Scorpions, rattlesnakes and #@%$*&! property taxes

[REWahoo]

No, this is not another "Why you shouldn't move to Texas" rant - OK, maybe it is...

I just received a "Notice of Appraised Value" from the property Appraisal District. The nice folks down at the county tax office think my house is suddenly worth 24%more than last year! Looks like the vaunted state property tax reform passed three years ago is coming back to haunt us. The basic premise was to increase taxes on businesses in the state which would then be passed on to school districts allowing them to reduce the oppressive property taxes traditionally used for school funding. Here's how it's working out for me:

Year: Yr-over-yr tax increase
2000: 4.9%
2001: 3.2%
2002: 4.1%
2003: 1.6%
2004: 0.8%
2005: 0.6% Property tax reform passed
2006: -3.5%
2007: -6.5%
2008: 10.5% (projected)
2009: 10.5% (projected)
2010: 3.0% (projected)

The reason my 2008 taxes aren't increasing the full 24% in 2008 is due to a 10% per year limit on the amount your appraised value can increase. And yes, I will protest the increase, but living in a rural area with few comparative sales is a handicap - especially when most of the recent sales have been high dollar 3,500+ sf mini mansions in the upscale adjoining neighborhood.

/rant off/

 

[brewer12345]

Cry me a river. If you want real fun, come on up to "God's country" (AKA NJ). Home of the 10% property tax increase every year.

 

[REWahoo]

If you want real fun, come on up to "God's country" (AKA NJ). Home of the 10% property tax increase every year.

How can she afford to live there?

 

[W2R]

Sorry to hear about your rising appraised value for taxes. It would be bad enough in most states, but in Texas (where the property taxes are staggering to begin with) a few percentage points increase y/y is quite a blow.

Maybe you need to invite the tax assessor/collector over for dinner. Oh, I forgot - - that may be how things get done in Louisiana, but "Texas is a whole 'nother country".

 

[Martha]

REW, what you need is a state income tax.

We had an increase in assessment of about 25% as well. We contested the assessment based a purchase agreement for the sale of our place, which did not close. That was handy and we easily got it reduced. Of course, the bad thing is that our place is not worth as much as we would like.

 

[donheff]

REW, what you need is a state income tax.

Yeah, like DC at 9% I guess that could be my safety plan if the economy gets bad enough -- move to a low tax state.

 

[brewer12345]

How can she afford to live there?

Can God create a property tax bill that even she can't afford to pay?

 

[Bestwifeever]

50 percent increase in assessed value (and tax) plus 3 percent state income tax near Chicago.

 

[REWahoo]

Can God create a property tax bill that even she can't afford to pay?

I can't answer that, but I'm suspicious that may be one of the reasons she doesn't live in Texas.

 

[Moemg]

And then there is Florida home to the truly bizarre property tax situation .

 

[bssc]

How can she afford to live there?

Religious institutions don't have to pay taxes. That is why my dad founded his religion.

 

[Gearhead Jim]

Tell me about Florida property taxes, please.
We're toying with the idea of buying a condo down there for winter stays, I understand that non-residents pay different property taxes than residents. Details?

 

[brewer12345]

Tell me about Florida property taxes, please.
We're toying with the idea of buying a condo down there for winter stays, I understand that non-residents pay different property taxes than residents. Details?

Just to cut through the chase:

Residents get to grit their teeth and write checks.

Non-residents, well, put it this way: bend over, grab your ankles, and try to relax.

 

[73ss454]

Tell me about Florida property taxes, please.
We're toying with the idea of buying a condo down there for winter stays, I understand that non-residents pay different property taxes than residents. Details?

It's a long story but the bottom line is that Florida is one screwed up state for property taxes.

The longer you live here the less property taxes you pay with a 3% annual cap. So if you buy a house for lets say 300K and your property taxes are 6K your neighbor with the same house that's been there for lets say 5 years could be paying 3K.

Now since it's only a winter thing you can't homestead because you have a primary home in another state. This allows the state to readjust your taxes every year to what ever they deem necessary.

 

[73ss454]

REW be nice, we all have to pay our fair share. (heh)

 

[REWahoo]

REW be nice, we all have to pay our fair share. (heh)

Translation: Misery loves company...

 

[73ss454]

Translation: Misery loves company...

That's one thing about you, you catch on quick.

 

[ziggy29]

My appraisal notice -- also in Texas and not all that far away from REW -- also just came a few days ago. Our assessed value is up 4.7% from last year. I haven't decided whether to challenge it or not.

It's amazing how assessed values can keep rising when housing is supposed to be in the tank. Granted, the housing market in TX isn't nearly as bad as on the coasts, but still...

 

[W2R]

It's amazing how assessed values can keep rising when housing is supposed to be in the tank. Granted, the housing market in TX isn't nearly as bad as on the coasts, but still...

We are having the same problem here. Our tax assessor sent out a letter saying to expect higher taxes, and claiming that property values here have risen substantially. Yeah, right? I'd really love to get the same price for my house that I could have received in 2005, and I have repaired almost all the hurricane damage.

But, overall our taxes are very low so I have no complaints (other than basing a tax increase on something illogical). I paid only $550.81 property taxes for my median priced house last year, which was maybe half of what I paid before Katrina. They lowered the appraisals in flooded areas en masse to help returning residents. It will be interesting to see how high our taxes become this December.

 

[Notmuchlonger]

Guess I wont complain about California property tax after reading these issues.

 

[ziggy29]

Guess I wont complain about California property tax after reading these issues.

The only people who have to complain about property taxes in CA, thanks to Prop 13, are those who buy a home and pay 4x as much tax as their neighbor who lived in a nearly identical home for 30 years.

When I bought my small condo there in 1989 -- my first home -- I paid nearly twice as much in property tax as my parents who had a detached 4/2 SFR worth almost 3x as much as my condo.

 

[W2R]

Guess I wont complain about California property tax after reading these issues.

Go ahead! Complain away... I think that if you are a new resident in California, you probably have to pay more property taxes than others.

 

[OAG]

Last weekend in the Sunday paper (Columbus, Franklin County, Ohio) there was about a full page article (and several smaller related ones) that basically said do not expect any RE tax relief on the 2008 assessments due to falling prices. They even said that they do not even count the Foreclosures and "walk aways" in the process - which causes NO downward impact on your assessment. What a system - cut programs, reduce expenses, LWIYM (just within your means).

 

[lazygood4nothinbum]

And then there is Florida home to the truly bizarre property tax situation .

Tell me about Florida property taxes, please.
We're toying with the idea of buying a condo down there for winter stays, I understand that non-residents pay different property taxes than residents. Details?

this year we had many properties go down in real value yet their appraised value upon which taxes are based increased 3% due to the "save our home" amendment. homesteaded properties increase either by actual increases of real value, or the rate of inflation, either up to 3%.

as of this year, non-homesteaded properties are capped at 10% per year increases. i've seen talk in newspaper's about cutting that cap down to 5% but i don't know how far that's gotten.

here's an article from a month back...

Tallahassee tally: Legislature bad, tax commission worse -- Local Authority, Florida -- South Florida Sun-Sentinel.com

The amendment also would cap annual assessment increases for nonhomestead properties at 5 percent, close to the 3 percent cap that full-time Florida residents have.

Like the property-tax amendment ratified earlier this year, local governments and school boards could still raise tax rates to offset losses and circumvent the amendment's intent.

 

[Leonidas]

I'm right with you REW, mine's up 10% again this year.

You can thank Dan Patrick for helping to at least get a 10% cap. He tried to add an amendment to make it 5% but it didn't get out of committee.

Perhaps another Texan could answer a question. A speaker on a radio program the other day was talking about this issue, and he said that the state was pressuring the appraisal districts to really boost appraisals across the board. Why would the state care, we don't pay a state RE tax, why would it matter?