MONROE - The net loss in equalized property values in Green County slowed for a second year in a row, according to data released last month by the Wisconsin Department of Revenue.

Equalized values are used to determine the amount taxpayers within a municipality pay to the school district, technical college, special district and county for providing services.

Green County showed a loss of 0.12 percent in 2012 values, compared to -0.5 percent in 2011 and -1.6 percent in 2010. The county dropped $8.2 million in real-estate equalized value compared to 2011 and added $5.1 million in personal property values to stand at $2.6 billion total.

The state of Wisconsin had a 0.76 percent drop in overall values in 2012, or $3.6 billion, compared with a 3 percent decrease in 2011. The loss of $4 billion in real estate value put the state final value at $468 billion.

Equalization takes into account changes in the real estate market and economy and is performed on residential, commercial, agricultural, undeveloped, ag. forest, forest and other property, such as homes or buildings on a farm. Personal property includes watercraft, machinery tools, equipment and fixtures in manufacturing and commercial business.

Economic changes accounted for $25 million in lost real estate value for Green County in 2012, while new construction added $20 million. Other changes reduced the total real estate value by $3.6 million.

Green County's manufacturing real estate value bounced up 5 percent, about $3.5 million; commercial property climbed slightly less at 3 percent, but up $8.3 million. Residential real estate values dragged everything down by losing 1 percent, or $21.2 million. Agricultural land lost 4 percent, or $2.3 million in value.

Township and city municipalities saw the best improvements, although small, in values last year.

Towns' values remained about the same - up less than 0.1 percent - adding just $1.2 million to the value, which came from personal property values rising $1.6 million. Residential real estate lost $3.3 million, while commercial added $1.4 million and manufacturing added a half million dollars. Agricultural land value lost $2.3 million, or 4 percent. Township equity values total $1.5 billion.

The cities of Brodhead and Monroe were up about one-half of a percent, with a combined increase of $4 million, to end at $796 million. There, too, personal property values increased to make the difference, up $3 million.

City residential values were down 2 percent, or $11.8 million. Commercial and manufacturing both were up 5 percent, mostly due to improvements on the land. Commercial values were up $10.2 million, and manufacturing gained $2.6 million.

Villages felt the brunt of decreases with a 2.4 percent drop in their values last year, down $8.4 million, nearly all of it in real estate values.

Village residential real estate was down $6 million, or 2 percent. Commercial also was down, $3.3 million, or 6 percent. Manufacturing held on to a faint $400,000 increase in values, representing a 3 percent rise. The real estate total drop of $8.9 million was not made up by villages' personal property values, which rose a meager $482,000. The villages were left with $8.4 million less compared to last year and standing at $338 million.

According to the DOR, Wisconsin's real estate market is stabilizing, with notable increases in manufacturing and commercial property values. Manufacturing property saw an overall 3 percent increase because of new manufacturing construction. Commercial property also increased, by 1 percent, due to new construction.



Townships

Out of the county's total gains and losses, the northwestern townships saw the best improvement in values last year.

The towns of York, Adams, Washington, Jordan and Monroe all saw strong increases. In 2011 and 2010, some of those townships were bleeding out.

York township, especially, went from losing 2.6 percent in 2011 to gaining 2.9 percent last year. The majority of the $2.4 million gain came from $2 million in residential increases. But the township still has 4.5 percent lost in 2010 to make up.

The best percentage gain this past year was in Jordan township with a 7.5 percent increase in values - all to the good of its 3-year values; the township had 0.4 percent gains in each of the previous two years. Jordan added $4 million to its value, $2.4 in commercial improvements and $1.7 million in personal property values in 2012. The township equalized value is now at $58.7 million.

Adams also saw 3-year gains, 3.1 percent last year on top of 0.4 percent in each of the previous two years. This year's boom came in residential improvements, up 7 percent, or $1.6 million. Minor losses in other types of real estate was not enough to lose the momentum, and Adams landed at $47 million, up $1.4 million from last year.

The second greatest percentage gain last year was 4.9 percent in Monroe township, with $4.8 million increase, setting it at a final equalized value of $104 million. Monroe township's annual increase in values is a strong comeback from a -1.2 percent and -0.7 percent, and a total loss of 1.8 million, in the previous two years.

Washington township also walked out of the red of the 2010 and 2011. With a 3.9 percent rise in 2012, and a $2.7 million increase, Washington wiped away $1.7 million in those previous losses and left itself with an extra million to end at $73.1 million. Washington had its increases spread among everything except manufacturing. Residential added $944, 000; commercial added another $920 million; other land and improvements added $739,000. Even agricultural land and forests contributed $181,000 together. Manufacturing shaved off $146,000.

The biggest loss in township equalized values was Brooklyn, with 5.2 percent loss, or $6.2 million, to end at $112 million. Most of the loss came from residential values, down 7 percent or $5.9 million. Commercial losses were $82,000 and agricultural land loss $148,000. Brooklyn lost 4.2 percent or $5 million in 2010, and gained a little, 0.8 percent or $900,000, in 2011.

After a 3 percent loss in 2011, New Glarus township lost another 3.5 percent in 2012 to end at $137 million in total value. The drop came mainly from the township's loss of $5.2 million in residential value, down 4 percent. Agricultural was down $91,000, but land values and improvements in other real estate added $275,000. New Glarus township lost $4.3 million in 2011, after a gain of 0.8 percent or $1.2 million in 2010.

Cadiz township had the second biggest percent loss in 2012, down 3.9 percent or $2.5 million, after staying strong the previous two years. Piling on top of $1.6 million in losses in residential real estate values, commercial lost $8,900, and manufacturing lost $90,000. Agricultural land lost $151, 000. Other land, not for agricultural or forestry, lost $1.4 million in value but made up $615,000 on improvements. Cadiz had gained $2.3 million in the previous two years, with 2.1 and 1.6 percent increases. The township total value now stands at $62 million.



Cities and villages

The $4 million net gain in city values comes from Monroe, with a 1 percent increase in equalized values worth $6.6 million. Brodhead lost 2 percent of its total worth, down $2.7 million. Tax increment districts values are reported separately and are not included in equalization value reports.

Monroe lost $2.9 million in residential values, a 1 percent drop, but gained $7 million in commercial value and almost a half million in manufacturing value. Personal property added $2.1 million. The city ended 2012 with $642 million in equalized property value.

Brodhead saw $9 million in residential losses, an 8 percent drop. Commercial brought $3.3 million to the table, and manufacturing added another $2.1 million, leaving the city with a $3.5 million loss. The city's total value is now at $153.8 million.

The villages of New Glarus and Albany lost the most amount of money from value losses.

New Glarus was down 2 percent, or $3.8 million compared to 2011, to end at $153 million in 2012. Residential values were down $2.1 million, or 2 percent. Commercial was also down, $2.9 million, or 8 percent. Manufacturing was up 9 percent, or $1 million. Personal property added another quarter million dollars.

Albany dropped 6 percent of its value, or $3 million. Those losses came from residential, down $2.5 million, or 6 percent. Commercial values were down 5 percent, or $323, 000. Manufacturing was down minimally $2,300. Personal property was also down, $170,000, or 13 percent. Albany final values ended at $50 million.

Monticello lost $1.2 million, or 2 percent, to end at $65 million in total value. Losses came from residential, down $965,000 or 2 percent, and from manufacturing, mostly improvements (buildings), down $780,000 or 58 percent. Commercial property increased $65,000, and personal property added $414, 000.

The only bright spot among villages was Browntown, where values were up 1 percent or $164,000, to end at $11 million at the end of 2012. Browntown residential and commercial values took small hits less than 1 percent, losing $34,000 and $15,000 respectively. Manufacturing improvements moved up 28 percent to add $167,000. Personal property also increased in value, 20 percent, or add $35,000 to the total.