Property taxes?

[induhvidual]

Originally Posted by beachgirl7

Due to the high property taxes - I will not be purchasing my condo on Brickell Avenue. Taxes for 1 bedroom condo: yr 2007 $4,727, yr 2008 $4,636.
That is $386/mo plus condo fee of $340/mo. Even if pay cash on a short-sale deal, you have approx $700/mo fees and taxes. On the new buidlings on Brickell, they have condo fee of $600 or more.

Yeah - the financial planners were not happy with the property tax expense. I am going to keep monitoring the situation over the next 6 months for any changes.

Lots of present owners in miami-dade are being forced to sell their homes or condo due to the increase in property taxes over the past 6 years.

I know exactly how you feel
I too have bid on a condo
cost=120k
monthly maintenance=$500.00
yearly prop taxes=$9000.00

So that means I will pay $1250.00 monthly after having paid cash for the property itself.

[feelquiet]

Part of the problem with property taxes is that thru tax year 2007, the Dade County Prop Appraiser did not use foreclosures and short sales when looking at comparable sales. So if you were unlucky enough to buy a condo where most of the recent sales have been bulk sales or other distressed sales, the tax bill wouldn't reflect the actual market value of your unit. This year, they will take short sales into account, but not foreclosures. If you have comps that support a lower market value, you should absolutely fight your tax assessment. If you have the comps, it is a completely winnable fight. So look out for short sales in your condo building and keep records. Zillow sometimes misses short sales, so check the property appraisers website or ask a realtor friend.

I think it's a cop-out to blame SOH for this mess. Gross property tax collections (including homesteaded residences, non-homesteaded and commercial properties) have increased at a far greater rate than either the growth in our economy or the growth in our population over the past decade. SOH just affects the distribution of the tax burden, but doesn't explain why the overall tax burden has skyrocketed.

Miami-Dade is barely growing population-wise, our student population is actually decreasing, and yet every year the property tax revenue increases. Why?? The system sucks.