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Taxes are all about not getting C/O and permits and grieving. I have a 55k kitchen in my 610-630k house. I did 80% of the work myself. From the outside my house looks normal, on the inside it is probably one of the top 5% nicest homes in my area. I have neighbors that pay 4k more a year than me and have lots that are 3k square feet smaller, i'm sure they don't have marble and natural quartzite in there kitchen and bath's. The difference my home was grieved for 15 years straight before I bought it and I have continued this using same company as the old owner. My home is not a rebuild its a a late 1950's 1940 sq ft split. If your neighbor pays 10k less than you for double the space he must have new or a rebuilt home and it will catch up. A house around the block from me was 1100 sq ft and paying about 9600 w/ star. It is now 3k sq feet and 22k w/ star.
Quite the opposite here. My house is smallish and old. I do everything with permits and so forth.
The neighbors have twice the space and it is a legal mother/daughter dwelling. We have the same size yard. 1 acre in Suffolk.
The houses were built the same year except that they added on an entire wing. Going from 2600 to close to 5000.
I am grieving this year again but was already rejected twice.
I would appreciate the name of the company you have been using. Tia.
By "here" I meant where I live - try to keep up. See my location up in the header? And try to calm down. You have your heart to think about.
Wow! I thought property taxes were dirt cheap down there Twingles? (i figured 2-3k max unless you had a million dollar home) Im kind of surprised actually. Interesting.
Wow! I thought property taxes were dirt cheap down there Twingles? (i figured 2-3k max unless you had a million dollar home) Im kind of surprised actually. Interesting.
Places where other NYers (especially LIers) flock to, end up becoming just like NY. Some places, Like Carey, NC. which actually sought-out NYers- attracting them with advertising campaigns and such, did so because they wanted those "rich NYers" who were used to high taxes, so that they could grab a piece of the pie for their own coffers. Never follow the herd!
You do realize that it usually seems like you're still trying to convince yourself rather than anyone still left on the God forsaken island, don't you?
Not at all. I'd say that such an observation is being inferred purely by the reader. I don't see how my stating the mere facts of my circumstances (and usually only when prodded) could elicit such an opinion. Only on LI would people accuse someone who lives in a mobile home in BFE of bragging!
Yes, it is more of a "close family and close friend" thing elsewhere. It seems like, on LI, it tends to be about numbers (like everything else)- "Oh, I had 300 people at little Timmy's 2nd birfsday party...". And people in many other places (such as where I now am) don't seem to be into the have-a-party-for-every-little-thing mentality; and taking a date that you barely know to a family function is considered to be not in good taste- and functions here tend not to be the big to-do's that they are on LI, with large fancy hired halls and catering and all- but more often in people's homes, with home-cooked food; or in small venues.
While I don't doubt that happens in certain circles on Long Island, the thing is, in my circles, I don't see that happening. I still say that's because this board is dominated by people living in northwest Nassau County who commute to high pay, high stress, long hour jobs, and who live in "keeping up with the Joneses" type neighborhoods. Not all of Long Island is like that, and I have no interest in having any part of that culture.
Many reasons. (Although I don't know if i qualify as one who spends a lot of time here, since I am often MIA for a month or more at a time- but...
A)It's FASCINATING! As an observer of humankind, I find it utterly astounding and fascinating that people would tolerate what they do on present LI, and pay top-dollar to do so. It's as if I can't believe it- I just have to look here to see that people are STILL doing it and defending it.....and try to get an idea of the mentality that causes them to do so.
B)HOPE: I initially came here, hoping that maybe more people would have "woken up" by now, and would have either started rebelling, or at least extricating themselves from that locale. I do see a fair amount of people who are very disgusted and/or who are indeed leaving- which is encouraging- and that number has gone WAY up compared to 10 years ago, when I first came across this forum.
C)It's like a bad accident- you just HAVE to look!
D)REMINISCING. I like it when I see others (or have the opportunity myself) speaking of what LI once was, many years ago, when it was a wonderful place.
E)I do still feel some allegiance to the place- since I grew-up there (in a much better time) and since I lived there for quite a while, and have the accent, and understand the culture, and all. I may hate what LI has become, but I'll always be a Long Islander- no matter where I live- and I'll always have the fond memories of what LI once was.
And quite frankly, I don't come to this forum as often as I could, because I often find it quite depressing- seeing posts about how the extra bloated layers of local government say "Jump", and everyone says "How high?".- Seeing posts from people worried about having a permit to move a pebble in their driveway or blow their nose in their own home for which they pay the local goobermint $12K a year for the privilege of living in.
Oh...and...
F)It makes me even more grateful to be where i now am. Time has a way of dulling the bad and making the good seem more vivid- but this forum keeps us expats in a realistic view- so that we don't just remember the good and let the bad wash away....but rather, it serves as a constant reminder of the reality of why we left.
A, C, D, E, and F make some sense (not saying I agree with you, but I understand where you are coming from). But B makes no sense. Why do you care if other people choose to stay on Long Island. How does that affect you in any way?
My wife and kids just returned from spending the holidays on LI. Being a big family of Italian immigrants, her family is *CLOSE*. We discuss moving back occasionally since we've moved out west.
My issue is the COL. Going by a calculator, we'd have to earn damn near $300K to maintain a similar lifestyle.
Plus, I'm concerned about the future fiscal viability of the current spending habits of the state. Of course property taxes top the list and we'd have an eternal ~$1000+/mo payment.
I dunno. Would be great to spend more time with family and have my kiddos grow up knowing the family moreso than they're afforded now, but I'm not sure I'm willing to risk the financial security & freedom of my family to do so.
Thank you. I think that part of the problem with this forum is that many people won't admit it, but they are jealous of others. Although the NYC commuters act as if they are happy with their lifestyle, I truly believe that they are jealous of people with work-life balance, and that is why they look down on and flame people like myself. I also feel that although the ex-pats keep talking about how happy they are for leaving LI I do feel that they are jealous of those of us who found a way to make living on LI work. Otherwise, I don't understand why they would feel the need to flame those of us who choose to work on LI rather than in NYC, or those of us who choose to stay on LI rather than leave.
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