND VALUES, ETCETERA.

It is in the nature of man to buy in the cheapest and sell in the dearest market. In no bartering transaction is this more evident than in the transfer of land. A town takes a spurt, and the knowing ones desire to spurt with the town. Jones sells for £250 a piece of land for which he has paid £IOO. It is not that the land is worth that sum, or that it is worth a penny more than the original value, but because a certain person believes lie has some special use for the land that will return his profit. Smith, who also has land to dispose of, and who wants to " make a rise," is of opinion that if Jones' few feet 1 of land are worth £250, his own must be worth £3OO. The valuers, having no particular qualifications for the billet, will assuredly base all his valuations on Smith's single estimate, And so the merry game goes on,

*•* * * The meeting of New Plymouth ratepayers held on Friday evening, March 23rd, may be taken to represent the opinion of a very large proportion of the ratepayers of New Zealand The vnlues of land in most parts of the colony are not based on the expert knowledge of the valuators, but on the highest values put on specific bits of real estate by " enterprising " sellers. The effect of this has, of course, been to enormously increase the rates, which have been further increased by many other subtle devices on the part of the powers that be. When it is known that in the last ten years the rates and taxes paid per head of the population of New Zealand have increased over a guinea, one may form some just estimate of the size and squeezing power of the octopus. The increase is made to represent the added wealth of the colony, when in fact it represents the increased poverty of the people, whose business has not increased in sufficient proportions to allow this drain on their resources.

# # # * The " unimproved value of the land," to the uninitiated, may seem to mean the value of a section of bare ground yesterday, to-day, and for ever. There is no more land in New Zealand than there was one thousand years ago. Unimproved land does not increase in value of itself. The mere work of man is the impetus that drives the wheel up. 'Jherefore, supposing a man builds n twelve-storey house on his land and his next-door neighbour allows Ills section to lie idle, the idle section is " improved," i.e., it is probably much more valuable than it was before—according to th» Government man, who takes his cue from the man with the twelve-storey building, and taxes the man with tlie bare plot for the enterprise of the other fellow.

To demonstrate the seeming absurdity that " unimproved " land is always improving, it is only necessary to note the increases in valuations for the colony for a year or two past. In 1891 the unimproved values were £75,787,895, and in 1903, although we had not annexed any other countries, the values, based on the " capital " values, were £ 103,476,2" J. You

see the valuer gentlemen were very busy. It is necessary to say that the Government Valuation of Laud Act, 189G, and its amendments, defines " capital value of land " thus: "The sum which the owner's estate or in terest therein, if unencumbered by any mortgage or any charge thereon, might be expected to realise at the time of valuation, if offered for sale on such reasonable terms and conditions as a bona fide seller might be expected to require."

* * * * It is therefore perfectly easy to see tlmt the Government valuator is in no sense of the word an expert, seeing that as the alleged " capital value " of the land is fixed by the seller—who sells in the dearest market—all the Government man has to do is to turn up the titles in the Deeds Registery Ofiice, find out the transferee who paid the biggest price in any district, and make his valuations 011 this basis. As further demonstrating the fact that the avarice of individuals lias been absolutely the only inspiration to the valuers, the unimproved values of New Zealand land in the meantime we still failed to annex any continents-rose in 1901 to £112,620,412. You see by this that the " enterprising" man had been still asking higher prices, and that the valuation " experts " had increased the prices likewise. In 1905 the total reached the. respectable figure of £122,987,126 —although we had not annexed Asia-so it is still more apparent that the greedy ones inspired the army of "experts" to deeds of pen and ink that make those gentlemen the valuers they are.

# . * * This evening lotfill objectors will have the opportunity of setting forth their grievances to the Minister in charge of the Valuation Department. A meeting for that purpose is to be held at the Town Hall. Tho best means of urging the injustice of the present system of valuation is by personal interview. Objectors would be blind to their own interests if they failed to substantiate their objections on the present occasion. Afterwards ratepayers might with advantage inquire into borough valuations, where they would, we believe, find reason for further protesting.