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I moved here last May and I've yet to write a negative post about Charlotte but I finally have to say something. What is up with all the taxes here?! I have lived in D.C., Charlottesville, NYC, and CT and the only place that compares in taxes is NYC (I got out of there quickly).
Not only is the state income tax high (6%-8.25%!) but the sales tax is ridiculous (9.5% on groceries?). Gas taxes are very high. Property taxes are high. My friend even gets taxed on her leased car. It's not her property! And last night, I got my first phone/Internet bill from AT&T (just moved to a new house). I had $27 of taxes on basic phone and Internet. $11.50 of that was NC taxes. WTF?
One of the reasons I moved here was because the cost of living was supposed to be much lower but the only thing that's cheaper here is housing. And of course, the house I bought was still expensive since I bought in South End so I didn't save money there.
Am I the only one that thinks the taxes here are ludicrous? In states where the state income tax is high, other taxes are supposed to be lower!
Sorry for the tirade but when I saw my $122 BASIC phone and Internet bill, I was floored.
Having previously lived in Tx and Tn we were a bit shocked at the taxes here in NC. I actually laughed out loud when we got our car tags and registration for the vehicles and she told us how much we owed!! I thought she had made an error, perhaps thought we had just purchased the vehicles therefore resulting in such a large figure. The unamused look on her face was followed by a brief and terse explanation that the charges were correct and that we would also be receiving a property tax bill for our vehicles, yearly!!
Let's just say that for retirement we are looking at moving back to Tn.
coupon you got that one right...property taxes high here? nope...I will say the tax on food is a bit much...and well again car insurance is cheaper than NJ as well...we saved 1/2 literally actually since changing over our license to NC we saved even more...and dh was just saying no where is CHEAP anymore...
Sales tax on food is a bit tricky. Depends on the actual item, county of sale and level of preparation prior to sale. Many items are exempt from the state's 4.25% general sales tax, but not from the local sales tax which varies from county to county.
If you're paying $122 for a basic phone bill and internet, you obv didn't do your homework in getting the best deal.
I was quoted $37.95 for the highest grade of high speed Internet and $18.75 for basic phone. Both of those sound fair to me.
However, on my first bill, I was charged two months phone, one month Internet, 1st charge out of three for service connection fee ($15.00), first charge out of 10 for the cost of the modem ($7.50), and $27.00 in taxes/surcharges, etc. I think everything sounds fine except for the random $27 of charges...
$16.25 March phone bill
$18.75 April phone bill
$22.50 connection and modem fees (installments)
$13.80 Government mandated and authorized charges
$13.36 Surcharges and other fees
$37.95 High speed Internet $122.61 Total
Agreed - taxes are pretty bad here. This year I will be paying thousands extra in tax because of the NC state income tax, which is high. Add this to the extra sales taxes here, and the taxes on food (come on, taxing staple food items???) and personal property tax adds up to a pretty unfair tax burden. And if you look around, I wonder what we get for those taxes. In Charlotte, it is inadequate roads, and understaffed law enforcement. When I first moved here a friend of mine told me that NC will nickle and dime you every chance it gets. They were right.
and the taxes on food (come on, taxing staple food items???)
Politicians talk about helping the 'working person' and what hurts more than taxing basic food items - how ridiculous.
And if you follow alternative fuels, you know that E85 touted by the politicians on both sides of the aisle has done nothing but raise the price of milk, beef, and US grown veggies. E85 only helps the midwest farmer.
I was quoted $37.95 for the highest grade of high speed Internet and $18.75 for basic phone. Both of those sound fair to me.
However, on my first bill, I was charged two months phone, one month Internet, 1st charge out of three for service connection fee ($15.00), first charge out of 10 for the cost of the modem ($7.50), and $27.00 in taxes/surcharges, etc. I think everything sounds fine except for the random $27 of charges...
$16.25 March phone bill
$18.75 April phone bill
$22.50 connection and modem fees (installments)
$13.80 Government mandated and authorized charges
$13.36 Surcharges and other fees
$37.95 High speed Internet $122.61 Total
Well, looks like when everything shakes out, every month you'll probably be paying $70 for phone and internet including fees. That's not uncommon here or anywhere for that matter.
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