If someone's home value goes up $50,000 or $200,000 or whatever, why would they bitch about paying an extra $1,000 in property taxes, when they just got a windfall in net worth and borrowing power?
I'm not being argumentative; I'm asking sincerely, why is this a problem?
They would tell you, for the same reason that they bitch about paying higher income taxes because they suddenly made an extra $100,000 last year.
The home owner is paying annual property taxes on an unrealized gain. It's analogous to forcing stock holders to pay taxes every year on stocks they hold for many years that go up in price but are not sold.
For many older people who have very deep roots in a home and community, raised a family and want to stay there after retirement, their home is a lifestyle asset and not viewed as a financial asset to be leveraged to take on more debt. In fact, the primary goal is to reduce debt in later years of life. For these people, an escalating home value is meaningful only to the heirs of their estate, but the annual property taxes come directly out of their income used for living expenses.
Especially for retired persons under age 65 living on fixed income, escalating property taxes can have a direct, negative impact on quality of life. Financially speaking, even without a state income tax, Texas is not among the most desirable states for retirees because of the high property taxes.
Because a house is a home not a 401k. People live in thier homes until they die. They never see an benifit from raising rates, all they see is bigger and bigger tax bils.
I just built my house and I'm not planning on selling it any time soon. The value only matters if you're selling. However, I'm not in disagreement with what the property is valued at, I'm not happy with the tax rate.
When my kids started school it became obvious to me that a lot of troubled children were monopolizing the teachers time and that the school was teaching to the "lowest common denominator", so I pulled my kids out and I have them in a private school. I am fortunate to have been blessed with the resources to cover their tuition, but on top of an annual tuition bill of over $17,000 I'm also paying over $8,000 a year in school taxes.
I have some family who live in a million dollar home in Arizona whose property tax bill last year was $2,500.
Do we have a stupid question of the day award?
Your home is not worth more. The dollar is worth less.
Boosting home values bythe government appraiser is a conflict of interest IMHO. It does nothing but boost revenue for the gubmint.