Posted on 08/29/2017 4:26:00 AM PDT by gaggs
Amen.
Before taking on your city hall, county courthouse or state capital... Try getting your home and property back from “your” HOA. At least the first three governments I listed are forms of democratic republic. HOA’s are pure tyranny, and it’s your own neighbors doing it to you.
Amen!
We picked reputable contractors. Paid through the nose, but that’s another thread. Labor costs are through the roof (ha ha), and the number of skilled tradesmen around here is falling. Nobody wants to stay. We know folks with low to mid six figure homes, beautiful places, who can’t sell because their property taxes are between 6 to 10 grand annually. Low priced homes are selling faster than more expensive homes.
I’m not sure how any alternative could work. A condominium or home owners association (hoa) works the same way for apportioning the cost of maintaining common areas. At other times property was taxed on road frontage, number of windows, or number of floors and each tax scheme has unintended consequences like extra narrow buildings, bricked in windows, and French Empire or Mansard style roofs.
How can a town equitably apportion the cost of maintaining the civil space?
Actually, here in some areas of California we only pay 1.025% in property taxes with no HOA.
But, yes they still own it...
Both cheaper and lower end houses are being built and sold here, but we are one of the fastest counties in the country for growth
You are right about contractors though. If you want a smaller job say under 10 grand then most are not interested since the construction business is booming, and contractors , some of which are pretend contractors so it is important who is licensed and insured.
I had my bathroom just remodeled, but I had him do the bath out, walk in shower in, and move the drain field, and pluming. I did the rest like put a new floor in, paint, sink, vanity, toilet etc.
Saved me thousands that way.
HOAs are the worst only exceeded by a condominium association.
If you want to target local taxes here’s a rough breakdown:
50% goes to Schools
25% goes to Police
10% goes to run the Town
15% supports the county and miscellaneous other services
(Depending on where you live the last two percentages can fluctuate but the schools and police always take the lion’s share)
We are still going thru the process of selling and buying. Just got a house under contract. Anything with an HOA or in a development wasn't even considered. If someone moves into an HOA neighborhood they volunteered to be controlled by their neighbors.
Ain't no way in Hades I'd ever live with that crap. Some azzoles ya hafta put up with. (i.e. .gov)
Others are voluntary. d;^)
In agreement with the OP and have used that point in plenty of discussions. But where on the planet is it any better?
Truth
Here’s how bad it is here: Getting someone reputable for a small job is not a problem. Fewer and fewer folks are remodeling because of the affordability and property tax issues. That said, contractors we talked to still advised against anything that’d jack your assessment. We’ve done a number of things this year, none we were able to do ourselves, but all were jobs that wouldn’t raise our assessment, roof work, for example.
Plank #1 of Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto: Abolition of private property rights.
It's because the deadbeats and takers voted it and they outnumber the producers-- these are people who shouldn't be allowed to vote at all. This is why we had poll taxes, but now they are "racist". Everyone should just pay for their own stuff, to include children's education, at this point; too many financially irresponsible people, deadbeats and communists to make an equitable tax system work.
In my small New England town mostly older retired people live here.
They go to every town meeting in droves, and their message is very simple every time:
“No!”
Property taxes and the ability to keep a primary home out of bankruptcy proceedings (as in Florida), are key to how some of the very underpopulated states could attract new residents.
To start with, under strict parameters, a state could enact its own homestead act. A single family home on a land area of limited size, that cannot be leased or rented, can be property tax and inheritance tax free, as long as the family lives there for six months and a day every year (as in Alaska).
The domicile must be fully owned, not mortgaged, and the family must maintain some means of financial support. And while it may be “connected to the grid”, for electricity, water, and sewage, if they can provide these things for themselves, it will not be required.
I would like to hear some original ideas about doing away with property taxes, yet funding things like local city hall, police, city streets and such.
My county property tax office charges me 3 and a half months of take home pay to live in my home.
I’ve been making this argument for three decades now.
My parents paid $60 a month for our three bedroom rambler in a Fort Worth suburb back in 1962. My friend, who has a nicer four bedroom house in the suburbs of Seattle (Maple Valley) pays $750 a month JUST IN PROPERTY TAXES.
I see that as rent.
It’s why I moved to central, rural Kentucky. We still have property taxes, but my ANNUAL property taxes are the same as a single month’s car payment on a Camry. And that’s for a house and 32 beautiful acres.
Every time I fly in and out of Chicago or Seattle I look down and see a tax goldmine. That is you those people’s leaders see it. A population that is to be ripped off as much as possible before they actually revolt. Well, I DID revolt. I moved.
Live out in the country in a home that’s paid for on acreage that’s paid for. Yes, I pay property taxes but they are ridiculously low. Yes, I pay home insurance primarily to get protection against fire. But that’s it.
I have friends who live “in town” and are always bitching about how high their property taxes are and the onerous rules of their HOA.
I just smile to myself.
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