[Libloather]

And of course the town simply raised the rate per thousand to get same (or more) revenue.

And you better cough up the loot or risk losing the house. Not to worry - it's all for the common good.

[Erasmus]

The reason it’s called “real estate” is that it used to be, literally, “property of the Crown.”

Because of property taxation, the modern situation is not that much different, except that the “Crown” is now “City Hall.”