Tax Bill Appeals Take Rising Toll on Governments

New York Times ^ | July 5, 2009 | Jack Healy

[reaganaut1]

Homeowners across the country are challenging their property tax bills in droves as the value of their homes drop, threatening local governments with another big drain on their budgets.

The requests are coming in record numbers, from owners of $10 million estates and one-bedroom bungalows, from residents of the high-tax enclaves surrounding New York City, and from taxpayers in the Rust Belt and states like Arizona, Florida and California, where whole towns have been devastated by the housing bust.

“It’s worthy of a Dickens story,” said Gus Kramer, the assessor in Contra Costa County, Calif., outside San Francisco. “These people are desperate. They know their home’s gone down in value. They’ve watched their neighborhoods being boarded up. They literally stand in there and say: ‘When can I have my refund check? I need to feed my family. I need to pay my electric bill.’ ”

The tax appeals and reassessments present a new budget nightmare for governments. In a survey conducted by the National Association of Counties, 76 percent of large counties said that falling property tax revenue was significantly affecting their budgets, said Jacqueline Byers, the association’s research director.

Officials in some states say their property tax revenue is falling for the first time since World War II.

The recession has already taken a significant toll on states’ budgets, as rising joblessness, a weak business climate and a drop in consumer demand have cut sharply into receipts from taxes on sales, personal income and business earnings.

The pain at the state level is trickling down to county and local governments. To compensate, about 10 percent of large counties are raising the tax rates associated with home values to minimize the revenue loss, the county association said.

[reaganaut1]

In the title, the Times (of course) looks at things from the perspective of the government -- the "rising toll" on it. Obama will not be able to pay for his spending orgy by increasing taxes only on the "rich", and his middle class tax increases:

1. cap-and-tax
2. higher cigarette taxes
3. taxes on health insurance

ought to sink his administration.

[Sacajaweau]

So which market was the false one....When you bought?? You were willing to pay the price...What created this “downer market?? Did towns over access??

[reader25]

Government at all levels should learn to live within their means just as the individual does.

Government at all levels should be asking what is necessary:
fire/police protection, basic services mandated by the charter/constitution. All the feel good discretionary should be eliminated.

[Vendome]

just did mine 3 months ago.

reduced my burden by thousands. I feel better to.

Not only are they feeling it from RE tax obligations, They are feeling it everywhere we spend money.

They can go to hell! It was my money in the first place and now they are whining about not getting enough taxes?

From who? I pay a lot and support the other 60 percent who pay nothing and in many instances get a check.

Why doesn’t someone in America send me a thank you?

They did after take money from me for their big screen Tv.

[Vendome]

Actually I want to ammend my post.

How ‘bout some check taker come to my house and do some work for the money.

[jedi150]

Government at all levels should be asking what is necessary: fire/police protection, basic services mandated by the charter/constitution. All the feel good discretionary should be eliminated.

But in truth they practice cutting back on necessary services and keep the feel-goody stuff to "PUNISH" the taxpayers who are tired of getting raped.

[KarlInOhio]

But in truth they practice cutting back on necessary services and keep the feel-goody stuff to "PUNISH" the taxpayers who are tired of getting raped.

Just like when the school district wants a levy they threaten to cut football because threatening to cut the assistant vice principal doesn't get people to vote for taxes.

Ohio has an odd property tax system. A small portion of the tax goes up or down directly as property values go up or down. But most levies are held at their dollar figure (with adjustments for new construction). Thus if the people vote for a levy costing your house $100 per year, it will stay at that even if everyone's property values double. Now if yours goes up relative to the rest of the taxing district, or if you put on an addition it can go up, but not by the bubble values other states' taxes were going up. The flip side is that my property taxes won't go down with dropping values either.

[Man50D]

My father is taking the town where he owns a home to court for improperly assessing the value of the house. They picked on the wrong guy. He’s a lawyer. He has the full resources of the law firm where he works and has the tax assessor of the other town where he owns a condo as a witness on his behalf. He’s already appealed the assessment to which the town refused overturn the assessment. His lawyer filed for documents under the freedom of information act. The town did not turn over the documents by the deadline. That’s the abridged version. It’s going to get interesting. Get out the popcorn.

[ninonitti]

This is a very powerful tool that should be used in every town in this country. It's more important than the vote you get every now and then.

It can put these towns and cities into shutdown.

It's about the only weapon left for property owning citizen unless you can afford a Washington lobbyist or own a congressman. They don't listen in Washington - look at what happened with TARP - public opinion was running massively against and what did they do?

Cut the legs off local government.....they're the ones that usually end up spending the federal money anyway and account for more than half the government workers in this country.

It's actions like appealing your assessment that get their attention....tea parties are fine but are over in a day......file an challenge to your assessment and you'll tie them up for months if not years.