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| Articles about Property Tax |
| Property tax relief is no sure thing | | 2008-06-25 17:56:00 | | First, to clear up the confusion: Last July, Daniels froze tax bills in Marion County at 2006 levels and ordered a new reassessment because of evidence that business property had been undervalued, creating a higher-than-expected burden on homeowners. Residents in some neighborhoods were facing tax hikes of 50 to 300 percent and a rebellion was in full swing.The revolt helped underdog Greg Ballard beat incumbent Democratic Mayor Bart Peterson last fall. And the freeze convinced many taxpayers -- rightly or wrongly -- that their 2007 taxes wouldn't go up much over 2006. So when they received their new assessments and catch-up bills this month, many were stunned to see increases only slightly lower or in some cases higher than the original bills sent out last year. These taxpayers have until July 10 to pay the difference.
| | By: Indianapolis Real Estate News | | |
| | Woodstock Property Tax: Going Up | | 2008-06-24 07:36:17 | | Woodstock voted to approve next year’s budget with an increase in the millage rate. Which means your property tax bill is going up. Congratulations!
According to data compiled by city officials, a one-mill rate increase for a homeowner with a $200,000 home is an added $49 in taxes, bringing the total tax bill up to $490. [...] | | By: Maxsell Real Estate | | |
| | New Tax Foundation Study Analyzes New York Property Tax Reform Proposal | | 2008-06-10 23:00:00 | | Across the country people are upset about property taxes, and New York is no exception. In fact, New York State has some of the highest property taxes in the nation. But it looks like there might soon be some improvements to the state's property tax system. A new Tax Foundation Fiscal Fact analyzes the recommendations in a report recently issued by the New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief. The bipartisan panel was established last year by Governor Eliot Spitzer to propose solutions to rein in ballooning property taxes while maintaining the state's commitment to public education. Here's an excerpt from the Fiscal Fact, "Sound Tax Policy Coming to New York (?)," by Josh Barro:We've only preliminarily reviewed the Commission's report, but on balance it appears to contain a good set of recommendations. The proposals appear to improve an existing property tax rebate program that rewards school districts for raising taxes; provide a meaningful cap on property tax levies | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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| Champaign Property Tax Levy | | 2008-06-02 03:02:00 | | Last night, the Champaign City Council tentatively approved a property tax hike. I favor keeping Champaign’s property tax steady at the same $1.2659 per hundred dollars of valuation used last year. I won’t bother to discuss the affordability of property taxes or how property values (and therefore taxes) have been increasing more rapidly than inflation; those arguments are well-documented. Instead, let’s concentrate on what property tax revenues mean to the city. During the staff presentation, Richard Schnuer, Champaign’s Finance Director, showed a line graph of the major components of the property tax levy: library, pensions, capital improvements, and the General Fund. These lines were stacked on top of each other, and each increased over time due to the expected growing obligations of the city. He added a blue line, which was called "additional." This represented the amount left over, or in some years, the amount that we were short. Even at the same $1.2659 tax rate as last y | | By: Geeks Undercover | | |
| | Cyprus property tax receipts tumble 17% | | 2008-05-25 15:18:00 | | A slump in Cyprus property prices led to a dramatic decline in revenue for the government, with receipts from capital gains taxes on mostly property deals tumbling 17% YoY in the first four months of 2008, while income from property taxes fell 25% YoY.Capital gains taxes in the period from January till April 2008 fell 17% to EUR 116.18 mln from EUR 139.42 mln in the same period a year ago, while property revenue fell 25% to EUR 1.5 mln from EUR 2 mln a year ago.The decline in revenue from property dealings forced the total tax revenue of Cyprus in the first four months of the year to EUR 554.19 mln, up only 2% YoY compared to EUR 532.11 mln collected in the same period in 2007.
| | By: Cyprus Real Estate News | | |
| | Unofficial FAQ’s for MCD Property Tax | | 2008-05-17 01:25:50 | | Due to the overwhelming response on my article How to pay MCD property tax, I have decided to compile all the questions posted by users and the answers posted by Ramandeep (from egoverments which is the organisation who have created the mcdpropertytax.in online website) into a frequently asked questions format.
This will help everyone find [...] | | By: Social Cause India | | |
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| Saskatchewan bracing for property tax increases | | 2008-04-15 09:10:00 | | Property owners in Saskatchewan are being warned to brace for higher taxes, even after a big cash infusion from Ottawa for infrastructure.
Municipal Affairs Minister Bill Hutchinson says $635 million that the province will get through the Building Canada plan will be a "very big help" for municipalities. But Hutchinson says it won't flow overnight and acknowledges people should brace themselves | | By: News Alert | | |
| | Property tax relief proves elusive for many | | 2008-04-05 18:01:00 | | Manolis is not alone: Nearly 30,000 homeowners in Marion County are likely to receive revised bills higher than their original 2007 bills because of the reassessment, according to an analysis by The Indianapolis Star.More than 20,000 of those who will end up paying more are in Center Township, where The Star found seven census tracts in which bills are likely to increase for 75 percent or more of the homeowners. Across the township, bills are expected to increase on four of every 10 homes.
| | By: Indianapolis Real Estate News | | |
| | Property Tax Reform Might Be on November Ballot in Nevada | | 2008-02-28 00:00:00 | | Nevada voters might get to weigh in on property tax changes this November if former state legislators Sharron Angle and Don Gustavson collect enough signatures to qualify an amendmet for the ballot. From Tax Analysts' State Tax Today (subscription required): In her fourth attempt to put a Proposition 13-style constitutional amendment on the November 2008 ballot, a former Nevada state lawmaker got permission on February 22 to start collecting voter signatures after a judge required union opponents to suggest language they wouldn't challenge in court. . . .Angle's proposal would cap the maximum tax that can be levied on real property at 1 percent of the base value, which is defined as the "taxable value from which the assessed value for the fiscal year 2003-2004 was calculated." County assessors would determine the base value for property not assessed in that year. Base value increases would be capped at 2 percent per year or the rate of inflation, whichever | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | | Property Tax Rates unchanged for 2008 | | 2008-02-11 11:34:10 | | It didn’t get much coverage in the media, but Houston County quietly set property tax millage rates for 2008 at last Monday’s county commission meeting. Rates for this year will remain the same as last year at 21.5 mills for the county assessment (A mill is equal to one-tenth of a cent). In 2007, there [...] | | By: Dothan Home Search | | |
| | | Property Tax Cuts Are No Free Lunch | | 2008-01-28 00:00:00 | | As many states continue debating the issue of cutting of property taxes while raising other taxes, a friendly reminder to policymakers and voters on the public finance of property taxes: there is no such thing as a free lunch. How to provide property tax relief can basically be summed up in one simple equation:Local Property Tax Burden = Level of Local Government Services X Cost Per Unit of Local Government Services X Local Share of Financing Local Government Services X Share of Local Revenue that comes from property taxesIn other words, in order to reduce property tax burdens, you have one of four options.First, you can cut the level of services provided by government. Second, you can improve government efficiency at the local level (possibly by eliminating rents acquired by public sector workers). Third, you can increase state level financing of local government services, thereby raising taxes at the state level, typically on sales or income. Or finally, local governments can switch to a different tax source besides property taxes. | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | | Nevada Supreme Court Hears Property Tax Overassessment Case | | 2008-01-08 00:00:00 | | In Lake Tahoe, property owners were heard today by the Nevada Supreme Court over their property taxes. Some 300 of the landowners won in the lower court after they convinced a judge that their property had been overassessed for tax purposes. Rather than order a reassessment, though, the judge ordered the taxes rolled back two years to the 2002-03 level. The local government, for equity reasons, extended the rollback to all taxpayers, but argued that correct remedy is re-appraising the property, not simply rolling back the taxes.Deputy Attorney General Karen Dickerson said the court has the power to roll back assessments "only to the extent of excess valuation." She said what Griffin's order did was to give "a windfall to a group of property owners at Incline Village" by rolling the taxes back two full reassessment cycles.Deputy Attorney General Dennis Belcourt argued a two-year rollback is unconstitutional under Nevada's constitution because revaluation must | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Fire Isiah! New York City Council Threatens Madison Square Garden's Property Tax Exemption | | 2008-01-07 00:00:00 | | The NY Times reports that the New York City Council is threatening to take away the property tax exemption for the World's Most Famous Arena, Madison Square Garden (MSG). This comes at a time when the Garden's biggest tenant is involved in scandal after scandal, not including the way the team is performing on the court, which could also be called a scandal.While this move to take away a property tax exemption for the Garden is a step in the right direction in terms of public finance, the timing makes you realize that special tax provisions are always dependent upon the mercy of government officials. Government officials can giveth and taketh away tax credits, often for reasons that are arbitrary and in many cases downright ridiculous. To some degree, this may be one of them. While one city council member says the Knicks' performance on the court is not the main reason for this action, the Times quote suggests it could be playing some role:“I’m not going to be s | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Property Tax Assessors in Egypt Return to Work | | 2007-12-18 00:00:00 | | 55,000 Egyptian tax department employees are returning to work after a work stoppage where they demanded higher wages: <a href="http://ad.fr.doubleclick.net/jump/africa.iht.com/article;cat=article;sz=190x90;;ord=123456789?" target="_blank"><img src="http://ad.fr.doubleclick.net/ad/africa.iht.com/article;cat=article;sz=190x90;;ord=123456789?" width="170" height="60" border="0" alt="" /></a> They carried banners reading, | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Property Tax Deduction for All Act, by US Rep. Ron Paul | | 2007-12-11 00:00:00 | | Congressman Ron Paul is yet again chipping away at the back-breaking tax burden on middle-class Americans with his recently proposed legislation. The Property Tax Deduction for All Act would make taxes on property an “above the line” deduction, meaning that taxpayers could deduct their property taxes without having to itemize all their deductions.
This would make the deduction available to millions of homeowners who take the standard deduction.
read more | | By: from Reason to Freedom | | |
| | Washington Governor Seeks Property Tax Limit Reinstatement | | 2007-11-27 00:00:00 | | Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) has called a special legislative session to reinstate the 1 percent property tax cap invalidated by the state supreme court, as we reported here. The governor's previous plan of merely asking the local governments not to tax more didn't work:Gregoire has urged local governments to continue heeding the 1 percent cap. The governor said Monday that she decided to call the Legislature into session because a handful of local governments said they planned to take advantage of the Supreme Court decision and raise taxes above the cap."I'd hoped that local governments would feel as I did. They couldn't give me the guarantee, and that was the tipping point," she said.Another proposal would allow middle-income homeowners to defer up to one-quarter of their property taxes, with interest.Democratic leaders in the House and Senate support the proposal. Their party holds large majorities in both chambers.But Senate Republican Leader Mike Hewitt, R-Walla Wall | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Washington Supreme Court Invalidates Property Tax Limit | | 2007-11-09 00:00:00 | | Yesterday, the Washington Supreme Court ruled that Initiative 747, which limits property tax increases to 1 percent per year, is unconstitutional. The court split 5-4 in the case, Washington Citizens Action v. State, with the majority holding that I-747 was ambiguous as to its effects on property taxes. The majority held that because I-747 was an amendment to a law that had already been declared unconstitutional, it has no effect. The dissenters argued that I-747 was not misleading, and voters understood that the effect of it would be to limit property tax increases, and they approved this.Before 1997, property taxes increases in Washington State were limited to the lesser of inflation or 6 percent, unless voters approved a higher number. In 1997, Referendum 47 allowed local taxing districts to increase property taxes faster than inflation, but still subject to the 6 percent limit. This middle number, the "limit factor," was subject to supermajority requirements and | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Appealing Your Property Tax Bill | | 2007-11-04 17:29:32 | | With the recent decline in Los Angeles area property values, one of the most commonly-asked questions is, "Why do I have to pay such high property taxes when my home is worth less than the assessed value?" The answer is,... | | By: Broker Banker Blog | | |
| | Florida Property Tax Reform | | 2007-10-30 17:49:43 | | It’s voters’ turn: The Florida Legislature passed property tax reform and a proposed amendment will appear on the January ballot. The amendment offers moderate relief for homeowners and slight relief for commercial property, but it does not go as far as an earlier House proposal. To become law, the proposal must still receive 60 percent [...]
| | By: Orlando Real Estate | | |
| | Brunori: Killing Property Tax Deadly to Local Power | | 2007-09-28 07:00:00 | | George Washington University Professor David Brunori had this to say to those in Georgia contemplating elimination of property taxes in the state: local governments will be essentially powerless. From the Atlanta Journal-Constitution:He would replace the lost revenue (only $8 billion) with state aid and more local option sales taxes. The additional state revenue would be raised by expanding the sales tax base to include services and many necessities such as food.We know what would happen in Georgia if Richardson's plan is successful. Without an independent source of revenue, local governments' power and authority would be curtailed. And that is a terrible outcome.Brunori's summary:In the end, local governments would be at the mercy of the legislature. When times are tough, legislatures always cut local aid first. And there is the problem of legislative control over local government spending - all central funding comes with strings attached.Brunori is correct. The underlying theme is th | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Florida Property Tax Amendment Removed From Ballot | | 2007-09-25 07:00:00 | | Yesterday, Leon County Chief Circuit Judge Charles A. Francis ordered a constitutional amendment that would slash property taxes off the January 29, 2008 Florida ballot. The proposed amendment would replace the "Save Our Homes" amendment, which currently limits property tax assessment increases on homesteads (primary homes) to 3 percent per year. Each existing homeowner would choose to keep the existing limit or accept a "super exemption" of 75 percent off first $200,000 of home value and 15 percent off the next $300,000. The minimum exemption would be raised to $50,000 (compared to the current maximum exemption of $25,000), and new homes could only receive the "super exemption." The judge ruled that the ballot language did not make clear that the "Save Our Homes" limitations would be phased out, nor that existing homeowners who opt for the "super exemption" would lose the limitations: Having read, reread, | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Key Florida Republican Comes Out Against Property Tax Cut Referendum | | 2007-09-07 07:00:00 | | The battle over Florida's property tax referendum is heating up given the news that the state is also facing an estimated $1 billion deficit. The news now is that one of the early supporters of the measure is backpedaling. From State Tax Notes:Florida Republicans who voted to put what they called the largest tax cut in history on the January 29 ballot are changing their minds about the proposal. The biggest shift came in late August, when Sen. Lisa Carlton (R), chair of the Fiscal Policy and Calendar Committee, said she would not support the measure because of its likely impact on school funding when the state is already grappling with a $1 billion deficit. Carlton is among the most powerful and respected leaders in the Legislature, and according to a Sarasota Herald-Tribune story, four of the six lawmakers who appeared with her at a luncheon said they would also vote no on January 29. The amendment would phase out the current property tax exemptions and caps for residents and replace | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Indiana Legislators Discovering Difficulties of Property Tax Reform | | 2007-09-04 07:00:00 | | Indiana lawmakers are finding that abolishing property taxes is much easier said than done. A panel of legislators and tax experts has been examining various options for property tax reform and having a hard time coming up with a solution that would be palatable to most taxpayers, voters, and legislators. From the (Lafayette) Journal & Courier Eliminate property taxes! Abolish property taxes! Get rid of all property taxes now!It's a public cry too loud for lawmakers to ignore. They face the ire of thousands of homeowners outraged over property tax bills that for many have skyrocketed this year.Lawmakers are listening, but they're also learning more about the magnitude of the challenge they face if they were to wipe out what is now $6.2 billion in property tax revenue for local governments—money that would have to be replaced somehow.. . ."The amount you would have to raise in sales and income taxes is just enormous," said Rep. Jeff Espich of Uniondale, the fiscal | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | New Hampshire Tackles Ambiguous Property Tax Exemptions | | 2007-08-31 07:00:00 | | It's no secret that income and sales taxes are often full of exemptions and deductions. We've noted before that, by exempting some items from taxation, the rates on everything else get pushed up. For instance, we found that the federal income tax system only taxes about half of all income—effectively doubling tax rates on the half that is taxed.In New Hampshire, the town of Epsom was searching for new revenue, as governments often do. They zeroed in on the state's property tax exemption for "charitable organizations," and assessed an assisted living facility and skilled nursing facility.The case, ElderTrust of Florida Inc. v. Town of Epsom (N.H. Jan. 18, 2007), raised the hard question: what is a "charitable organization"? The company operated nursing homes and hospitals, and all fees collected were used for these purposes. It did, however, have a parent for-profit company who held the mortgage to the land, to whom it paid rent, and hired another for- | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Business group lobbies for property tax relief | | 2007-07-13 00:26:00 | | A business watchdog group issued a report today concluding that the state should honor an agreement that would limit how much Massachusetts communities can collect in future taxes from business properties. The report, from the Boston Municipal Research Bureau, focused on an agreement that was part of a 2004 tax measure and that sought to reach a compromise at a time when residential property values in Massachusetts were rising far faster than commercial property values.
| | By: Boston real estate news | | |
| | “FairTax” in GA? Eliminating the Property Tax | | 2007-07-06 19:07:16 | | Looks like the “FairTax” methodology is getting a little traction in GA. Here is an article from the Marietta Daily Journal that descibes elminating the property tax portion of our annual taxation.
http://www.mdjonline.com/89/10264980.txt
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Rogers proposal likely to be DOA
Friday, July 6, 2007 3:27 AM EDT
Georgia legislators are at work on “a major tax overhaul that [...] | | By: Maxsell Real Estate | | |
| | Florida Property Tax Reform Will Go Before Voters | | 2007-06-18 07:00:00 | | Property tax reform in Florida is set to face the voters next January. The legislature recently passed a two-part measure that first includes immediate relief and then puts on the ballot a significant tax reform measure for next January. From Florida Today:Now that the politicians have spoken, Florida's property tax debate is headed for a seven-month public campaign that could pit businesses, teachers and firefighters against state legislators and tax critics.The Florida Legislature passed one reform Thursday that takes effect now: providing an average 7 percent tax cut to this year's bills of all property owners and a cap on the growth of local governments.But the biggest potential payoff for resident homeowners will be decided Jan. 29, when voters statewide will be asked to send Save Our Homes on a path to oblivion and replace it with a more generous "super" homestead exemption.Florida Today also has an informative Q&A section on the topic available here.Unfortu | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Pennsylvania Judge Strikes Down Property Tax System | | 2007-06-18 07:00:00 | | There are many stories in the news about property taxes lately. To raise this important source of local revenue, counties and states have varying ways of assessing land and improvements for tax purposes. Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, uses a "base year" (2002) for calculating taxes, so changes in value from 2002 to 2007 are not considered. With the recent fall-off in housing prices, this has created disparities within the county. For example, in Edgewood borough, prices have risen by 36% since 2002, while in the neighboring Pittsburgh suburb of Braddock, prices have fallen by 16% over that same period. But property owners in both boroughs pay taxes according to 2002 values. But on June 6, a Pennsylvania judge ruled that the system violates the state constitution: Assessment laws that allow the use of a base year assessment without requiring reassessments violate the Uniformity Clause because (1) base year assessments are not intended to assess all pr | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Florida Property Tax Reform Debate Continues | | 2007-04-20 07:00:00 | | If you have followed this blog, you will know that the Sunshine State is in the midst of a huge debate on the issue of property tax reform. Proposals range from eliminating the property tax on homeowners to merely scaling back the property tax. Both would be funded by hikes in the state's general sales tax. (Florida has no individual income tax.) The most recent news from the Sun-Sentinel:The Florida Senate early Thursday approved its version of a property tax relief package that rolls back city and county taxes while providing extra tax breaks for first time homebuyers and business owners.The vote sets the stage for the House and Senate to immediately begin working out their differences over how to address a brewing property tax crisis that led hundreds of homeowners from across the state to protest outside the Capitol earlier this week.The House plan, passed Wednesday, calls for a major cut in local government property taxes and would let voters decide if they want to eliminate p | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
| | Florida Property Tax Cut: Only for Seniors for Now | | 2007-04-10 07:00:00 | | The issue of property taxes is continuing to heat up in Florida. But before any major reform is done, Florida Governor Charlie Crist has cut property taxes for one select group: senior citizens. From the Orlando Sentinel:Gov. Charlie Crist on Monday signed into law a bill that will give low-income seniors a property-tax break.The measure (HB 333), which implements a constitutional amendment approved by voters last fall, increases the homestead exemption from $25,000 to $50,000 for residents 65 and older whose income does not exceed $23,414 in 2007."We have an obligation to provide our state's seniors the utmost respect and dignity," Crist said. "Unfortunately, high property taxes are forcing many seniors to choose which bills they can afford to pay. This legislation provides additional help to those who need it most and can help make living in Florida more affordable."Special property tax laws in favor of senior citizens are popular, but they are not a free lunc | | By: Tax Policy Blog | | |
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