Assessment shows effects of fissures

The Pinal County Assessor's Office slashed the value of a fissure-riddled residential property by 60 percent last week - a first-of-its-kind move residents and experts laud as precedent setting.

Buyers beware: Does your area have fissures?

The value of Pinal County resident Joan Etzenhouser's 3.3-acre lot with panoramic mountain views near the San Tan Mountains was reduced in assessed value from about $160,000 to about $64,000 last week. She said she expected some reduction because of the dangerous cracks that run across her property, one diagonally underneath her home, but she was surprised at the drastic cut.

Click to view information on fissures

"Some say what happened here is groundbreaking but I did this for myself," she said of the county's decision after she provided information about the problem. "I don't think a lot of people know they can do this."

Etzenhouser's reaction isn't typical for someone who lost a majority of the value of an investment. She called the county "generous" because she thinks the decision has further reaching effects. She said it can teach others to be careful of fissures, and not build on top of them.

"I hope this will open the eyes of the county, the real estate community - I hope it makes a positive difference," she said. "This does not have to happen to other people."

Etzenhouser said it's unlikely someone would buy her property because of the documented fissures. While the assessor decision means a lower tax bill, the fissures also have meant a major drop in the market value of her house.

"There'd be an extremely limited market," she said about buyers for her home. "I'm pretty sure I have a ball and chain. In order to sell it, it would require a severe loss in value and they'd have to do mitigating work."

Etzenhouser said the decision also froze her property value unless the fissure issue worsens, which means it could be dropped more. The department also told her she could apply to get money back for the past three tax years.

Earth fissures are subsidence cracks caused by groundwater harvesting and are commonly exposed during heavy rains. A report issued by the Arizona Geological Survey shows that three-quarters of the state's fissures are located in Pinal County.

Pinal County spokeswoman Heather Murphy said the assessor's office made the decision on Etzenhouser's property because she was well-prepared and provided a lot of information.

"Individual valuations are not precedent setters," Murphy said. "But they were able to bring forward material that was very useful in working with the appraisal staff."

But Murphy said appraisals of other properties with fissures may yield different results.

"This particular property owner has a fissure going underneath their dwelling unit," she said. "That may be different from someone that has a fissure on their property."

Murphy said the decision should be finalized during a Board of Supervisors meeting in July.

"We're not proud of the fact that we have many fissures in Pinal County," Murphy said. "But you have to acknowledge there are some forces of nature that can't be ignored. Fissures have recently been added to that list."

Herb Schumann, a retired hydrologist with the U.S. Geological Survey who does consulting work, said the 60 percent reduction in value makes a statement. He's been warning people about fissures for 30 years and has told Etzenhouser she has a system of fissures on her property.

"Pinal County woke up," he said. "This is significant. They acknowledge fissures for the hazards they are."

Local activist Silvia Centoz also has subsidence on her family's property in unincorporated Maricopa County near Queen Creek. She's worked tirelessly to inform people about the subsidence cracks, speaking to residents and elected officials. In 2000, Centoz requested a devaluation and Maricopa County reduced the property's value by 20 percent naming "topographical conditions in the region" as the reason.

For Centoz the devaluation wasn't about saving money on taxes.

"I wanted it to be known so people would be more cautious when they subdivided and when they landscaped in the area," she said.

Pinal County's decision sets a precedent and she said plans to bring it up with Maricopa County officials.