Property tax estimate for 2013 (Austin: sales, real estate market, insurance)

[je4xff]

Originally Posted by PrimusPilus

Help! my condo increased 54.4%(150k ->231.6k) compared to 2012. Worst part is there is no homestead exemption or cap as I rent it out. Any ideas how to fight such an outrageous increase? With these property taxes and the resulting negative cash flow, I guess the only option I have is to sell.

Ouch - that is egregious. Your condo should be appraised the same as similar condos in your unit. I've heard of the city mistakenly assessing condos incorrectly relative to others in the same building. If they've all gone up, that may be a different story. You should most definitely protest (even if they've all gone up). You can find many property tax representation companies around - just google "property tax representation austin".

[mimimomx3]

Basing taxes on property value is just completely asinine. Why not just take the budget and divide it out per capita?

[PrimusPilus]

Originally Posted by je4xff

Ouch - that is egregious. Your condo should be appraised the same as similar condos in your unit. I've heard of the city mistakenly assessing condos incorrectly relative to others in the same building. If they've all gone up, that may be a different story. You should most definitely protest (even if they've all gone up). You can find many property tax representation companies around - just google "property tax representation austin".

They've all gone up but mine has gone up the most which is perplexing because it doesn't stand out from the others. I will certainly research property tax representation companies even though many years ago I had once contested my home appraisal and won. Thanks.

[Trainwreck20]

Basing taxes on property value is just completely asinine. Why not just take the budget and divide it out per capita?

And make it even more regressive than it is? I.e., and 19 y/o living in an apartment will owe as much as Michale Dell or Red McCombs? At least this way, you can control your taxes w/o reducing your income.

[je4xff]

Originally Posted by Trainwreck20

At least this way, you can control your taxes w/o reducing your income.

Yes, but...

Some people who have lived in their homes for many years find that it eventually becomes unaffordable to keep their home after taxes have continually increased year after year. Sometimes people's incomes stay stagnant or even go down over the years, yet home payments continue to climb. A home you could once comfortably afford becomes too expensive.

So the only option to control the taxes is to sell the home. The sad thing is - this is your home. It's not just a possession to be tossed aside. It's where lives have been lived, children have grown up, memories have been made. Maybe if your lucky you've paid off your mortgage, but for some, selling the home becomes the only choice.

This is why I'd rather property taxes in Texas be reduced and offset with something else, even a state income tax. This way payments only go up when you have the necessary income, and people aren't forced out of their homes during the course of their 30 year mortgage.

[Trainwreck20]

You can actually defer your taxes indefinitely (stop paying them) and have the accrued taxes and interest deducted from the property value when you die or move or whatever. I think you need to be retirement age to do this, though.

[HappyTexan]

Austin is "the" place to be right now. Why wouldn't you expect your valuations and taxes to increase ?

[mimimomx3]

Originally Posted by Trainwreck20

And make it even more regressive than it is? I.e., and 19 y/o living in an apartment will owe as much as Michale Dell or Red McCombs? At least this way, you can control your taxes w/o reducing your income.

The problem now is that we start with revenue (taxes) and then decide how to spend it. We should start with a budget and then divide it out. No tax is fair, but this taxing system is really unfair. Do you think the historic exemptions are fair? A "flat" tax is the only fair way to go- everyone pays the same.

[Spike8080]

This is a very realistic view of what my taxes may look like over the next few years with the Austin growth. I live in a modest house in east Austin and the schools are not very good. I hate to see what my taxes will be in 2020 if I move to an area in Austin with better schools for my 2 year old son. I know my taxes seem cheap to others here but if I choose to stay I will need to private school my son at around $11,000 a year. So thats almost $22,000 a year by 2020.


Year 2012= $5000
Year 2013 = $5500
Year 2014= $6050
Year 2015= $6655
Year 2016= $7320
Year 2017= $8052
Year 2018= $8857
Year 2019= $9742
Year 2020= $10,716

[atxcio]

Originally Posted by Spike8080

This is a very realistic view of what my taxes may look like over the next few years with the Austin growth. I live in a modest house in east Austin and the schools are not very good. I hate to see what my taxes will be in 2020 if I move to an area in Austin with better schools for my 2 year old son. I know my taxes seem cheap to others here but if I choose to stay I will need to private school my son at around $11,000 a year. So thats almost $22,000 a year by 2020.


Year 2012= $5000
Year 2013 = $5500
Year 2014= $6050
Year 2015= $6655
Year 2016= $7320
Year 2017= $8052
Year 2018= $8857
Year 2019= $9742
Year 2020= $10,716

Well, you are assuming appreciation of the max cap (10%) over the years leading to your tax doubling in 8 years (w/HS exemption). But, your home value would also double in that scenario. So your $200K home would be worth $400K at least to be paying those taxes (even assuming an increase in tax rate). Also, you'd have paid a significant amount of the loan on your home. So your worst-case scenario actually leaves you with a windfall of equity -- assuming you can afford the tax bill each year. Regardless, at that point you could sell, bank the cash and buy another home. Granted, the equivalent home you buy will have that same inflated value, but you'd need to only use as much cash as you want for the down payment, and keep the rest for college funds, vacations, etc.

I can also add some real historical data: my own taxes. In the past 7 years, the actual dollar amount of my property taxes has increased, total, in the range of 10%. Now, I do protest my appraised value every year. But still, they haven't increased anywhere near the magnitude you are concerned about. The market value of the home has probably increased about 20-25% during that same time. Not bad but definitely not doubling in 8 years like your hypothetical.