Question about property taxes (Homestead, Rio: real estate, appraiser, budget)

[MrTudo]

We're interested in making an offer on a house about an hour from where we live now. There are several negatives however. First, while we do not need to sell our current house, we would still like to do so and as far as I can see, unless we virtually give it away, selling it is going to be tough.

Second negative which I believe we can overcome pretty easily is the house we are looking at is going to need to be renovated and personally I would build an addition on to it. That's money but again, it can be overcome.

Third and pobably most important are proprty taxes. The house we are interested in is owned by people who do not live there. It's owned by people who live in Ft Lauderdale. They bought it in 2004. The taxes on the real estate listing show $3520.00 which is HIGH in comparison to other houses in that area and the listing only shows the taxes from 2006. I have to believe that because the house is not homesteaded that the taxes are even higher for 2007 and as most of us know, taxes in 2008 will be higher still with people who do not have homestead protection really being open to this type of robbery.

If we buy this house, we would correct me if I am wrong be subjected to at least the taxes shown, and not have protection for the next cycle until our homestead would kick in. Hence, we would be paying substancially more than other people in the same neighborhood, in similar houses because we bought from out of town people rather than from people who live in the houses they are selling.

I guess one of my questions is, is there a way to appeal the taxes PRIOR to actually purchasing the house and is there any chance of getting those taxes lowered?

[firemed]

Originally Posted by MrTudo

We're interested in making an offer on a house about an hour from where we live now. There are several negatives however. First, while we do not need to sell our current house, we would still like to do so and as far as I can see, unless we virtually give it away, selling it is going to be tough.

Second negative which I believe we can overcome pretty easily is the house we are looking at is going to need to be renovated and personally I would build an addition on to it. That's money but again, it can be overcome.

Third and pobably most important are proprty taxes. The house we are interested in is owned by people who do not live there. It's owned by people who live in Ft Lauderdale. They bought it in 2004. The taxes on the real estate listing show $3520.00 which is HIGH in comparison to other houses in that area and the listing only shows the taxes from 2006. I have to believe that because the house is not homesteaded that the taxes are even higher for 2007 and as most of us know, taxes in 2008 will be higher still with people who do not have homestead protection really being open to this type of robbery.

If we buy this house, we would correct me if I am wrong be subjected to at least the taxes shown, and not have protection for the next cycle until our homestead would kick in. Hence, we would be paying substancially more than other people in the same neighborhood, in similar houses because we bought from out of town people rather than from people who live in the houses they are selling.

I guess one of my questions is, is there a way to appeal the taxes PRIOR to actually purchasing the house and is there any chance of getting those taxes lowered?

This is from today and it talks about filed petitions this year because their taxable value rose while their market value dropped, "The prices are artificial," Santamaria said. "Between 2002 and 2005 they spiraled to double and triple the value on paper. But those were artificial values. Now we are starting to come down to reality. The prices may still continue to drop until they become realistic, and until then you'll have to contest it."


More property owners expected to challenge tax bills (broken link)

[deckardc]

Originally Posted by MrTudo

If we buy this house, we would correct me if I am wrong be subjected to at least the taxes shown, and not have protection for the next cycle until our homestead would kick in.

Yes, you would be subjected to the taxes shown until you could apply for a Homestead Exemption which would not be until after Jan. 1, 2008. You will not be able to apply SOH until the second year of your Homestead Exemption. Most of your neighbors probably have a Homestead and Save Our Homes cap which is why their taxes are so much lower. That is why so many people want to vote out the SOH cap. It makes some homeowners carry more of the tax burden than others even though everyone uses the public services equally.

Originally Posted by MrTudo

I guess one of my questions is, is there a way to appeal the taxes PRIOR to actually purchasing the house and is there any chance of getting those taxes lowered?

As I understand it, no you can't appeal the taxes prior to buying. After you buy and they send out your first tax assessment, I think you have 30 days to challenge the assessment. Even then, it is very difficult to have them lowered. You have to have hard proof that the value the tax appraiser assigned to your house is inaccurate. If it's just because your neighbors are lower, especially if they have a Homestead and SOH, the assessor won't buy it. We have an acquaintance who has been fighting his assessment for two years with no success. Welcome to Florida's wacky tax laws.

[doggiebus]

The taxes on the house will be around 2% of the sale price of the home, nol getting around it. And if you qualify for homestead the home it will be $25,000 off that 2% (but they are trying to raise the homestead to $50,000, not done yet though). So a $200,000 home with no homestead exemption will pay around $4,000. With homestead exemption $3,500.

The taxes that the current owner pays probably are higher compared to the other neighbors, due to they just bought the place in 2004, the neighbors probably bought their homes earlier. My neighbor that has lived in her home for 20+ years pays half what I do, and the guy that bought 3 doors down from both of us in 2004 pays double what I do. So it all depends when you bought and how much you paid.

[riveree]

Ugh! I would not be so happy about that either .

I agree with the above - you can't ask for anything to be done about the taxes until you actually own the property. And yes, those would be your taxes until they reassess sometime after your purchase.

Here in Duval, we can "apply" for the homestead any time during the year, but it doesn't kick in until the following year. So the other unknown will be whether you can even get SOH at all should this amendment go through in January (if it passes, it will be retro to Jan 1, 2008)? You might want to double-check on that with your Property Appraiser's office....will you be guaranteed the option of SOH if you purchase in 2007 but aren't officially homesteaded until 2008?

Best of luck .

[maggiekate]

in January 2008, when we go to vote, if it does pass, you , and all who live in florida can vote on this new property tax bill. go to the tax collector web site
on the home you are looking at, it does explain in more. I moved here in 1999
and have the save the home cap, and the 25,000 , even if the vote is in favor of the new property tax bill, if you have, you are allowed to change, or keep it? Once you do change, you never get it back.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by deckardc

It makes some homeowners carry more of the tax burden than others even though everyone uses the public services equally.

Not always. If you don't use the school system, then you are getting less for your tax dollar. If you don't use county facilities, then you get less for your tax dollar.

I understand the facilities ARE there, and I have a right to use them, but I never have and never will. Same with the schools. So I pay more than my share for taxes.

[deckardc]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

I understand the facilities ARE there, and I have a right to use them, but I never have and never will.

So you don't drive on public roads, you wouldn't call the police if your car was stolen, you wouldn't call the fire department if your house was on fire, you never set foot on a public beach, you never walk on a sidewalk, you never go to a public park, you don't use public water, sewer, or trash, you would never use the public library, if you were in an accident you would refuse to get in a municipal ambulance and you would refuse to allow them to take you to a community hospital, if you decided to file a lawsuit you wouldn't go to the courthouse, etc.

Taxpayers pay for more than schools. If I pay $1000 a year more in taxes than my neighbor and the only thing we use in common is the same roads, I am still paying more for the same public service than he is.

[Lilybeans]

Originally Posted by deckardc

So you don't drive on public roads, you wouldn't call the police if your car was stolen, you wouldn't call the fire department if your house was on fire, you never set foot on a public beach, you never walk on a sidewalk, you never go to a public park, you don't use public water, sewer, or trash, you would never use the public library, if you were in an accident you would refuse to get in a municipal ambulance and you would refuse to allow them to take you to a community hospital, if you decided to file a lawsuit you wouldn't go to the courthouse, etc.

I do drive on roads, I might call the cops, I would call the Fd, I don't ever go to the beach, rarely go to parks, don't use the library, might use an ambulance (they bill you), the hospital isn't supported by property taxes, and the courthouse is not supported by property taxes.

Taxpayers pay for more than schools. If I pay $1000 a year more in taxes than my neighbor and the only thing we use in common is the same roads, I am still paying more for the same public service than he is.

If you pay $1000 more per year than your neighbor for the exact same services, then you are indeed paying more. If you have 5 kids in the school system, use public parks all the time, drive around all the time picking up and dropping off kids, and using county boat ramps, and your neighbor does none of that, then he is subsidizing you.

I guess we could do away with all those services and the commensurate taxes. Perhaps the best system would be a pay per use on the services.

[deckardc]

Originally Posted by Lilybeans

might use an ambulance (they bill you), the hospital isn't supported by property taxes, and the courthouse is not supported by property taxes.

Just curious, what county do you live in that has a privately owned courthouse? That could present a serious conflict of interest. The courthouse is paid for by county taxes, including property taxes. It is a public building, in fact your tax assessor should have an office at the courthouse.

Not all hospitals are privately owned. A community hospital is subsidized by taxes such as Bay Medical Center in Bay Co. Their ambulance service is also subsidized by taxes and they don't send you a bill.

If you don't know what your taxes are paying for, how can you be so confident that you are subsidizing everyone else? Perhaps you use something that someone else doesn't use so it balances out. FL does not have a state income tax so we pay more for property tax than many states in order to compensate. Property taxes in this state go toward the all public services, public maintenance, and public salaries in the state. FL uses other things such as sales tax (which are not the highest in the nation), hotel tax, and the state lottery to pick up the difference.

Unfortunately, FL still doesn't collect enough and now it is starting to show with all of the budget cuts the Governor has ordered. Although, many counties do waste money, such as mine, which has just wasted taxpayers money purchasing land for a new and unnecessary public courthouse.