Here Come The Northeast Style Taxes (Raleigh: transplants, sales, real estate)

[saturnfan]

For those folks thinking of moving here to escape high property taxes, think again.

Just as in other areas, decent folks will have their homes stolen from them as property values rise.

Shame the "paper" profit on homes is taxed even though an owner must leave to realize this increase.

Beware transplants, the new demand for homes will turn the Triangle into just what you are trying to escape.

So unfair to longtime residents whose misfortune is to be in areas that are "gentrifying". We don't get reassessed on investments until they are sold, why on homes? Revenue neutrality doesn't always seem to work fairly.i

newsobserver.com | Property tax bills start landing with a big thud

[goat1of2]

As the depression (oh, right, "recession") deepens, more and more people will drop from middle to lower class. Increased property taxes are one of the many ways we'll feel the squeeze. Those hurt most are those living on the old homeplace, inherited from ancestors, or bought decades ago. I worry about the elderly and anyone else trying to live off their savings. Will they just be forced to leave their homes? Or use reverse mortgages?

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

Originally Posted by saturnfan

For those folks thinking of moving here to escape high property taxes, think again.

Just as in other areas, decent folks will have their homes stolen from them as property values rise.

Shame the "paper" profit on homes is taxed even though an owner must leave to realize this increase.

Beware transplants, the new demand for homes will turn the Triangle into just what you are trying to escape.

So unfair to longtime residents whose misfortune is to be in areas that are "gentrifying". We don't get reassessed on investments until they are sold, why on homes? Revenue neutrality doesn't always seem to work fairly.i

newsobserver.com | Property tax bills start landing with a big thud

Hey, didn't this debate get beaten to death in another thread by you already?

http://www.city-data.com/forum/ralei...yle-taxes.html

FWIW, I would love to hear the details of how your alternative tax plan would work. You know, the one where I only pay taxes on the value of my house when I sell it in fifteen years. I'm sure all the policemen, school teachers, and road and school repair projects can wait fifteen years before they get any money input from me. I mean, I should be able to enjoy all of the services for free until the day comes when I finally sell the house right? It's not like teachers actually need yearly salaries to exist now do they? I guess if I never sell and just live in my house until the day I die I get to cheat the system all together as I would never have to pay taxes under your "plan" since I would have never sold the house.

Oh, that's right ... I forgot. We could go with your tax free plan for exisitng residents and then just stick the tab with all the new transplants by making them cover all these annual expenses by paying impact fees. Basically you are anti-growth but you are proposing paying for everything through growth. Seems like a contradiction of logic to me.

[In & Out]

My property taxes keep going down here. I am psyched. It was the opposite in MA, which is in the northeast. Property taxes there were 2 to 3 times the rate they are here and the homes themselves were over twice the price. It's a bargain here and getting better all the time.

[lottamoxie]

Just got my new property tax bill. It's about $220 higher than last year's. I was a bit spoiled in CA because they had Prop 13 and thus property taxes were capped (until/unless you sold real estate).

[findingmesomeday]

MA has a property tax cap too. But towns can ovverride that if the measure passes. Schools, police, fire--ALL come hat in hand every year asking for more money as what's in the budget doesn't suffice (funny--rising costs affect THEM too!). So we pass the measure and property taxes go up. It's unfortunately a fact of life. And where I live, there's not much business to absorb the financial hit so the property owners have to take on more than their fair share. I'm not complaining. I chose this town because of its quiet, bucolic nature.

According to the OP, the transplants are to blame for the rising tax bills. I don't think so. I think rising costs are affecting public service providers there too. And the way I understood the Wake Co tax bill was that the revaluation of properties only happens once every 8 years? So everyone's property just got revalued hence Saturnfans "sky is falling" post re: taxes? Many many areas revalue ANNUALLY. Wake Co residents are lucky.

[saturnfan]

Originally Posted by lottamoxie

Just got my new property tax bill. It's about $220 higher than last year's. I was a bit spoiled in CA because they had Prop 13 and thus property taxes were capped (until/unless you sold real estate).

Prop 13 is good.

If gov't needs money, they can up tax rates like sales taxes are raised.

People's taxes should not change if "paper" profits occur simply because the neighborhood gentrifies. The reevaluation should be done when the property changes hands and the profit is realized. This way, the new buyer knows what they're getting into.

Reevaluation is unfair to longtime residents who may now be on fixed incomes.

[North_Raleigh_Guy]

Originally Posted by saturnfan

Prop 13 is good.

If gov't needs money, they can up tax rates like sales taxes are raised.

People's taxes should not change if "paper" profits occur simply because the neighborhood gentrifies. The reevaluation should be done when the property changes hands and the profit is realized. This way, the new buyer knows what they're getting into.

Reevaluation is unfair to longtime residents who may now be on fixed incomes.

Still waiting to hear how your plan would work. My guess is under your proposal society and the infrastructure of the area would resemble something similar to the world depicted in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.

"Two men enter, one man leaves!"


YouTube - 2 men enter 1 man leaves

[MikeJaquish]

Originally Posted by North_Raleigh_Guy

Still waiting to hear how your plan would work. My guess is under your proposal society and the infrastructure of the area would resemble something similar to the world depicted in Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome.

"Two men enter, one man leaves!"


YouTube - 2 men enter 1 man leaves

But..... did they get a huge impact fee from each of the Two?

[findingmesomeday]

Originally Posted by saturnfan

Prop 13 is good.

If gov't needs money, they can up tax rates like sales taxes are raised.

People's taxes should not change if "paper" profits occur simply because the neighborhood gentrifies. The reevaluation should be done when the property changes hands and the profit is realized. This way, the new buyer knows what they're getting into.

Reevaluation is unfair to longtime residents who may now be on fixed incomes.

So under this scenario, the county, town, whatever, doesn't revaluate existing homes. They stick it to the new homeowners. Consider it sort of an "impact fee".

Ok, let's say I buy that. So the corollaries:

1. Person A is in their house for 20 years. They decided they need an equity loan. But since they've been paying the "old" tax rate (because that's what's fair after all--they're not "transplants") they can only get 80% LTV of their OLD valuation---20 years ago.

2. Person B wants a reverse mortgage. See above.

3. The fire or police departments need more money. About 60% of the homes in the areas are paying on the "old" valuation. So they have two solutions: slap the "old valuation" people with an additional bill to make up the shortfall or go for an override which affects everyone. And since the "old" people are paying less, then they wait X% longer for a response to a 911 call.

4. Person C sells the house they've been in for 20 years and buys another--townhouse, bigger house, whatever. Since it's a new purchase, they get hit with the huge tax bill that's even larger than what it would have been under the existing reality plan because the new people and new purchases have to carry the burden for the "old' people (non transplants).


Is that how your plan works?