Posted on 05/14/2007 6:13:57 PM PDT by ChildOfThe60s
When Melissa Nolen first saw the sky-high property tax bill for her new home, she got nervous.
The next year, when her homeowner's insurance doubled, she got mad.
These days, 29-year-old Nolen is trying another tactic: Getting active. She recently became vice president of the Broward County Young Republicans and is keeping a close eye on tax reforms being debated at the state Capitol.
(Excerpt) Read more at sun-sentinel.com ...
Florida's constitution is far too easy to amend, some amendments getting on the ballot because of large amounts of money and time spent by outside the state interests. The kicker here is that although the SOH (Save Our Homes) amendment was easy to pass, it would be nearly impossible to remove by the same process. Why? Because the homeowners that are paying 1/4 the property taxes that newer home owners are paying would never vote to raise their own taxes by a factor of at least 2.
Even though I benefited from it when I lived there, having owned my home for more than 25 years, it is a crime for two identical homes, side by side, to have one paying $800 and the other $2800 in yearly property taxes. Uh, yeah, the $800 was me.
I support the sales tax idea instead of a property tax. Everyone should pay for the libraries, schools etc. they use and not just the property owners.
our property tax doubled this last year from the year before (almost 5K this year!!) and so did our home owners’ insurance. it was sickening.
I think value that a home is taxed should be “locked” when a house is bought or sold. The taxes should not go up or down for people who stay in their homes for their entire life. If a house goes up in value, the taxes should NOT be increased if the owner is not selling.
$5K? That is 6 months for me. Ugghhh!!
When I was the age of the guy in the article, I had a one year old child and was general manager of a company. We lived in a two bedroom highrise apartment in Canada. We only dreamed of buying a house... this guy has a three bedroom house and thinks he’s being shafted. Sigh.
Not exactly. When one gets a "home equity loan", they are effectively selling their residence again. The value should be reset to the appraisal used to get the home equity loan.
Florida needs a version of California's "Proposition 13".
But I'm not sure it's a crime in that two identical homes scenario....say I bought my home 30 years ago for $30K - versus the guy next door who just payed $300K - said guy next door knew damn well what he was getting into.
Not necessarily. Prop 13 in California does the same thing. Property tax is usually based either on purchase price or current value. How long have you been paying the $800.00 and what percentage is that of the price you paid for the property?
To rectify the situation, would you suggest you pay a tax based on the assessed value?
My property tax went up the 3% limit and insurance went up about 10%.
People living on the coast had it much worse but then their risk and value is much higher.
I know that in Polk County where I lived, revenues went way, way up and the local governments managed to spend every penny of it. Now they claim that if some rationality is applied to the property and other taxes, oh no! they will have to cut essential services to......the children, minorities, take your pick.
The county quadrupled “impact” fees on new homes and in doing so have planted a solid blow to the groin of struggling builders. It’s become more practical to buy an existing home. The irony is that the county commissioners are all republicans who were voted into office because of democrats that raised taxes over the objections of the voters. More proof that party affiliation means a lot less at the local level.
I live in St. mary’s County Maryland,and my Tax Assessment doubled this year. They didnt raise the taxes mind you, they just doubled the Assessment. It amounts to the same thing though doesnt it? Just another slick move.
“Not exactly. When one gets a “home equity loan”, they are effectively selling their residence again. The value should be reset to the appraisal used to get the home equity loan.”
No they arent selling it. They are securing a load with their property. Big difference.
The real question is what the heck is our govt doing with all this money.
The infamous “Prop 13” enacted many years ago in California has had the same result. We bought our house in 1990 and pay about $2600 a year in taxes. The guy next door to us with the same house pays $6200 because he bought it in 2005.
We had thought seriously of moving to Florida to be nearer to family, but the tax and insurance problems there are making us reconsider.
No, the problem is that Florida is Florida.
You want to live there, prepare to pay.
Colorado does it right. If the value of your house goes up, the state gets more tax revenue and the politicians boast about not raising taxes. If house value goes down or remains the same, property taxes are raised “for the children”. No problem./sarc
Now I have a little bit of a hard time empathizing with this guy because he needs a house bigger than 1100 square feet with one child on the way. I think our first house was about 800 square feet, and we had plenty of room with just one child.
But aside from that, the problem is not SOH, the problem is the excessive re-evaluation of the property value, once the house changes hands. Just put a cap on the amount they can reassess the house at, and the problem would be solved.
I don't have sympathy for second home owners, or for those in the rental property business.
It's just like any business there are risks you take when you go in, but they could curb the amount they could reasses the property at each year and I think that would go a long way to pacifying rental property owners.
Florida is a "no income tax" state. We've lived in other states and paid 7% or so in state income tax, so if you consider that Floridians aren't paying state income tax, IMO, the tax burden is not as bad as it sounds.
Doesn’t bother me. I’ve lived in my home for 15 years and my taxes have barely budged. Better than that my INSURANCE has barely budged (I have no idea why).
These people are paying the same if not less in property tax than their previous out of Florida house. Do they even consider what they save in income tax?
And the best part of it is is that if they live in THEIR house for 15 years like I have they can be making out like bandits too!
If I sell my house tomorrow and get one for two or three times the price I expect to pay property tax on that amount. Where the hell is the surprise? Or is it just class warfare?
Oh, the Florida constitution isn’t that easy to amend anymore. Takes 60% super majority! (Thank God).
Membership : 1
“Proposition 13, officially titled the “People’s Initiative to Limit Property Taxation,” was a ballot initiative to amend the constitution of the state of California. The initiative was enacted by the voters of California on June 6, 1978. It would eventually be upheld as constitutional by the United States Supreme Court in the case of Nordlinger v. Hahn, 505 U.S. 1 (1992). Proposition 13 is embodied in Article 13A of the California Constitution.
The most significant portion of the act is the first paragraph, which capped real estate taxes:
“ SECTION 1. (a) The maximum amount of any ad valorem tax on real property shall not exceed One percent (1%) of the full cash value of such property. The one percent (1%) tax to be collected by the counties and apportioned according to law to the districts within the counties. ”
Its passage resulted in a cap on property tax rates in the state, reducing them by an average of 57%. In addition to lowering property taxes, the initiative also contained language requiring a two-thirds majority in both legislative houses for future increases in all state tax rates or amounts of revenue collected, including income tax rates. Proposition 13 received an enormous amount of publicity, not only in California, but throughout the United States. Passage of the initiative presaged a “taxpayer revolt” throughout the country that is thought to have contributed to the election of Ronald Reagan to the presidency in 1980.”
Our home is now worth about $800,000.00 because of property value increases. We couldn’t possibly afford this place if we had to buy it today. Our property taxes are about $1,500.00 per year because of the much lower value of the property when we bought it.
I would like to see voter “Taxpayer revolts” in every state. Freepers are just the ones to head it up. Get organized folks!
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