If you're thinking about owning the most expensive domicile in the Tri-Cities, you're going to have to open up the bank vault big time.

According to BC Assessment, the top address in the Tri-Cities is a home on Sunridge Court in Coquitlam valued at $3.32 million.

But Port Moody is no slouch, with the most expensive home in the city, located on Alderside Road, coming in at $3.12 million.

Port Coquitlam's priciest residence, which is located on Capital Court, hit $1.51 million in value on the BC Assessment rolls.

The top valued homes for 2013 in the villages of Anmore and Belcarra were $3.2 million and $2.9 million, respectively.

However, for the majority of Tri-Cities residents, their property assessments won't end up being quite as eye-popping.

Most single-family homeowners will see a modest change in the value of their homes, from a five-per-cent decrease to a 10-per-cent increase.

Most strata residential properties have changed in the range of a 10-per-cent drop to a 10-per-cent increase.

In all, there is $30-billion worth of property in Coquitlam on the assessment rolls, $10.9 billion in Port Coquitlam and another $7.7 billion in Port Moody.

Though most residential properties only made small gains in 2013, the value of commercial properties in parts of the Tri-Cities skyrocketed.

The average commercial property value increased between zero and 20 per cent, but in Burquitlam and the North Road area, as well as along Murray Street in Port Moody, those increases are even larger - between 20 to 30 per cent.

BC Assessment noted there are significant value increases for stratified offices and stratified retail properties along St. Johns Street in Port Moody, and in downtown Port Coquitlam.

Zina Weston, deputy assessor with BC Assessment, suggested several factors for the increased value in those areas, including the incoming Evergreen Line and different zoning and official community plans.

Those same factors are also playing a role in increasing the value of residential property in pockets of the Tri-Cities.

Weston pointed out neighbourhoods like Maillardville, Burquitlam and Burke Mountain had assessment increases in the 10-to 20-percent range.

BC Assessment officials also cautioned there are areas and pockets that have declined in value since assessments were done in July.

The average or "benchmark" home in Maillardville built in the 1950s had an assessed value of $677,000 for 2013, compared to $652,000 in 2012.

In Central Coquitlam, the average home built in the 1980s had a 2013 assessed value of $800,000, compared to $740,000 the previous year. On Burke Mountain, the average home built in 2009 jumped in assessed value to $840,000 from $800,000 in 2012.

Interestingly, the average low-rise two-bedroom strata unit built in 1990 dropped in value to $237,000 from $253,000 in 2012.

In Port Moody's Heritage Woods neighbourhood, the average home built in the late 1990s increased slightly in value to $1.1 million, compared to $1.07 million in 2012. In College Park, the typical home built in the 1960s increased in value to $634,000 in 2013 from $600,000 the previous year.

A typical strata townhouse with three bedrooms dropped in value to $305,000 from $310,000 in 2012.

PoCo saw the smallest increase in property values. The average home in the Citadel Heights area built in the 1990s basically remained flat at $678,000, compared to $677,000 in 2012.

The value of a typical home in Mary Hill also remained similar, with assessments nudging up slightly to $478,000, compared to $470,000 in 2012.

Though homeowners should be getting their paper assessments in the first couple of weeks of January, they can also go to BC Assessment's website to check out their assessment and look for sale comparables to see if their assessment is fair.

"In markets that have declined in value since the summer of 2012, the 2013 property assessment may be higher than current sales or listing prices," Weston said.

"Property owners who feel that their property assessment does not reflect market value as of July 1, 2012 or see incorrect information on their notice should contact BC Assessment as listed on the assessment notice."

jdeutsch@thenownews.com