Income capitalization approach to valuation
Here is how the New Hampshire Supreme Court characterizes the income approach to value: The income capitalization approach measures the present value of property on the basis of the future net income the property could produce for the owner. The net income is the rent the property would generate on an open market less the normal and usual costs of operation. This figure is then capitalized to determine present worth. Rollsworth Tri-City Trust v. Somersworth, 126 N.H. 333, 335 (1985).
Can an unmarried person seek to partition real estate in which he or she resided with his or her partner?
Yes. In Brooks v. Allen (April 1, 2016), the New Hampshire Supreme Court permitted such a partition and an allocation of each person’s respective interest in real estate they shared as their residence for many years with their son. Court did not look at the law concerning domestic relationships, but rather viewed the matter using the statute governing partitions of real estate. Those laws give courts broad authority to determine who has what rights and interests in the real estate. “In exercising its discretion in determining what is fair and equitable in a case before it, the court may consider the direct or indirect actions and contributions of the parties to the acquisition, maintenance, repair, preservation, improvement, and appreciation of the property; the duration of the occupancy and nature of the use made of the property by the parties; disparities in the contributions of the parties to the property; any contractual agreements entered into between the parties in relation to sale or other disposition of the property; waste or other detriment caused to the property by the actions or inactions of the parties; tax consequences to the parties; the status of the legal title to the property; and any other factors the court deems relevant. RSA 547-C:29 (2007) (emphasis added). Furthermore, the statute’s provisions “are to be liberally construed in favor of the exercise of broad equitable jurisdiction by the court in any proceeding pending before it.”
Lot consolidations: reminder of the December 31, 2016 deadline
If you own two or more lots a municipality merged prior to September 18, 2010 without your consent, you have until December 31, 2016 to submit a request to the town that the merger be reversed. Reversing the merger will mean the lots will be restored to their premerger status and all zoning and tax maps shall be updated to identify the premerger boundaries of the lots or parcels. RSA 674:39-aa.