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So Long, California? Goodbye, Texas? Taxpayers Decide Some States Aren’t Worth It. After new tax law made it costlier to own a house in many high-price areas, some residents are pulling up stakes
Wall Street Journal ^ | January 25, 2020 | Ben Eisen and Laura Kusisto

Posted on 01/25/2020 1:25:23 PM PST by karpov

...

Many people saw their overall taxes go down after the 2017 law was passed. But the law had two main changes making it tougher to live in high-cost, high-tax states, especially compared with lower-taxed options. It essentially curbed how much homeowners can subtract from their federal taxes for paying local property and income taxes, by capping the state and local tax deduction at $10,000. It also lowered the size of mortgages for which new buyers can deduct the interest, to $750,000 from $1 million.

These changes have the biggest impact on a sliver of the population who have high incomes and live in expensive areas. They tend to have white-collar jobs and the ability to pick up and move. Many own their own businesses, work remotely or are nearing retirement.

Critics say the changes have hurt everyone who lives in high-tax states, by taking a bite out of tax revenue. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, for example, panned the state and local tax cap last year. “It has redistributed wealth in this nation from Democratic states—we’re also called blue states—to red states,” he said at the time.

The average property tax bill in the U.S. in 2018 was about $3,500, according to Attom Data Solutions, a real-estate data firm. But many residents in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut and California had been deducting well over $10,000 a year. In Westchester County, N.Y., the average property-tax bill was more than $17,000, the highest in the country.

Among the people who are uprooting, many say they had long considered a change. But they saw the tax law as a reason to finally undertake the potentially difficult task of changing their state residency.

“It was another bucket of straw on the back of the camel,” said John Lee, a wealth-management executive

(Excerpt) Read more at wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy
KEYWORDS: california; taxes; texas
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To: rintintin

“A lot of Republicans were angry because the GOP Congress had just punished them with higher federal taxes...”

No, federal taxes were not raised, in fact they were lowered quite a bit. I’m sure everyone here but you understands the difference between capping a deduction and raising taxes. And I’m sure everyone here but you understands that the problem is taxes in those areas are confiscatory.

It looks like you are fairly new here. Have you showed up to try to sway the next election? I’ll give you a hint, you’re wasting your time here using illogical statements. Those work on Democrat voters only.


21 posted on 01/25/2020 2:03:33 PM PST by CottonBall (This space for rent.)
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To: Dilbert San Diego
Well, there are pros and cons to any type of taxation.

Walter Williams said that when the type of taxation is being debated it is because the burden of taxation has become excessive. If taxes are reasonable people don't express much concern about the type of taxation.

22 posted on 01/25/2020 2:03:51 PM PST by TexasKamaAina
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To: karpov
In Westchester County, N.Y., the average property-tax bill was more than $17,000, the highest in the country.

The property taxes in downstate, suburban NY City are obscene. A friend owns a very typical 4 bedroom suburban house in Westchester, and they pay $21,000 in property taxes every year. He recently became semi-retired when he was let go from his job, and it effectively means his family can’t afford to stay in their home.

Its a new form of feudalism. One doesn’t own one’s own property and taxes are destined to support the Lords of the state regime and their retinue.

23 posted on 01/25/2020 2:05:36 PM PST by PGR88
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To: CottonBall

Why don’t the Democrats there Have large mortgages?

Most Rats tend to be younger non-white people who rent rather than own because they don't have enough money to make a down payment or their job situation may fluctuate too much to justify putting down roots. Of course if property-owners have to pay more in taxes that is generally reflected in higher rents but many renters do not make the connection between lower property tax deductions and higher rents. There is also the fact that Dems like to enact rent control measures.

So Trump's tax measure in 2017 doesn't really hurt California Democrats that much. It just makes life that much harder for property owners, who tend to skew Republican, living in California.

24 posted on 01/25/2020 2:06:52 PM PST by FormerFRLurker (Keep calm and vote your conscience.)
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To: CottonBall

No, federal taxes were not raised,

OF course they were. The capping of the deduction raised the amount that many Republicans in California had to pay in federal taxes. This was done to bring in more money to pay for other tax cuts - because the GOP Congress chose to pay for those other cuts by raising revenue on high income homeowners, instead of by cutting spending.


25 posted on 01/25/2020 2:11:12 PM PST by rintintin
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To: Dilbert San Diego

TX has a statewide sales tax of 6.25%. There is a local option sales tax of 1% which is almost universal. Dallas has a 1% sales tax to support the rapid transit system. So, we have 8.25%.


26 posted on 01/25/2020 2:11:41 PM PST by RedElement
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To: CottonBall

The big cities here in Texas are blue islands in a sea of red rural areas and small towns-just like the rest of the US complete with the high city and county taxes-small cities/towns and rural areas don’t have property taxes as high because people simply won’t vote for them or pay them-they will just move their home and small business to the next county where the taxes are lower.

When people decided a few years ago that school taxes were too high, a large number of parents began homeschooling-or put their kids in the local small Christian school-which was more than happy to put up 3 new buildings to handle the increase in enrollment-school taxes haven’t gone any higher after that...

In this county, there are no big boxes-and none wanted- you have to drive 30 miles to get to a WalMart-there are not a lot of conveniences close by in a rural area, but the taxes are much lower than a city-if you want to live in a city or burb where everything is provided by the city or is within a few miles, go for it-but you will pay for it on your tax bill-likewise if you want to live on acreage, join an electric co op to provide electricity and internet service, get water from your own or a communal water service/well, get groceries at a local store, etc then move to a rural area and pay low taxes...

Most townie transplants, however end up selling out and returning to the city in 1-2 years-they are too used to having all the conveniences close by and can’t make the switch to traveling farther for stuff...


27 posted on 01/25/2020 2:12:35 PM PST by Texan5 ("You've got to saddle up your boys-you've got to draw a hard line"...)
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To: karpov

NY NJ CA and TX residents need a real property and state income tax caps in our federal Constitution.


28 posted on 01/25/2020 2:13:17 PM PST by Brian Griffin
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To: PGR88

Westchester property tax payers should seek an injunction under Amendment V.


29 posted on 01/25/2020 2:16:55 PM PST by Brian Griffin
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To: karpov
Critics say the changes have hurt everyone who lives in high-tax states, by taking a bite out of tax revenue. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, for example, panned the state and local tax cap last year. “It has redistributed wealth in this nation from Democratic states—we’re also called blue states—to red states,” he said at the time.

Actually it's the opposite. For many years taxpayers in lower tax states were subsidizing those in places like New York because the deduction was allowed. If your crooked state government is raping you on property taxes why should you be allowed to take a deduction on federal taxes which decreases your federal liability? Those federal taxes you didn't pay have to be made up by other taxpayers, taxpayers that are usually located in states with more sane property tax policies.

30 posted on 01/25/2020 2:17:45 PM PST by GaryCrow
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To: karpov

when you pay $300=2000 a month, on top of mortgage, simply for the privilege of owning a home, the state is forcing the taxpayer out of the state. Because the state believes in increasing their department budgets by 10% or so each year, to compensate the ever-increasing payroll. An ever-increasing payroll as departments micromanage every step of life and business, because what else would they do with all those employees? And the poor and displaced grow, which gives the state the excuse to raise even more taxes and increase more payrolls. Of course, the cure to all this is states on a diet. Instead of increasing by 10% or so, how about cutting by 10% for 6 or 7 years? And then the state wouldn’t need to raise so much money in property taxes. And the taxpayer wouldn’t be micromanaged into abandoning their state and ‘redistributing their wealth’ elsewhere.


31 posted on 01/25/2020 2:21:06 PM PST by blueplum ("...this moment is your moment: it belongs to you... " President Donald J. Trump, Jan 20, 2017)
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To: Brian Griffin

That is up to the state’s governor-not the fed-our Texas governor is working all the time to lower/fix property taxes, but it is an uphill battle in big, greedy cities with bloated city governments...


32 posted on 01/25/2020 2:23:15 PM PST by Texan5 ("You've got to saddle up your boys-you've got to draw a hard line"...)
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To: CottonBall

Yes I meant income tax.


33 posted on 01/25/2020 2:27:23 PM PST by Dilbert San Diego
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To: karpov

Weather. It’s about the weather

Ca has the best weather. All time. Except Hawaii


34 posted on 01/25/2020 2:31:44 PM PST by Truthoverpower (The guv mint you get is the Trump winning express !)
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To: FormerFRLurker

What the 2017 tax cut did was take away the redistribution of wealth from low property tax states to high property tax states that was occurring due to property tax deductions.

Allowing people in high property tax states to deduct those taxes is in reality a way to allow those states to tax the rest of the country, since they end up paying less for the same Federal government benefits (take that as you like) than people in a low property tax state. And it is particularly egregious for the middle class who often own property but are not overly wealthy.

People that have a problem with ending the property tax deduction should not take it out on the Trump Administration or the GOP; they should address the problem of high taxes with their STATE government.


35 posted on 01/25/2020 2:37:58 PM PST by calenel (The Democratic Party is a Criminal Enterprise. It is the Progressive Mafia.)
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To: CottonBall
I live in Fairfield County, CT, where my annual property tax is well over $10,000 a year.

Trump's new tax plan (capping deductions at $10K) definitely increased my overall taxes but I totally support it. Not Trump's fault that CT has decided to punish successful people with these onerous property taxes.

As a result of this new policy, will be more difficult for CT to raise my property taxes much further.

36 posted on 01/25/2020 2:38:41 PM PST by SamAdams76
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To: dragnet2

Property taxes should be flat out abolished and outlawed.
————————————————————————————————
The politicians always say during election season that they support doing away with them. But they never do and never will.


37 posted on 01/25/2020 2:42:21 PM PST by V V Camp Enari 67-68 (Viet Vet)
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To: karpov

California refugees, don’t vote for what you fled.

The evil of multiculturalism is that it imports people from failed societies and then says you’re bad if you adopt to the successful habits, and that you’re evil if you push them to adapt.


38 posted on 01/25/2020 3:18:14 PM PST by tbw2
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To: rintintin

He should have reduced it to ZERO. The rest of the nation should not have to subsidize Californians, NY’ers, etc...don’t like it? Relocate. My family left our home in Laguna Nigel and moved to the Tampa Bay area. We’d had enough of the abject lunacy of our home state. Best decision we ever made.


39 posted on 01/25/2020 3:21:18 PM PST by ocrp1982 (ll)
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To: ocrp1982

Laguna Nigel is beautiful. Must have been hard to leave.


40 posted on 01/25/2020 3:22:52 PM PST by rintintin
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