Posted on 06/11/2024 6:49:09 AM PDT by where's_the_Outrage?
A senior from Montana has delivered a viral speech about the sorry state of property taxes in the Treasure State.
“I’m on Social Security, I’m 68-years-old and working just to pay my taxes,” says Kurt, in a clip shared on TikTok by Ryan Busse, who is running to be the next governor of Montana.
Kurt claims that over the last couple of years, his annual property taxes have soared from $895 to almost $8,000 — an increase of around 790% — which he says is like paying almost “$700 a month rent to the state to live in our own house.” The state has an Elderly Homeowner/Renter Tax Credit, and the maximum credit is $1,150.
“There needs to be a moratorium on what we have to pay,” he says, adding that he’s had to continue working into what should be his retirement golden years to cover his mounting property costs. “I’m stubborn enough [that] I don’t want to dig into my bank account to pay them.”
(Excerpt) Read more at msn.com ...
He could consider getting a home improvement loan against his increased equity and using it solely to pay taxes—altho being very careful about the terms offered and whether they can switch it up if interest rates go down. It's not a great solution, but it might be less painful than moving and losing so much of what they worked for.
Volunteer Fire Departments, they work in small towns. Hire just a few full time workers, and quit sending them out on ambulance runs.
He has lived there 29 years, so it's likely that the insurance requirement by the bank at settlement is long ago relinquished and he buys his own insurance. The house may be entirely paid for by now, or within a year of burning a 30-year mortgage.
Yes Social Security income should be exempt. Instead it’s income taxed like you went out an earned all over again in a job.
Ditto my dear friend who bought a place near Hailey in 2009, With more water rights than normal for just 40 acres, Which I why I know as much as I do about the water hassles. Long, sordid story about how she's been harassed over the water. She's spent the price of a decent used truck on lawyers, just protecting hers. She's just been back East, looking at places. Going back this week to wrap up disposing-of/packing-up her chattels. The place will go on the market in fall, (for about 5x what she paid for it). Happy memories, but time to flee.
My question is what happened in Montana? Did they suddenly look at California and say give me some of that insanity?
I live in Kentucky and bought my house and 5 acres of land in the mountains over 20 yrs ago for $130,000. I have a 3400 sq ft house counting the garage. I paid in the $800-$900 range property taxes for many years. Then about six years ago the county school board installed a new superintendent and they passed a recallable nickel property tax to redo the football field with Astroturf and a few other things. The new superintendent and board assured everyone that their taxes would go up max, $50-$100. The nickel tax kept increasing. Now I am up to $1500 a year in taxes. Thank God that crazy bitch superintendent picked a fight with a cities school system in the county resulting in her getting fired or I would be paying $3000 a year!
That being said, I have no fire department services and if I call the sheriff their response averages between 30-45 minutes or longer. The only service I get is my road scrapped, 2-3 days into a big snow.
My brother lives in Knox County Tennessee and his house is around 2000 sq ft and appraises for $350,000. He gets full service, fire, police etc... and he pays less than I do on property taxes.
Condolences to your friend for the water rights problems. When you have to spend money on lawyers, perhaps it's time to find a new direction. I have a rental house right now that may be subject to that same re-evaluation.
That would have been my recommendation as well. I'm thinking of cutting a door opening thru a concrete wall, and thinking about the “shovel and shut up” option.
I guess the issue is allocation. Many municipalities and states are having back-breaking pension obligations created by former officeholders in anticipation of a lifetime of cashing in. Then there are all the other lard pools—democrat campaign promises, crooked RINO "developers" and assorted freebies.
I assure you, most seniors do not fit into this profile, which is an average, not an overall condition. You are focused on the 1% who skew the average sharply upward.
I lived much of my life in rural areas. One state taxed you on your vehicle value, so I drove a few beaters. Maybe $600 a year for me and my wife.
> Property taxes should be a one time assessment at title transfer IMHO.
But, what would the govt do if they can’t use regular property tax revenue to pay bonds? Not that I disagree, heheh but considering how they spent that bond money already, where they gonna get the regular monies for bond payments if the taxpayers can just decide they aint gonna play and refuse to sell?
If the bond owners don’t get theirs the house of cards will fall hard.
Frankly I’m starting to wonder if we shouldn’t just skip the rest of the fall of civilization and go straight to anarchy, heheh. We’ve seen this kind of gov’t excess before in the Great Depression when the insiders used their influence to steal property via increasing taxation.
Maybe I’ll just paint “Hemos ido an Argentina” on my front door and vamos...props to “Doomsday Reef”, heheh.
Are you proposing that the multi-billion dollar budgets States have, cannot be used on Policing the HWY’s? Or the City budgets local police? Or the County budget pay for the Sheriffs? They do not NEED taxes on owner occupied homes in the form of property taxes to do that. There are state sales tax, in our State it is 9-10% on non food items. WA state is budgeting $5 Billion PLUS per year. No wait, $69.5 BILLION for 2 years. That is not counting property taxes. Those are local.
The key is, the US dollar is worth $.01, as inflation caused by deficit spending rises, the government gets the bounty.
My home I bought for $28K in the 70’s, is now worth close to $500K. Not my fault, the dollar has dropped in value from $1 per silver coin, to $18. Weird that the value of the home hasn’t gone up, the value of the $$$dollar$$$ has gone down.
18$ times 28K$ ====== $504K
Who benefits? Government benefits, I am one of the few who knows, my wealth has not increased, unless I sell and poach a place in another place. This is another problem created ONLY BY GOVERNMENT SPENDING.
100%
I proposed nothing. You stuck words in my mouth that I never uttered, which is common at FR.
This place is infested with knucklehead ventriloquists.
But they can afford eating out, sports tickets, several streaming services and cable, the latest cell phones, SUVs instead of sedans, chain restaurants and groceries instead of cooking at home, HOA fees for the pool and rec center, antideprssants, cigarettes or weed...
No he is not confused. That is how much taxes are go up in states that are taking in leftists from the shitholes
I just started looking at their town property tax website and $40,000 a year property tax bills are low!
Burn it and go elsewhere
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