[Uconn97]

SCR - zillow is pretty unreliable (thats not my secret LOL). I accessed town records through the GIS system that tells me land and home assessment and appraisal as well as amount of land and the square footage of each home. Ours also has the current yearly tax amount listed so I was able to compare everything on my street. Uh oh - secrets out!

[Stratford, Ct. Resident]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

SCR - zillow is pretty unreliable (thats not my secret LOL). I accessed town records through the GIS system that tells me land and home assessment and appraisal as well as amount of land and the square footage of each home. Ours also has the current yearly tax amount listed so I was able to compare everything on my street. Uh oh - secrets out!

Why not just use Zillow? Granted, their market valuations are not very accurate, but i've found their listing of assessed value and the property tax to be quite accurate.

[usmcfamily]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

SCR - zillow is pretty unreliable (thats not my secret LOL). I accessed town records through the GIS system that tells me land and home assessment and appraisal as well as amount of land and the square footage of each home. Ours also has the current yearly tax amount listed so I was able to compare everything on my street. Uh oh - secrets out!

Here in Monroe, that is public record. We can enter any address and see the previous years taxes paid and assessment.

Zillow may be inaccurate but buyers look at it and consider it reliable. We did when we were negotiating our price. Currently, our value is pretty accurate

[JayCT]

Originally Posted by JViello

We have a three year phase in of our "new assessment' that took place in 06. My taxes have been going up every year since. I can assure you, the mill rate is not going down.

Jay - I should have known I did not need to question you about that. I also agree with your thoughts on unions and pensions. I am not sure what can be done about it though. Jay

[brasscitybluenwhite]

hmm...

I just have to say that in regards to a "village raising a child", I feel that some of u guys are being overprotective. I grew up in a city in CT and I go to UCONN with people from all across the state. You can not believe the nievity of some of the ppl here, and I think that is the root of the problem.

Its one think not to educate ur kids in public school because of certain things taught, but for all others, u guys gotta understand something. You say u homeschooled johnny or dropped him off at private school because u didn't want him to see what was going on in pub. schools. Fine. But he will one day reach a stage in his life where he will be confronted with alcohol or drugs because other he's with the cool kids. He tries it because the other day he was in a car and rap was playing and he found out it wasnt about killing cops after all. So if mommy didn't kno wut she was talkin about with the rap thing, maybe she doesnt kno wut she's talking about after all. Then he tries it and he's justttt another statistic-not that its gonna guarantee that he's not gonna graduate, but now he knows that thinks are "harmless drugs" and he will "vote for it to be legalized" when that time comes.

You can shelter ur kids from the real world all u want to, but there will be a day when they have to trust their own judgement and u wont be there. In my opinion, there is no better place to judge a childs independence and character than growing up in a public school. I went to public school and I'm proud to say that I've never tried any drugs. I cant say that about the 2 kids that live 3 doors down from me who went to private school. ("Why not?" they ask.)

[Connecticut Pam]

Good Post. I think everyone in Connecticut is now feeling all the pressure because "Jody" has messed up big time. Where has all that surplus gone Jody? Our town is going to possibly be hit with several things that just are not cool. First and foremost, Jody wants to close down our BRAND NEW Court house and possibly eliminate over 100 jobs. This is one of the busiest Court Houses in the State. I am thinking that our taxes may go up again as well but if you live where I am thinking you do in the "Brass City", then your taxes are off the charts and it is beyond ridiculous for what you may or may not have there.

We too are told that we have "benefits" for our tax dollar yet year after year the taxes go up, and we don't see anything coming from the increase. Our roads are horrible and full of pot holes, water mains have broken like limbs on an old dead tree. We just built a sports complex for our kids with artificial turf yet we can't fix roads? Threats are made to get rid of sports programs yet we have a new complex? Talk has it that they are even considering stopping music programs. Who in the hell is managing the state and the city??

I don't know if there is anything anyone can do to straighten out how badly our tax dollars are managed. I have always thought that the people in charge always interject too much of their personal wants and needs into the managing of the city governments and it does nothing but screw stuff up.

Hang in there......we are trying to maintain ourselves as are the rest of the folks here in Connecticut.

[wanderintonc]

JViello, I do understand your frustration-maybe now is the time for you and your family to make a new start. Maybe you could visit a couple places you're interested in, to check them out. It can't hurt to try, maybe there is a new life awaiting your family.

In my case, although we did not ultimately end up 'wanderin' to NC, I have no regrets that we at least explored the possibility. Maybe we'll retire there. It at least opened my eyes to the fact that life here in CT is not the ONLY way to live in this world-that sometimes, others do things better than us. And worse, as well. I hope to use the knowledge I've gained, to live a good life here where I will remain for the foreseeable future.

I think for me, the property tax issue is the biggest worry I had about actually buying a house here. I love my new place, and taxes in my city are moderate for CT, but I worry for the future.

[JViello]

Originally Posted by Uconn97

Definitely feel everyones pain. Our taxes went up a bit during our last reval, but not quite as drastically as some others have noted on here. JV any chance you can appeal?

Yes actually I can! They made a special note that I could appeal by Feb 20th. The letter was sent on the 22nd. Imagine these folks in charge of your health care.

Originally Posted by usmcfamily

Here in Monroe, that is public record. We can enter any address and see the previous years taxes paid and assessment.

Same here, we have a really neat satellite GIS system that overlays property boundaries over satellite images etc. Really trick. I'm sure it was cheap and didn't take 2-3 people added to payroll and the pension fund to make it work.

But hey, at least someone in Singapore can now look up these "public records" nice and easy.

Originally Posted by brasscitybluenwhite

hmm...

I just have to say that in regards to a "village raising a child", I feel that some of u guys are being overprotective. I grew up in a city in CT and I go to UCONN with people from all across the state. You can not believe the nievity of some of the ppl here, and I think that is the root of the problem.

Its one think not to educate ur kids in public school because of certain things taught, but for all others, u guys gotta understand something. You say u homeschooled johnny or dropped him off at private school because u didn't want him to see what was going on in pub. schools. Fine. But he will one day reach a stage in his life where he will be confronted with alcohol or drugs because other he's with the cool kids. He tries it because the other day he was in a car and rap was playing and he found out it wasnt about killing cops after all. So if mommy didn't kno wut she was talkin about with the rap thing, maybe she doesnt kno wut she's talking about after all. Then he tries it and he's justttt another statistic-not that its gonna guarantee that he's not gonna graduate, but now he knows that thinks are "harmless drugs" and he will "vote for it to be legalized" when that time comes.

You can shelter ur kids from the real world all u want to, but there will be a day when they have to trust their own judgement and u wont be there. In my opinion, there is no better place to judge a childs independence and character than growing up in a public school. I went to public school and I'm proud to say that I've never tried any drugs. I cant say that about the 2 kids that live 3 doors down from me who went to private school. ("Why not?" they ask.)

You sort of get it. The schooling is just one piece of the puzzle. If other pieces are missing, the puzzle is not complete.

It's not JUST about public vs private schools, just like it not JUST about being a good parent.

For me, it's Parenting, Faith in God (Moral compass) and Environment. All three have to be in place. If one is missing, it lowers the chances IMO.

P.S. I've started using the spellcheck tool on here and it went absolutely nuts on your post. LOL

[JViello]

Originally Posted by wanderintonc

JViello, I do understand your frustration-maybe now is the time for you and your family to make a new start. Maybe you could visit a couple places you're interested in, to check them out. It can't hurt to try, maybe there is a new life awaiting your family.

In my case, although we did not ultimately end up 'wanderin' to NC, I have no regrets that we at least explored the possibility. Maybe we'll retire there. It at least opened my eyes to the fact that life here in CT is not the ONLY way to live in this world-that sometimes, others do things better than us. And worse, as well. I hope to use the knowledge I've gained, to live a good life here where I will remain for the foreseeable future.

I think for me, the property tax issue is the biggest worry I had about actually buying a house here. I love my new place, and taxes in my city are moderate for CT, but I worry for the future.

Excellent post. Thank you very much.

I agree with everything you wrote. Moving to "O-Town" (Orlando) when I was 19ish was one of the best things I ever did even though I really didn't wish to be there "forever". It did exactly what you wrote. Opened my eyes to a much larger world and really set me off to explore the country.

Me, my new 91 Mustang GT, sometimes took a friend and that's it. I would take off for Toronto, L.A., New Orleans wherever. It really opened my eyes, and when I came back to CT, to be honest, I didn't want to stay. My vision totally changed.

So, when the opportunity came to take a great position in Charlotte I took it. That job also had me doing "extended" stays in many cities. I always said I didn't like Charlotte. But after a recent visit (Nov 08) if I'm honest about looking back, mostly it was because *I* was not ready for it. It was a very well balanced, normal city with normal families etc. Something I didn't have in my life at the time - balance.

I still would not want to be there, but for other more balanced reasons now such as location, climate etc.

Now that I'm older with a new family, my priorities have changed and a lot of the early life "drama" has been sorted out...maybe you're right about taking a serious look elsewhere again.

I did have a bad experience recently (Nov 08). I went to Greenville SC after being told it was "just like Charlotte" without the sprawl and congestion, minutes to the mountains etc. Sounded great and worth a look!

Yea, well - the folks on this forum (not the CT section) were not honest IMO. (And it's one of the reasons I'm such a stickler about taking our own personal goggles off when talking to others on this site inquiring about CT)

My wife and I kind of stood there feeling like fools who got duped. Most of the "great" pictures etc I literally took into a 360 degree sweep of the video camera. The rest was a hole. That was her first real experience with "looking elswhere" and I'm sure makes her apprehensive towards doing it again. What a waste of money and time.

I on the other hand am a fall down, get back up and try again type person so long as I believe there is reason to get up again. Having traveled around this country a lot in my youth, I know it's not all like our trip to SC so I'm not settled that "this is it" for me just yet.

Thanks again for the post and thoughts.

[Tetto]

Originally Posted by JViello

Excellent post. Thank you very much.

I agree with everything you wrote. Moving to "O-Town" (Orlando) when I was 19ish was one of the best things I ever did even though I really didn't wish to be there "forever". It did exactly what you wrote. Opened my eyes to a much larger world and really set me off to explore the country.

Me, my new 91 Mustang GT, sometimes took a friend and that's it. I would take off for Toronto, L.A., New Orleans wherever. It really opened my eyes, and when I came back to CT, to be honest, I didn't want to stay. My vision totally changed.

So, when the opportunity came to take a great position in Charlotte I took it. That job also had me doing "extended" stays in many cities. I always said I didn't like Charlotte. But after a recent visit (Nov 08) if I'm honest about looking back, mostly it was because *I* was not ready for it. It was a very well balanced, normal city with normal families etc. Something I didn't have in my life at the time - balance.

I still would not want to be there, but for other more balanced reasons now such as location, climate etc.

Now that I'm older with a new family, my priorities have changed and a lot of the early life "drama" has been sorted out...maybe you're right about taking a serious look elsewhere again.

I did have a bad experience recently (Nov 08). I went to Greenville SC after being told it was "just like Charlotte" without the sprawl and congestion, minutes to the mountains etc. Sounded great and worth a look!

Yea, well - the folks on this forum (not the CT section) were not honest IMO. (And it's one of the reasons I'm such a stickler about taking our own personal goggles off when talking to others on this site inquiring about CT)

My wife and I kind of stood there feeling like fools who got duped. Most of the "great" pictures etc I literally took into a 360 degree sweep of the video camera. The rest was a hole. That was her first real experience with "looking elswhere" and I'm sure makes her apprehensive towards doing it again. What a waste of money and time.

I on the other hand am a fall down, get back up and try again type person so long as I believe there is reason to get up again. Having traveled around this country a lot in my youth, I know it's not all like our trip to SC so I'm not settled that "this is it" for me just yet.

Thanks again for the post and thoughts.

JV,

Fantastic write up. You're absolutely spot on about the tax thing in this state. It is the primary reason we left Manchester in 1999 and moved to Lebanon. My taxes on the little 1300 sq ft house I had (bought in 1994) was $3800(in 94) when we left in 99 they were close to $4800. My wife and I are evaluating our lives here as well, however, we will stay for the next 5 years or so, but then all options are open.