WISCONSIN 



"Real estate, how valued. (1) Real property 

 shall be valued by the assessor from actual view 

 or from the best information that the assessor 

 can practicably obtain, at the full value which 

 could ordinarily be obtained therefore at pri- 

 vate sale. In determining the value the assessor 

 shall consider, as to each piece, its advantage or 

 disadvantage of location, quality of soil, quan- 

 tity of standing timber . . . 



"(b) In towns, he shall segregate into the 

 following classes on the basis of use and set 

 down separately in proper columns the acreage 

 and the value of the parts of land, exclusive of 

 improvements, and the improvements which 

 fall within each class : 



A. Residential 



B. Mercantile 



C. Manufacturing 



D. Agricultural 



E. Swamp, or waste 



F.l Productive forest land 



F.2 Nonproductive forest land 

 "(c) For the purpose of this subsection 

 "swamp or waste" means bog, marsh, lowland 

 brush or other nonproductive lands not other- 

 wise classified under this subsection; "produc- 

 tive forest land" means land which is producing 

 or is capable of producing commercial forest 

 products and is not otherwise classified under 

 this subsection; "nonproductive forest land" 

 means land which because of soil or site condi- 

 tions is not producing or is not capable of pro- 

 ducing commercial forest products and which is 

 not otherwise classified under this subsection." 

 Wisconsin Statutes Annotated 

 Sec. 70.32. 



The following material is taken from the 

 Property Assessment Manual for Wisconsin As- 

 sessors, v. I, Wisconsin Dep. of Taxation 1965. 



RESIDUAL LANDS 

 DEFINITION 



Residual lands are defined as those with use 

 classifications other than Residential (Class 

 A), Mercantile (Class B), Manufacturing 

 (Class C) or Agricultural (Class D) and which 

 are identified in the assessment roll as Swamp 

 or Waste (Class E), Productive Forest Land 

 (Class Fi), and Non-Productive Forest Land 

 (Class F 2 ). 



Class E — Swamp or waste land is further de- 

 fined by statute to include bog, marsh, lowland 



brush or other non-productive lands not other- 

 wise classified. 



Productive forest land (Fi) is defined as land 

 which is producing or is capable of producing 

 commercial forest products and is not otherwise 

 classified. Non-productive forest land (F2) in- 

 cludes land which because of soil or site condi- 

 tions is not producing or is not capable of pro- 

 ducing commercial forest products and which is 

 not otherwise classified. 



ASSESSMENT OF SWAMP OR WASTE 



Swamp lands command a wide range of prices 

 because of the varied use being made of this 

 class of property. When such lands serve as a 

 useful adjunct to a commercial cranberry bog, 

 for example, they are much more valuable than 

 similar lands not so located. Other swamp lands 

 throughout the state harbor wild life and have a 

 recreational potential which has been recog- 

 nized by state and federal conservation agen- 

 cies who have acquired much of this type of 

 acreage in recent years. Although sales to the 

 latter do not necessarily reflect ordinary market 

 value they should alert the local assessor to 

 the potential value of similar lands. Certain 

 swamp lands have a potential value for muck 

 farming where the muck is of sufficient depth 

 and the area can be successfully drained. In a 

 few areas of central Wisconsin certain swamp 

 lands produce a species of moss which grows 

 in the wild state, is harvested and has a com- 

 mercial use. This crop is very slow growing, is 

 not cultivated and is not regarded as an agricul- 

 tural pursuit. 



Much of Wisconsin's swamp acreage, particu- 

 larly in the northern two-thirds of the state, 

 has little value and is rarely sold as such, so 

 that the market value of such acreage is diffi- 

 cult to establish. When sold it is usually in 

 conjunction with other lands of a productive 

 nature. This requires careful analysis of such 

 sales by the assessor so that proper weight can 

 be given the various component lands in such 

 sales. 



A small amount of the total Class E acreage 

 of the state is regarded as waste land. Such 

 lands are barren, inaccessible and totally non- 

 productive or useful for any present purpose or 

 need. Such lands should, however, carry a nomi- 

 nal value. 



ASSESSMENT OF FOREST LANDS 



Although the greatest portion of Wisconsin 



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