property tax oblivion

[The Big Kahuna]

Originally Posted by hockeypuck

Stop crying. You don't pay an outrageous amount of taxes. Everyone, everywhere pays taxes and most don't like it. Unfortunately, people loose their homes to taxes all over the country. At least you live in the best region of the best state in the best country in the world. Bite the bullet and enjoy what you have.

I think the rate the towns have raised taxes are to quick. My property values have gone down the past two years, but my taxes went up, what is up with that?

[kjbathe]

Originally Posted by The Big Kahuna

I think the rate the towns have raised taxes are to quick. My property values have gone down the past two years, but my taxes went up, what is up with that?

What is up with that is SPENDING. If spending is flat, your property value could have doubled and you'd still pay the same amount in taxes. In the simplest terms, the rate gets set so that when multiplied by the assessed values the town ends up with the required budget.

Control the spending, and you control your taxes.

[jeffk]

I agree the first line of defense against paying higher taxes is controlling spending.

However, you have to understand how property taxes work. If your property value drops 4% and everyone else's property value drops 7%, congratulations you win higher taxes as "compared to everyone else". This can often be the case in a vacation area where expensive second home prices may be hit harder than smaller residential home prices. This effectively shifts some of the tax burden to the residential homes which now, comparatively, are worth more. The tax follows the comparative value. Even if spending is absolutely flat the amount of tax paid by any one individual can change based on the comparitive value of their property.

[The Big Kahuna]

Originally Posted by kjbathe

What is up with that is SPENDING. If spending is flat, your property value could have doubled and you'd still pay the same amount in taxes. In the simplest terms, the rate gets set so that when multiplied by the assessed values the town ends up with the required budget.

Control the spending, and you control your taxes.

Now that we are a new Republic, I don't see that happening, spending will do nothing but increase.

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by kjbathe

What is up with that is SPENDING. If spending is flat, your property value could have doubled and you'd still pay the same amount in taxes. In the simplest terms, the rate gets set so that when multiplied by the assessed values the town ends up with the required budget.

Control the spending, and you control your taxes.

Well said.

And as someone who sits through the review of my town's budget, I will say that if you want to have a personal impact on the spending in your town, then you should attend the budget committee meetings. There's always room for public input at any meeting and it could be a great opportunity for you to voice your concerns about spending. It's also a great way to see how the budget is justified - or NOT!

[idigtractors]

Originally Posted by Argie's Wife

Well said.

And as someone who sits through the review of my town's budget, I will say that if you want to have a personal impact on the spending in your town, then you should attend the budget committee meetings. There's always room for public input at any meeting and it could be a great opportunity for you to voice your concerns about spending. It's also a great way to see how the budget is justified - or NOT!

I think the biggest thing is the voting on the articles that appear for the town to vote on. I can almost guarantee that the tax rate would go down if seasonal people were able to vote.

[Argie's Wife]

Originally Posted by idigtractors

I think the biggest thing is the voting on the articles that appear for the town to vote on. I can almost guarantee that the tax rate would go down if seasonal people were able to vote.

Perhaps... but the problem with the warrant articles is that they're generally worded in a way that's so ambiguous that people have trouble comprehending what they're REALLY for. And there's generally too darn many of them - we had over 40 last year here in Alton and always have a bunch. Some have a $0 fiscal impact but most have a price tag attached. By attending the deliberative sessions, it's much easier to understand what you're voting for. Those deliberative sessions are televised but only on the local cable access. The warrant articles are in the papers, but there's also petition warrant articles that are presented at the deliberative sessions - and all the justification for them. (By the way, Alton is SB2 and I'm writing this from that experience - might be a bit different for your town.)

In short, I would welcome seasonal residents' vote - if they were INFORMED voters. I question how they would really be able to make a good, informed decision if they weren't as tuned-in to the local happenings like you are... I don't know how that would happen - perhaps that fodder for another thread, eh?

[This'nThat]

Seems to me one way of getting lower property taxes in Alton is to build those cell towers. The Town is already on record that the towers will be an eyesore that affects our "View". And, since our property taxes now include a "View" tax, all of our property assessments should drop -- dramatically -- if the cell towers are built. Not only do we get lower taxes, as a result -- we also get cell service for the first time.

A win-win!