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I have been shocked as well at the tax rate. AND, that is JUST property taxes. You must pay School Taxes in addition (something I had never even heard of before moving here...in my past experience, School Taxes were paid out of the Property Tax fund).
I read an explanation for the high tax rate just recently which made sense to me. Let me share it with you, please.
Albany (Capitol District) hosts a very large number of non-profit organizations. Non-profit organizations do not pay taxes. Someone must make up the difference. Thus, for-profit businesses and ordinary wage earners and all the others that are NOT tax exempt pay more percentage-wise to keep the boat afloat. Aha!
Make sense?
School taxes are included in your property taxes- not sure what you're talking about.
School taxes are included in your property taxes- not sure what you're talking about.
No, they are not! I get two separate bills. One is my real property tax which includes the city and county real property tax. The second bill are the school taxes.
And when looking on most city websites you have to look for real property taxes and school taxes. Frequently, they are in two different places as they are not for the same thing. The taxes are not due at the same always and the cities/towns/villages need to keep the funds separate for accounting and bank purposes. The school taxes actually go to the school and not the locale.
Whether you get two separate bills is irrelevant- School taxes are based on the assessment valuation of your PROPERTY- thus, your property taxes. The word property means your piece of property- not some city or locale. If a realtor tried to market your house and portrayed your property taxes as only your city & county they would be falsely underreporting your property taxes. Anyone who tries to argue that school taxes are not part of property taxes is misinformed.
Also, NYS has not mentioned doing away w/Star exemption, just the $300-400 extra Star rebate. Another clue that school taxes are indeed property taxes is that the Star program is based on your Property valuation: "STAR is New York State's School Tax Relief Program that includes a school property tax rebate program and a partial property tax exemption from school taxes."
Whether you get two separate bills is irrelevant- School taxes are based on the assessment valuation of your PROPERTY- thus, your property taxes. The word property means your piece of property- not some city or locale. If a realtor tried to market your house and portrayed your property taxes as only your city & county they would be falsely underreporting your property taxes. Anyone who tries to argue that school taxes are not part of property taxes is misinformed.
Also, NYS has not mentioned doing away w/Star exemption, just the $300-400 extra Star rebate. Another clue that school taxes are indeed property taxes is that the Star program is based on your Property valuation: "STAR is New York State's School Tax Relief Program that includes a school property tax rebate program and a partial property tax exemption from school taxes."
FYI to you, my school taxes and real property taxes are not based on the same value for my house. They are different amounts.
And many realtors don't tell you what the taxes are. They tell you to call the city/town/village. That's the only place you will get the exact amount.
And I have seen many properties not include school taxes when giving out property info. They say to ask the school and to ask them which school would yours.
Not all realtors go out and find all of the info for you. Even if they did, you the home owner are responsible even if the amounts they give you are incorrect.
FYI to you, my school taxes and real property taxes are not based on the same value for my house. They are different amounts.
And many realtors don't tell you what the taxes are. They tell you to call the city/town/village. That's the only place you will get the exact amount.
And I have seen many properties not include school taxes when giving out property info. They say to ask the school and to ask them which school would yours.
Not all realtors go out and find all of the info for you. Even if they did, you the home owner are responsible even if the amounts they give you are incorrect.
Real property taxes include school taxes because city, county, & school taxes are what define your Real property taxes. Here is NYS definition: In New York State, the real property tax is a tax based on the value of real property. Counties, cities, towns, villages, school districts, and special districts each raise money through the real property tax. The money funds schools, pays for police and fire protection, maintains roads, and funds other municipal services enjoyed by residents.
Not sure where you're going w/the whole realtor thing- bottom line is if you market your house and exclude your school taxes from your property taxes you are leaving out nearly half the property taxes you actually pay. I also find it hard to believe that your school district would place a different valuation on your home- do they employ their own assessor? Regardless, even if the valuation is different, it does not mean that your school taxes are not part of your property taxes, as they are based on the valuation of your home.
To drive this point home, if you sold your home and decided to rent next year you would not receive a school tax bill anymore because you would no longer own a property that is taxable.
Real property taxes include school taxes because city, county, & school taxes are what define your Real property taxes. Here is NYS definition: In New York State, the real property tax is a tax based on the value of real property. Counties, cities, towns, villages, school districts, and special districts each raise money through the real property tax. The money funds schools, pays for police and fire protection, maintains roads, and funds other municipal services enjoyed by residents.
Not sure where you're going w/the whole realtor thing- bottom line is if you market your house and exclude your school taxes from your property taxes you are leaving out nearly half the property taxes you actually pay. I also find it hard to believe that your school district would place a different valuation on your home- do they employ their own assessor? Regardless, even if the valuation is different, it does not mean that your school taxes are not part of your property taxes, as they are based on the valuation of your home.
Yes, the city places a different valuation on the house for school taxes and then there's the STAR deduction on top of that. Not everything is as cut and dry as you make it sound. Every city/town/village runs in their own moronic way. this is NY after all where you 852 people to change 1 light bulb.
My city does consider the property tax to be separate from the school tax. You can't pay them together with one check even! Just because there's a rule on paper does not mean it's what happens in real life. Welcome to New York! You want fries with that?
I never said anything was cut & dried-just that school taxes are most definitely part of your property taxes, and in most instances, the sizeable majority of your property taxes, but I can see there is no getting through to you as the concept is simply not sinking in.
Your city tax bill is completely separate from your school tax bill, but they are both property taxes- why is that so difficult to comprehend?
Ft. Worth, Texas here we come. Lower cost of living, better weather and no state income tax. The taxes in NY are just getting brutal. I was born & raised in New York but the time has come to leave.
The taxes in NY are just getting brutal. I was born & raised in New York but the time has come to leave.
Makes sense. Most people that I know plan to eventually move out of NY when it makes sense from a career standpoint. While I find NY taxes abhorrent, they don't really bother me all that much because I always have the option of moving to another state with lower taxes.
My fear is that the federal government seems to be following New York's footsteps (i.e., escalating its debt, future costs, and guaranteed benefits to levels that the nation cannot reasonably support). I can't help but feel that the entire country is like Schenectday circa 1950.
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