Your missing the boat on your augument here! The basic problem is not the assement vaules, the problem is the overall budget for the municipalities.
The assement value is just one of the factors in calculating the tax rate. If the overall budget goes up and the assement stays the same the tax rate goes up proportional. That is was we need to fight against!
Government consolidation in New York State, with the end goal being saving taxpayer money. I truly applaud and thank Responsible New York’s efforts, and would love to assist in any way I can.
I have been paying property taxes for over a decade, and researching the property tax hard-core for about a year now, and watching and commenting on Tom Suozzi’s New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief efforts and the New York State Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness hearings as well. The need for major simplification of our multitude of government entities, special districts and schools is paramount to achieving fairness for the burden of supporting necessary government services in New York State.
I also see the result of unfair property taxation on all New Yorkers, and I wish to have all property taxes eventually abolished via constitutional decree. The Property Tax is a medieval instrument of indebtedness, and cannot ever be fairly administered. If you know your assessor, you’re probably getting a good deal; if you built a home or live on waterfront, you’re probably not.
My general ideas of where I would like to see us end up, which may be more far-reaching than yours, primarily consist of 4 major goals:
- political elimination of all villages and towns, with all village and town employees, services and contracts to initially become county employees functioning under the political control of the County governments
- political elimination of all school districts within a county, with all school employees, services and contracts to initially become county employees functioning under the political control of the County governments
- all fire districts capable of imposing taxation on residents to fall under the control of the county government, with or without volunteer fire responders continuing to serve; where necessary, County governments could be authorized to hire volunteers for their services
- elimination of all property taxes, with revenues to be provided by the collection of state and county sales tax, with the majority coming from the state and via major reduction in state budgets.
My opinion is that NYS tax needs to be examined in whole. Property tax is one part, certainly an ugly part for me living in Rush, but it is only one part. NYS has disparities in both property tax as well as income tax, but I would agree with Greg (3/12 post) that what’s driving the tax problems is an out of control budgeting process at the local and state level of government.
The third tax, of course is sales tax, which is almost totally counter productive, driving business out, encouraging internet or out-of-state purchasing and placing a heavier burden on low/middle income residents. We should have a proposition placed to vote that would ratchet sales tax back by 0.25$ per year until it is eliminated completely.
I’m not too sure that consolidation by itself (Chris 3/16 post) is necesarily a good approach. That sounds to me like one big government rather than a thousand small governments. One big tax authority might be beneficial only if there is independent, non-government oversight of budgeting.
I see the budgeting/spending problem being rooted in the idea that legislators, with their speical agendas, have control of the process. We need an independent, non-government agent to review the budget and recommend reductions. The agent would be paid on a percentage of IMPLEMENTED REDUCTIONS.
Then as part two of my suggestion, I would rank the legislator’s based on the IMPLEMENTED REDUCTIONS - this would be a way to point out the largest culprits in terms of ‘fluffing up the budget/spending’.
Those of us in the Town of Evans are fascinated that when we went through the 100%assessment last year, no one cared. The media ,many of whom,probably live in Amherst, are now much more interested in what is happening with assessments.
I live on the lake, not beach front, but lake front. My property assessment went from $133,000 to $400,000. My taxes are now around $13,000 a year for a property that my parents bought in the 70’s for $24,500. It is an older home built in the 1920’s and ‘remodeled’ by my parents in the $70,000’s.
No improvements since then. What I have noticed is all the for sale signs around my neighborhood, and no one is buying. Who can afford these taxes. We are the town with the lowest income per capita
and we have the highest tax rate. The town is trying to survive on the backs of people that live on the lake. We are not wealthy people. Many of us received the property from our parents, who were also not wealthy people.
When we challenged our assessments we were told not to worry because the Town would probably lower the tax rate-that did not happen and most of us will now be selling the “lake front ” properties that our parents worked so hard to keep and treasured so much.
Excellent ideas on reducing spending, thank you for sharing them.
I do not like the idea of eliminating sales tax, however, because at least the sales tax hits everyone at the same percent for a given product, or should. The greater problem we’re trying to correct here is the abysmal implementation of the property tax, which hits each household differently.
Imagine if you had to buy milk at the grocery store based on a stranger’s perception of what your house MIGHT sell for. Would you want to keep that system in place? This is, in effect, what the property tax is doing to us.
We buy government services based on what a complete stranger thinks our house might be able to sell for. This is an inexact science, and all property owners dispute the assessed value of their property because beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. This all leads to everyone feeling slighted, because how we determine what you pay for property taxes is NOT FAIR.
Let’s say you make improvements to your property. Your assessed value might rise, but why then should you be required to pay more taxes, as nothing has changed in your family earnings situation?
Let’s say a developer wants your farmland, and is friendly with the assessor. What’s to stop the developer from asking the assessor to assess you out of your tax payment ability, because now the land has more perceived value? Do you really own your property, or are you “renting” from your local government fiefdoms from year to year?
The property tax was an instrument of taxation that kind-of worked in the 16th and 17th century, when property value was approximately equal to income in an agricultural sense. New York State is no longer a colonial agricultural-based economy, and most property does not produce income. Why then should we continue to use it for running essential government services?
Cowardly politicians are happy to keep the status-quo, as Wayne mentioned, because it allows them to be shielded from the economic realities that we average New Yorkers face. Yes, we need to fund schools, courts, fire services, health and sanitation, law enforcement, etc.. but we need to fund these essential services in a more equitable way- NOT based on one person (the assessor’s) opinion.
We need to reduce the complexity of our municipal structures (all these local government fiefdoms), consolidate the schools so that the little ones aren’t trying to offer the same services as the big ones for the same price, and eliminate any local governing bodies that have been granted the ability to impose any property taxation on us.
My thoughts on consolidation are that it would lead to more efficiency with lower costs and greater transparency, followed by total elimination of the property tax.
Thanks for sharing ideas, it makes me feel just a tad bit better to know that there are others feeling the same frustrations that I feel. It is not surprising that we have somewhat different ideas regarding a solution (Greg 3/18). However, I feel a sadness reading our ‘blog’ writings and that lies in the reality of NYS political process.
While friends and family lament their tax burdens we send the same people back to the state senate, the state assembly and local governments. I ask my self if we are really ill informed or really stupid and I conclude that we are neither.
Our problem lies in fielding attractive candidates for office who can/will break the incumbency lock on our government. This is not a trivial problem and unfortunately it is a prerequisite for any change in NYS spending habits.
We should not expect that things will change until the incumbent strangle hold is broken. In 2007 there was a proposal for term limits put forward, I am not familiar with the full scope of that proposal, but it has not been acted upon in the ensuing year(s). That’s a place to start - don’t let NYS political office become a career… wayne
It’s comforting to see that so many other over taxed New Yorkers are speaking out and we truly hope that CHANGE will take place AND soon, i.e. STOP taxing us out of our homes… I have been in the work force for FIFTY years…I’m 68 years old and still working part time to keep up with property taxes.. We LOVE our home that we built 40 years ago and as our income(s) dwindle we fear that we won’t be able to keep up with NYS taxes much longer… A local politician told me (a few years ago) “Move, if you can’t afford it”.. .HELLO ? What kind of answer is that? I did NOT vote for him when it came re-election.
We all need relief in New York and SOON..
Tom & Sharon: Great story, there are certainly those people out there who still don’t get it - the property tax must become a memory.
How can we do it? We want drastic change, and we must demand it. We must fundamentally change the local government structure to acheive drastic reductions in taxes.
We need two things overall: relief now, and reform over time.
Please contact your state legislators and ask them to support the Omnibus Property Tax Reform and Relief Bill now!
I grew up in Rochester and moved away to Michigan as an adult. Recently I moved back because I love the area, but for the life of me I cannot figure out what I’m getting for DOUBLE the property taxes.
In Michigan I owned a brand new home. The kids had great schools. Our streets were plowed, we had public water/sewer and all the other perks of home ownership in a new subdivision. I paid $4200 in property taxes/year.
I moved to Monroe County and purchased a 15- year old home in an established subdivision and my property taxes are $8100/year. The schools aren’t any better, nor are any of the other services.
Taxes, taxes, fees, fees, surcharges, surcharges. When my wife and I went through a financially tight time, we cut out all “dining out”, we consolidated debt, stopped using the credit card and lived within our means. It was tough at first but we got used to it and are now saving money.
Governments NEED TO DO THIS. I would have loved to tell my employer “Hey, I’m running out of money. Pay me more”, but that is not an option. Why can the Government continue to be fiscally irresponsible and we have no recourse but to support them.
The only way Government is going to become responsible with my money is if they are told they cannot have anymore for 5 years. Period. No more tax hikes, no more surcharges, no more fees. Then the Government knows the only way they can balance their budget is to get lean, mean and efficient….and there’s nothing wrong with that.
We are having a tea party/tax revolt March 28th in Buffalo.
It is being held at the Terminus of the canal at 2 PM
The canal is directly beside the Naval and Military Park on Marine Drive. This has turned into a big event. People are bringing their property tax bills, their list of grievances, the list of people is growing who are attending.
Come and join us to show support and protest Albanys taxation and demand representation for Western New York.
Can anyone say comida, pilot tax agreements? What a worthless venture for government, if your new we will let you not pay taxes while existing business and property owners subsidise these projects. Our Town of Irondequoit recently worked out an agreement to help a failed commercial property giving tax breaks for 30 years ! I’m a homebuilder if i could offer new buyers 30 years of extremely low property taxes I could also create jobs. The market would quickly understand the true value and promptley raise the value of these homes to capture the discount value. Oh I guess this is why comida and pilot programs are doomed not to work in the long run………
Grass roots “United we stand” works all the time. The push to get the people out to voice and vote is the big issue. Most think their voice and vote won’t make a difference. Look at Washington, they refuse to hear the massive outcry from “we the people”. We all do more with less in our own homes and businesses do the same. The largest issue here is the teachers union. Spend, spend, spend. School taxes are killing us! They are too powerful and get their cronies elected. We really need to start there. There is waste is every school district. In Fairport they think we have endless money and we don’t. Their are numerous areas where they can cut w/out hurting services, but they won’t. In industry you pick up the slack or you’re out the door. We all are doing more with less. Why can’t they??? I say we go after the wasteful spending in the schools and see what a difference that makes. Bring on the charter schools, private shools and let “we the people” decide where OUR money goes. Competition works in the business sector and it will work in the educational sector as well.
I lived in Florida for 13 years in “unincorporated” Broward County. My taxes were so reasonable as I did not pay a town or village tax. I had all the ammentities that anyone could want. Florida is a good example of goverment incorporation. Our NY goverment has much to learn from other states. Seek and learn.
I was disappointed that Tom Golisano supported President Obama and his “socialist tax and spend huge government will take care of us” view. Now he wants us to oppose high taxes. This does not make sense to me. If Mr. Golisano is so successful I assume he is very smart. How smart are the people that voted for Obama? They probably did not read a word of the Founding Fathers. The Federal Government is supposed to be small and taxes are supposed to be low.
Obama lovers are getting what they voted for! Tom is too!
When is the state going to stop handing out welfare to everyone and start making people work , give them a little help with food stamps or child care if they need it.Their still working then and paying taxes. Come to ORLEANS COUNTY they give it away here! I wrote a comment about this 2 weeks ago have not got a response on it at all , why is that? If it makes sense nobody wants to listen. Oi forgot,the middle class people who are taxed the highest don’t get any breaks and have to pay the most and carry everybody. WELFARE is killing this state and I am tired of having my taxes go up because of it.
The inequity of assessed values is staggering. In 2003 I moved from a Boston, MA suburb to the Southern Tier. Largely attracted by the low real estate prices, and beautiful country. I neglected to consider the insane property taxes. Finally fed up, I decided to do some research. Here is the tale of 4 houses all purchased within a two year period, the first three are neighboring properties.
Purchase Purchase Assessed % of Purchase
Date Price Value Price
7/1/2003 125000 120400 0.9632
12/2/2003 140000 118700 0.8479
7/11/2002 180000 94900 0.5272
6/15/2001 262500 199600 0.7604
I happen to be the lucky one who is assessed at 96.3% of the purchase price. The one at 52.7% is a “local” who has been in the area for years. This is simply wrong, and I have made my intentions to apeal my current assessment quite clear. They could not provide me with any rational regarding this disparity. It is not so much that my property is over valued, I believe it is a pretty accurate estimate of market value, but the others are simply well under valued. Why? At best it is utter incompetence by the Assessor, at worst a flagrent disregard for equal taxation.
So what should we do?
1. I am encouraging everyone I know to dispute their assessed value. I am sure my neighbors on the low end of the value won’t, but I will continue to push and appeal until there is fairness. If they will not lower my value, the will raise theirs to the market value it should be at. This is a $0 sum game. Town needs $X to operate, and must allocate it against $X of property value. Tie up the system and make them accountable for their decisions.
2. Consolidation of schools. Small schools are nice but very inefficient and the quality is somewhat lacking. Why does a school system with 400 students K-12, 1 building, need a $120K a year superintendent? Take 3 geographically close small systems. One is used as an elementary, one as a middle school, and one as a Jr/Sr High school. Hire 1 Superintendent - $240 K savings. This is just the tip of the iceberg on the costs savings that could occur in this scenario, and provide the students with more educational opportunities. The real problem is the local ego’s. Where I am from 1 Superintendent would handle 6 - 8 buildings and a student population of well over 3000.
3. Abolish the local and village court system. This is a joke and I honestly could not believe that people with no law experience were judges! If you are able to lawyer up, I suggest you do, otherwise your sentence will be what the DA wants.
4. I am astounded by the volume of apparently healthy people who are on disability or welfare. Free insurance, food stamps, subsidized taxes, free lunch at school, etc. I am all for a helping hand, not a hand out. Monica is right and from what I can tell Allegany County is right up there with Oleans County.
It is time for us, the middle class, to stand up and revolt against this corrupt, antiquated, and good old boy system that has made this mess.
Information regarding the amount of tax exempt properties needs to be distributed. Someone has to cover for the municipal services that such properties use. That would be all others who pay taxes.
The state has now required a listing of exempt properties along with proposed muni budgets in Chapter 258 of the laws of 2008 Sec 495 of Real Property Tax Law. Such information somehow needs to be made public.
Especially remember that IDA properties are arbitrarily
removed from tax rolls by non elected boards.
The Colton-Pierrepont School District in northern NY has approximately 300 students in PK - 12 grades and spends $26694 per pupil. Taxpayers can not afford to support districts like this one, especially given the fact that the district could easily be merged with either the neighboring Potsdam or Canton districts. This is just one example of the waste in education. The district is largely supported by seasonal property owners who do not get to vote in the local election process.
The low voter turnout for school budgets has long been of concern to me as well. Just a handful of people determine the school spending that has such a significant impact on our property taxes. Where are these people who complain about the taxes when the votes take place in the spring? We need a better way for citizens to vote on school budgets and to elect school board members. We should not approve budgets without a truly representative sample of a district’s citizens.
The entire educational system needs to be redesigned. As a parent, I’m disappointed in our local district. We need a merit-based system to encourage the best teachers. We need more emphasis on the core curriculum areas and less on the fluff stuff. We need to remove many of the extracurricular activities that serve only a small number of students and concentrate on the majority. If parents want music lessons, let them pay for them privately. It shouldn’t be done at taxpayer expense.
I believe we should also require all of our elected officials to enroll their own children in public schools where they live. It’s a great way to keep them informed on the quality of education in NYS. Let them live like the rest of us.
As I read these posts here, I find that we all seem to agree that NYS taxes too much, spends too much, and does it all in a manner that makes no sense to those who live and work in NYS. The decisions government makes is often opposite to what the voters want.
Would anybody be willing to form a group (one who understands government well) to get together and form an alternative to the current rules and budget making process on the books? And then we could take it straight to Albany, and ultimately even Washington D.C. and demand change?
I agree, particularly with Claudia, see above. Here in Brighton, about 70% of our property taxes are driven by the ever expanding school budget. And fewer than 5% of voters turn out on May 19. With more than 5% of Brighton residents in the education sector, the vote is in the bag. This year, the board will ask for approval of additional reserve funds, which, with no quorum on the vote, are basically a form of theft.
Some of us are trying to do something: see our blog at ASIBrighton.org. If you are a Brightonian please join us, and for goodness sakes, vote “no” on May 19th.
Our school district will vote on a 7.4% increase this month. The lion’s share, 5.2%, will be offset by state aid for our unnecessary capital improvement project (still taxpayer dollars). The remaining 2.2% is the operating spending increase over the previous year. The stimulus package restored all of the funding to our district. They selfishly increased spending by 2.2% during these terrible economic times. Even if we could encourage enough citizens to vote no on the budget, the contingency budget is only $40K less. We have 3 candidates running for 3 board seats, so that’s a no-brainer. Our district is confident that no one will bother to vote because their vote doesn’t matter. It’s sad.
When I moved to NY I was, at first, amused at the useless layers of government. Then, I slowly began to question the inefficiencies and rampant nepotism. Finally I became angry.
The insanity of NYS taxes could be justified if the services we received were that much greater than anywhere else, but they’re not. Our roads are some of the worst in the country, our schools — while high performing — are often in disrepair. The entire infrastructure of the State is literally crumbling under its own weight.
Consolidated local governments, under County and urban-centers, are proven. The quality of services residents receive are often higher than what we see in NY, there’s a higher level of accountability from our elected officials, and taxes are decreased.
I have been preaching consolidation of local governments since the day after I moved here. It’s time for the residents of NY to stand up and say “no more.” NO MORE mismanagement of our money. NO MORE egregious salaries that aren’t commiserate with the work being done. NO MORE nepotism on my nickel.
I encourage every citizen of NY to vote NO on every referendum and budget put forth. Send a clear message to our elected officials, adapt to the realities of common sense, or be voted out. Our State can no longer function in this matter.
Good luck in Florida. I understand why you need to relocate and I wish you the best.
Those of us left behind in NYS know we are overtaxed and underserved by a bloated bureaucracy and way too much government at every level. We need to do more with less and get rid of entire layers of government which is archaic.
Thanks for all you have done and we look forward to better days once we can get new people elected to reform government in NYS
THANK YOU so much for putting into words what so many of us feel about living in NYS. We are recently retired and stay here because we have children and grandchildren here. We do go to Florida every winter, but not for 6 months and 1 day! That might change in the future! We downsized into a condo and our taxes are ridiculous. Why do we pay so much more than those who live down-state? THANKS again for speaking up for so many of us “here in the tundra trenches”!
IF YOU EVER ORGANIZE A TEA PARTY, WE’LL BE THERE!!
First no one over 70 and living on a fixed income in their own home should pay any school or property tax
Next we sholud have the ”privilege ” like they have in calif. to have a public referendum ( prop/13) and see if in fact we have ” taxation without representation ” in New York State..!!
Or better yet take the case to the supreme court to constitionally varify we are taxed without representation
I agree with the lettby Tom and his reasons for leaving New York State. He has tried for years to change the Albany mess and I voted for him each time he ran for office. As you stated in your letter the union’s solutiion is to tax the rich and I admire you for fighting back.
I understand your frustration and wanting to leave but if you love New York as you claim you do then help us. With your money and influence , you can make a difference and make a change. Maybe you could influence a change in the medicaid system. I work in healthcare and could easily give some front line solutions to cut costs..Leaving will not only increase taxes for everyone to make up the difference but also our hope that change will come. We need you now more than ever to be our voice. New York is drowning and you are jumping ship…We need you…
we have only ourselves to blame a week ago i went to a school budget increase hearing ther was only 8 people there from the whole town of brighton wake up new yorkers.you drive two extra miles to save pennies on gas prices but you will not vote no on tax increases.this fit so well the definition of suckers
after reading the latest letter from Tom G. i have to agree. It is unfortunate that many, many of us (western new yorkers) have decided to move out… in our case, both of our adult children moved to NC and own homes, and have great jobs..making over $100, 000 each..no, they are not Drs. or the like, just hard working regular kids with 4 year degrees in English. We (my husband and I) purchased a home in NC and we pay 1% property tax! In WNY, our home is assessed at 165,000 and yet our taxes are over $7000. We could have bought a $750,000 home here for the same taxes! Yet we have not been able to sell the NY home! Are we sure NYS has a better educational system? seems to me they just have a better pay system! at our ( hardworking ) taxpayers expense! They also have great colleges here, Duke, NCState Etc, and i doubt they are filled with ONLY NYS REGENTS students! think about that! We have been told for years that our education is the best in the country, bar none…. hummm, maybe the Teachers Union in NY has had some gain by this propaganda? how do we stop it? We have tried and now have given up. I have no more ideas so i am now a NC resident hoping to sell my NY home soon!
Good luck on your move Tom! I will admit that I am envious. I must say that I am very worried that your $$ that you are taking with you will manifest and inspire the NYS government in taking another pound of flesh from the middle class. I fear what next year’s budget is going to look like without Obama’s stimulus monies and the mass exodus of people leaving this state. I am so fearful that I am looking to help my family leave the state too. Its going to be hard to do and going to take a lot of work on my family’s behalf, but given that state budget, the political connection bs and the lack of jobs, I fear we will be part of the mass exodus.
I do not agree that NYS has the best schools. I have worked in education is three states and NY is by far the worst. The NY system teaches to a test and falls short when it comes to preparing our youth for college and life.
My property taxes more than doubled in the last four years! The two years before we went to 100% assessment our assessor jacked the value of our farm by over 30%. So she got a 50% advantage when the 100% assessment came into play. The land values a few miles either side of me have gone up considerably because the area is good for vineyards. However, we are so high up that it is too cold for grapes or orchards on the farms right around me. Since we are in the same town our assessments went up right along with theirs but our per acreage sale value did not.
I am selling my farm, most likely to the Amish, and moving to GA or FL. The taxes are out of hand in NYS on everything and I can not afford to keep on paying. When figure in income, sales, gas, service and property taxes I am paying more than 60% of my income NY government in one way or another. That is ludicrous!
When you look at what Tom Galisano will save in ONE day, you can not blame him for getting out. He does not owe this state anything. He has paid more than his share. Good luck Tom! Maybe I will see you in Florida.
The property taxes, which grow forever, are unsustainable and we need to find an alternative answer. In addition to capping spending and finding way to be more efficient, the government needs to allow people to feel that they really own their property and are not leasing it from the government. Think about this, if you decide to stay in your home until you pay your mortgage in full, by then your property taxes would have far exceeded the monthly mortgage payment you started with. This means that you will never really own your house and if you lose your job, although you owe nothing on the house, you still have a huge monthly payment and the local government can foreclose your house and kick you out. What kind of property ownership is that? It is a joke when you think that you own your house, you are renting from the local teachers union and the rest of the bureaucrats in your New York local area.
Solutions (In addition to controlling the crazy cost increases):
1. Move the property taxes to sales taxes. Take a one time adjustment to the sales taxes by calculating the amount needed to make up for the current property taxes and figuring out the corresponding required increase in sales taxes. This seems like a big hike in sales taxes, but the advantages are many as follows:
a. When you purchase your home with a fixed rate mortgage, you always know what your monthly payment will be and could feel/be more secure knowing that they will not increase forever to the point where you could no longer afford them. For example, when I bought my house 8 years ago, my monthly real estate property taxes was $400/month and now it is $625/month, and worse yet, I am faced with the never ending increases that could one day cripple me financially. What kind of fake homeownership is that! I know a friend in Canandaigua who bought his house on the lake over 30 years ago when the prices were low. He was fortunate/unfortunate that the property value went up to close to a million dollars, but he is forced to leave his home now because his property taxes are over $30,000/year. Paul (who is 64 years old) was crying one day telling me that he cannot pay the property taxes and is forced to either borrow money against the house or leave it. Do we really think that it is fair to put a senior citizen, who worked hard all his life and paid taxes, through this burden? He loves his home, all his family memories were made in it, and he would like to stay in it but cannot! $30,000 a year is totally insane! This could happen to any of us although it may be at a smaller scale but it would be the same dilemma for us.
b. With the burden shifted to sales tax. When I finish paying my mortgage in 7 years, if I loose my job, I can control my spending and reduce my expenses, yet I wont have to worry about losing my home and I can keep a roof over my family’s head instead of having an army of tax collectors sending me to live in the street so that they could foreclose on my house to get their God given right property taxes.
c. We will truly permanently own our homes and no one can take them away from us once we pay off our mortgages.
d. More people would be able to afford homes because their monthly payments would be that much less.
e. Sales taxes collected by the county can now be evenly spread on schools to help improve all the schools not just the ones in wealthy neighborhoods thus giving every kid the same chance to succeed. (Obviously the parents have a large roll to play in the kids’ success too not just the school).
2. Although less desirable, Cap the property taxes at an affordable fixed percentage of the property value. This is a second best solution, but it could still be problematic if the local assessors pick a high percentage to begin with. This would not solve Paul’s problem, but it would help control the increases to some extent.
Etc… What do other good citizens think of this?
NY taxes are too high because our NY representatives spend too much, and we continue to allow them to do so. Our government has no idea what it means to “do more with less.” Property taxes are not the issue. If our state representatives would reduce the budget (I would suggest 30%) you would see the property taxes going down. Focusing on the tax issue just clouds the issue of overspending. We all pay for the budget. We also pay for the “pet projects” of our representatives.
While I realize that these are tough decisions to make, this is what must happen in NY. If our representatives don’t have the stomach to make the tough decisions, then they need to be replaced. A 9% increase in the state budget is outlandish when people are losing their homes and jobs.
37 Responses for "Open Thread"
Your missing the boat on your augument here! The basic problem is not the assement vaules, the problem is the overall budget for the municipalities.
The assement value is just one of the factors in calculating the tax rate. If the overall budget goes up and the assement stays the same the tax rate goes up proportional. That is was we need to fight against!
What can we do?
Government consolidation in New York State, with the end goal being saving taxpayer money. I truly applaud and thank Responsible New York’s efforts, and would love to assist in any way I can.
I have been paying property taxes for over a decade, and researching the property tax hard-core for about a year now, and watching and commenting on Tom Suozzi’s New York State Commission on Property Tax Relief efforts and the New York State Commission on Local Government Efficiency and Competitiveness hearings as well. The need for major simplification of our multitude of government entities, special districts and schools is paramount to achieving fairness for the burden of supporting necessary government services in New York State.
I also see the result of unfair property taxation on all New Yorkers, and I wish to have all property taxes eventually abolished via constitutional decree. The Property Tax is a medieval instrument of indebtedness, and cannot ever be fairly administered. If you know your assessor, you’re probably getting a good deal; if you built a home or live on waterfront, you’re probably not.
My general ideas of where I would like to see us end up, which may be more far-reaching than yours, primarily consist of 4 major goals:
- political elimination of all villages and towns, with all village and town employees, services and contracts to initially become county employees functioning under the political control of the County governments
- political elimination of all school districts within a county, with all school employees, services and contracts to initially become county employees functioning under the political control of the County governments
- all fire districts capable of imposing taxation on residents to fall under the control of the county government, with or without volunteer fire responders continuing to serve; where necessary, County governments could be authorized to hire volunteers for their services
- elimination of all property taxes, with revenues to be provided by the collection of state and county sales tax, with the majority coming from the state and via major reduction in state budgets.
My opinion is that NYS tax needs to be examined in whole. Property tax is one part, certainly an ugly part for me living in Rush, but it is only one part. NYS has disparities in both property tax as well as income tax, but I would agree with Greg (3/12 post) that what’s driving the tax problems is an out of control budgeting process at the local and state level of government.
The third tax, of course is sales tax, which is almost totally counter productive, driving business out, encouraging internet or out-of-state purchasing and placing a heavier burden on low/middle income residents. We should have a proposition placed to vote that would ratchet sales tax back by 0.25$ per year until it is eliminated completely.
I’m not too sure that consolidation by itself (Chris 3/16 post) is necesarily a good approach. That sounds to me like one big government rather than a thousand small governments. One big tax authority might be beneficial only if there is independent, non-government oversight of budgeting.
I see the budgeting/spending problem being rooted in the idea that legislators, with their speical agendas, have control of the process. We need an independent, non-government agent to review the budget and recommend reductions. The agent would be paid on a percentage of IMPLEMENTED REDUCTIONS.
Then as part two of my suggestion, I would rank the legislator’s based on the IMPLEMENTED REDUCTIONS - this would be a way to point out the largest culprits in terms of ‘fluffing up the budget/spending’.
…wayne
Those of us in the Town of Evans are fascinated that when we went through the 100%assessment last year, no one cared. The media ,many of whom,probably live in Amherst, are now much more interested in what is happening with assessments.
I live on the lake, not beach front, but lake front. My property assessment went from $133,000 to $400,000. My taxes are now around $13,000 a year for a property that my parents bought in the 70’s for $24,500. It is an older home built in the 1920’s and ‘remodeled’ by my parents in the $70,000’s.
No improvements since then. What I have noticed is all the for sale signs around my neighborhood, and no one is buying. Who can afford these taxes. We are the town with the lowest income per capita
and we have the highest tax rate. The town is trying to survive on the backs of people that live on the lake. We are not wealthy people. Many of us received the property from our parents, who were also not wealthy people.
When we challenged our assessments we were told not to worry because the Town would probably lower the tax rate-that did not happen and most of us will now be selling the “lake front ” properties that our parents worked so hard to keep and treasured so much.
Wayne and All,
Excellent ideas on reducing spending, thank you for sharing them.
I do not like the idea of eliminating sales tax, however, because at least the sales tax hits everyone at the same percent for a given product, or should. The greater problem we’re trying to correct here is the abysmal implementation of the property tax, which hits each household differently.
Imagine if you had to buy milk at the grocery store based on a stranger’s perception of what your house MIGHT sell for. Would you want to keep that system in place? This is, in effect, what the property tax is doing to us.
We buy government services based on what a complete stranger thinks our house might be able to sell for. This is an inexact science, and all property owners dispute the assessed value of their property because beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. This all leads to everyone feeling slighted, because how we determine what you pay for property taxes is NOT FAIR.
Let’s say you make improvements to your property. Your assessed value might rise, but why then should you be required to pay more taxes, as nothing has changed in your family earnings situation?
Let’s say a developer wants your farmland, and is friendly with the assessor. What’s to stop the developer from asking the assessor to assess you out of your tax payment ability, because now the land has more perceived value? Do you really own your property, or are you “renting” from your local government fiefdoms from year to year?
The property tax was an instrument of taxation that kind-of worked in the 16th and 17th century, when property value was approximately equal to income in an agricultural sense. New York State is no longer a colonial agricultural-based economy, and most property does not produce income. Why then should we continue to use it for running essential government services?
Cowardly politicians are happy to keep the status-quo, as Wayne mentioned, because it allows them to be shielded from the economic realities that we average New Yorkers face. Yes, we need to fund schools, courts, fire services, health and sanitation, law enforcement, etc.. but we need to fund these essential services in a more equitable way- NOT based on one person (the assessor’s) opinion.
We need to reduce the complexity of our municipal structures (all these local government fiefdoms), consolidate the schools so that the little ones aren’t trying to offer the same services as the big ones for the same price, and eliminate any local governing bodies that have been granted the ability to impose any property taxation on us.
My thoughts on consolidation are that it would lead to more efficiency with lower costs and greater transparency, followed by total elimination of the property tax.
Thanks for sharing ideas, it makes me feel just a tad bit better to know that there are others feeling the same frustrations that I feel. It is not surprising that we have somewhat different ideas regarding a solution (Greg 3/18). However, I feel a sadness reading our ‘blog’ writings and that lies in the reality of NYS political process.
While friends and family lament their tax burdens we send the same people back to the state senate, the state assembly and local governments. I ask my self if we are really ill informed or really stupid and I conclude that we are neither.
Our problem lies in fielding attractive candidates for office who can/will break the incumbency lock on our government. This is not a trivial problem and unfortunately it is a prerequisite for any change in NYS spending habits.
We should not expect that things will change until the incumbent strangle hold is broken. In 2007 there was a proposal for term limits put forward, I am not familiar with the full scope of that proposal, but it has not been acted upon in the ensuing year(s). That’s a place to start - don’t let NYS political office become a career… wayne
It’s comforting to see that so many other over taxed New Yorkers are speaking out and we truly hope that CHANGE will take place AND soon, i.e. STOP taxing us out of our homes… I have been in the work force for FIFTY years…I’m 68 years old and still working part time to keep up with property taxes.. We LOVE our home that we built 40 years ago and as our income(s) dwindle we fear that we won’t be able to keep up with NYS taxes much longer… A local politician told me (a few years ago) “Move, if you can’t afford it”.. .HELLO ? What kind of answer is that? I did NOT vote for him when it came re-election.
We all need relief in New York and SOON..
Tom & Sharon: Great story, there are certainly those people out there who still don’t get it - the property tax must become a memory.
How can we do it? We want drastic change, and we must demand it. We must fundamentally change the local government structure to acheive drastic reductions in taxes.
We need two things overall: relief now, and reform over time.
Please contact your state legislators and ask them to support the Omnibus Property Tax Reform and Relief Bill now!
You can check out this great solution to our tax woes at http://www.omnibustaxsolution.org/
I grew up in Rochester and moved away to Michigan as an adult. Recently I moved back because I love the area, but for the life of me I cannot figure out what I’m getting for DOUBLE the property taxes.
In Michigan I owned a brand new home. The kids had great schools. Our streets were plowed, we had public water/sewer and all the other perks of home ownership in a new subdivision. I paid $4200 in property taxes/year.
I moved to Monroe County and purchased a 15- year old home in an established subdivision and my property taxes are $8100/year. The schools aren’t any better, nor are any of the other services.
Taxes, taxes, fees, fees, surcharges, surcharges. When my wife and I went through a financially tight time, we cut out all “dining out”, we consolidated debt, stopped using the credit card and lived within our means. It was tough at first but we got used to it and are now saving money.
Governments NEED TO DO THIS. I would have loved to tell my employer “Hey, I’m running out of money. Pay me more”, but that is not an option. Why can the Government continue to be fiscally irresponsible and we have no recourse but to support them.
The only way Government is going to become responsible with my money is if they are told they cannot have anymore for 5 years. Period. No more tax hikes, no more surcharges, no more fees. Then the Government knows the only way they can balance their budget is to get lean, mean and efficient….and there’s nothing wrong with that.
We are having a tea party/tax revolt March 28th in Buffalo.
It is being held at the Terminus of the canal at 2 PM
The canal is directly beside the Naval and Military Park on Marine Drive. This has turned into a big event. People are bringing their property tax bills, their list of grievances, the list of people is growing who are attending.
Come and join us to show support and protest Albanys taxation and demand representation for Western New York.
http://Albanysinsanity.com
the local government excuses for raising taxes is better education.whats the use of having good quality education if you cannot afford to live there.
when we went to full assessment we paid higher taxes. like the gas stations when propert value declines as in now you do not see the taxes going down
Can anyone say comida, pilot tax agreements? What a worthless venture for government, if your new we will let you not pay taxes while existing business and property owners subsidise these projects. Our Town of Irondequoit recently worked out an agreement to help a failed commercial property giving tax breaks for 30 years ! I’m a homebuilder if i could offer new buyers 30 years of extremely low property taxes I could also create jobs. The market would quickly understand the true value and promptley raise the value of these homes to capture the discount value. Oh I guess this is why comida and pilot programs are doomed not to work in the long run………
Grass roots “United we stand” works all the time. The push to get the people out to voice and vote is the big issue. Most think their voice and vote won’t make a difference. Look at Washington, they refuse to hear the massive outcry from “we the people”. We all do more with less in our own homes and businesses do the same. The largest issue here is the teachers union. Spend, spend, spend. School taxes are killing us! They are too powerful and get their cronies elected. We really need to start there. There is waste is every school district. In Fairport they think we have endless money and we don’t. Their are numerous areas where they can cut w/out hurting services, but they won’t. In industry you pick up the slack or you’re out the door. We all are doing more with less. Why can’t they??? I say we go after the wasteful spending in the schools and see what a difference that makes. Bring on the charter schools, private shools and let “we the people” decide where OUR money goes. Competition works in the business sector and it will work in the educational sector as well.
I lived in Florida for 13 years in “unincorporated” Broward County. My taxes were so reasonable as I did not pay a town or village tax. I had all the ammentities that anyone could want. Florida is a good example of goverment incorporation. Our NY goverment has much to learn from other states. Seek and learn.
I was disappointed that Tom Golisano supported President Obama and his “socialist tax and spend huge government will take care of us” view. Now he wants us to oppose high taxes. This does not make sense to me. If Mr. Golisano is so successful I assume he is very smart. How smart are the people that voted for Obama? They probably did not read a word of the Founding Fathers. The Federal Government is supposed to be small and taxes are supposed to be low.
Obama lovers are getting what they voted for! Tom is too!
When is the state going to stop handing out welfare to everyone and start making people work , give them a little help with food stamps or child care if they need it.Their still working then and paying taxes. Come to ORLEANS COUNTY they give it away here! I wrote a comment about this 2 weeks ago have not got a response on it at all , why is that? If it makes sense nobody wants to listen. Oi forgot,the middle class people who are taxed the highest don’t get any breaks and have to pay the most and carry everybody. WELFARE is killing this state and I am tired of having my taxes go up because of it.
The inequity of assessed values is staggering. In 2003 I moved from a Boston, MA suburb to the Southern Tier. Largely attracted by the low real estate prices, and beautiful country. I neglected to consider the insane property taxes. Finally fed up, I decided to do some research. Here is the tale of 4 houses all purchased within a two year period, the first three are neighboring properties.
Purchase Purchase Assessed % of Purchase
Date Price Value Price
7/1/2003 125000 120400 0.9632
12/2/2003 140000 118700 0.8479
7/11/2002 180000 94900 0.5272
6/15/2001 262500 199600 0.7604
I happen to be the lucky one who is assessed at 96.3% of the purchase price. The one at 52.7% is a “local” who has been in the area for years. This is simply wrong, and I have made my intentions to apeal my current assessment quite clear. They could not provide me with any rational regarding this disparity. It is not so much that my property is over valued, I believe it is a pretty accurate estimate of market value, but the others are simply well under valued. Why? At best it is utter incompetence by the Assessor, at worst a flagrent disregard for equal taxation.
So what should we do?
1. I am encouraging everyone I know to dispute their assessed value. I am sure my neighbors on the low end of the value won’t, but I will continue to push and appeal until there is fairness. If they will not lower my value, the will raise theirs to the market value it should be at. This is a $0 sum game. Town needs $X to operate, and must allocate it against $X of property value. Tie up the system and make them accountable for their decisions.
2. Consolidation of schools. Small schools are nice but very inefficient and the quality is somewhat lacking. Why does a school system with 400 students K-12, 1 building, need a $120K a year superintendent? Take 3 geographically close small systems. One is used as an elementary, one as a middle school, and one as a Jr/Sr High school. Hire 1 Superintendent - $240 K savings. This is just the tip of the iceberg on the costs savings that could occur in this scenario, and provide the students with more educational opportunities. The real problem is the local ego’s. Where I am from 1 Superintendent would handle 6 - 8 buildings and a student population of well over 3000.
3. Abolish the local and village court system. This is a joke and I honestly could not believe that people with no law experience were judges! If you are able to lawyer up, I suggest you do, otherwise your sentence will be what the DA wants.
4. I am astounded by the volume of apparently healthy people who are on disability or welfare. Free insurance, food stamps, subsidized taxes, free lunch at school, etc. I am all for a helping hand, not a hand out. Monica is right and from what I can tell Allegany County is right up there with Oleans County.
It is time for us, the middle class, to stand up and revolt against this corrupt, antiquated, and good old boy system that has made this mess.
Information regarding the amount of tax exempt properties needs to be distributed. Someone has to cover for the municipal services that such properties use. That would be all others who pay taxes.
The state has now required a listing of exempt properties along with proposed muni budgets in Chapter 258 of the laws of 2008 Sec 495 of Real Property Tax Law. Such information somehow needs to be made public.
Especially remember that IDA properties are arbitrarily
removed from tax rolls by non elected boards.
The Colton-Pierrepont School District in northern NY has approximately 300 students in PK - 12 grades and spends $26694 per pupil. Taxpayers can not afford to support districts like this one, especially given the fact that the district could easily be merged with either the neighboring Potsdam or Canton districts. This is just one example of the waste in education. The district is largely supported by seasonal property owners who do not get to vote in the local election process.
The low voter turnout for school budgets has long been of concern to me as well. Just a handful of people determine the school spending that has such a significant impact on our property taxes. Where are these people who complain about the taxes when the votes take place in the spring? We need a better way for citizens to vote on school budgets and to elect school board members. We should not approve budgets without a truly representative sample of a district’s citizens.
The entire educational system needs to be redesigned. As a parent, I’m disappointed in our local district. We need a merit-based system to encourage the best teachers. We need more emphasis on the core curriculum areas and less on the fluff stuff. We need to remove many of the extracurricular activities that serve only a small number of students and concentrate on the majority. If parents want music lessons, let them pay for them privately. It shouldn’t be done at taxpayer expense.
I believe we should also require all of our elected officials to enroll their own children in public schools where they live. It’s a great way to keep them informed on the quality of education in NYS. Let them live like the rest of us.
Hey everyone… how do I search for more than one word in other posts, so that it returns only posts with those two words?
As I read these posts here, I find that we all seem to agree that NYS taxes too much, spends too much, and does it all in a manner that makes no sense to those who live and work in NYS. The decisions government makes is often opposite to what the voters want.
Would anybody be willing to form a group (one who understands government well) to get together and form an alternative to the current rules and budget making process on the books? And then we could take it straight to Albany, and ultimately even Washington D.C. and demand change?
Douglas O’Geen,
It depends on what you mean by “group”?
I would definitely be interested in forming a common-person ‘group’, perhaps what could even be called a political party.
But, I would not like to be part of a lobbying ‘group’.
We would be drowned out by all of the pork-eaters already at the hog!
I agree, particularly with Claudia, see above. Here in Brighton, about 70% of our property taxes are driven by the ever expanding school budget. And fewer than 5% of voters turn out on May 19. With more than 5% of Brighton residents in the education sector, the vote is in the bag. This year, the board will ask for approval of additional reserve funds, which, with no quorum on the vote, are basically a form of theft.
Some of us are trying to do something: see our blog at ASIBrighton.org. If you are a Brightonian please join us, and for goodness sakes, vote “no” on May 19th.
Our school district will vote on a 7.4% increase this month. The lion’s share, 5.2%, will be offset by state aid for our unnecessary capital improvement project (still taxpayer dollars). The remaining 2.2% is the operating spending increase over the previous year. The stimulus package restored all of the funding to our district. They selfishly increased spending by 2.2% during these terrible economic times. Even if we could encourage enough citizens to vote no on the budget, the contingency budget is only $40K less. We have 3 candidates running for 3 board seats, so that’s a no-brainer. Our district is confident that no one will bother to vote because their vote doesn’t matter. It’s sad.
Consolidation. Consolidation. Consolidation.
When I moved to NY I was, at first, amused at the useless layers of government. Then, I slowly began to question the inefficiencies and rampant nepotism. Finally I became angry.
The insanity of NYS taxes could be justified if the services we received were that much greater than anywhere else, but they’re not. Our roads are some of the worst in the country, our schools — while high performing — are often in disrepair. The entire infrastructure of the State is literally crumbling under its own weight.
Consolidated local governments, under County and urban-centers, are proven. The quality of services residents receive are often higher than what we see in NY, there’s a higher level of accountability from our elected officials, and taxes are decreased.
I have been preaching consolidation of local governments since the day after I moved here. It’s time for the residents of NY to stand up and say “no more.” NO MORE mismanagement of our money. NO MORE egregious salaries that aren’t commiserate with the work being done. NO MORE nepotism on my nickel.
I encourage every citizen of NY to vote NO on every referendum and budget put forth. Send a clear message to our elected officials, adapt to the realities of common sense, or be voted out. Our State can no longer function in this matter.
Hi Tom,
Good luck in Florida. I understand why you need to relocate and I wish you the best.
Those of us left behind in NYS know we are overtaxed and underserved by a bloated bureaucracy and way too much government at every level. We need to do more with less and get rid of entire layers of government which is archaic.
Thanks for all you have done and we look forward to better days once we can get new people elected to reform government in NYS
THANK YOU so much for putting into words what so many of us feel about living in NYS. We are recently retired and stay here because we have children and grandchildren here. We do go to Florida every winter, but not for 6 months and 1 day! That might change in the future! We downsized into a condo and our taxes are ridiculous. Why do we pay so much more than those who live down-state? THANKS again for speaking up for so many of us “here in the tundra trenches”!
IF YOU EVER ORGANIZE A TEA PARTY, WE’LL BE THERE!!
First no one over 70 and living on a fixed income in their own home should pay any school or property tax
Next we sholud have the ”privilege ” like they have in calif. to have a public referendum ( prop/13) and see if in fact we have ” taxation without representation ” in New York State..!!
Or better yet take the case to the supreme court to constitionally varify we are taxed without representation
I agree with the lettby Tom and his reasons for leaving New York State. He has tried for years to change the Albany mess and I voted for him each time he ran for office. As you stated in your letter the union’s solutiion is to tax the rich and I admire you for fighting back.
Don Avery
I understand your frustration and wanting to leave but if you love New York as you claim you do then help us. With your money and influence , you can make a difference and make a change. Maybe you could influence a change in the medicaid system. I work in healthcare and could easily give some front line solutions to cut costs..Leaving will not only increase taxes for everyone to make up the difference but also our hope that change will come. We need you now more than ever to be our voice. New York is drowning and you are jumping ship…We need you…
we have only ourselves to blame a week ago i went to a school budget increase hearing ther was only 8 people there from the whole town of brighton wake up new yorkers.you drive two extra miles to save pennies on gas prices but you will not vote no on tax increases.this fit so well the definition of suckers
after reading the latest letter from Tom G. i have to agree. It is unfortunate that many, many of us (western new yorkers) have decided to move out… in our case, both of our adult children moved to NC and own homes, and have great jobs..making over $100, 000 each..no, they are not Drs. or the like, just hard working regular kids with 4 year degrees in English. We (my husband and I) purchased a home in NC and we pay 1% property tax! In WNY, our home is assessed at 165,000 and yet our taxes are over $7000. We could have bought a $750,000 home here for the same taxes! Yet we have not been able to sell the NY home! Are we sure NYS has a better educational system? seems to me they just have a better pay system! at our ( hardworking ) taxpayers expense! They also have great colleges here, Duke, NCState Etc, and i doubt they are filled with ONLY NYS REGENTS students! think about that! We have been told for years that our education is the best in the country, bar none…. hummm, maybe the Teachers Union in NY has had some gain by this propaganda? how do we stop it? We have tried and now have given up. I have no more ideas so i am now a NC resident hoping to sell my NY home soon!
Good luck on your move Tom! I will admit that I am envious. I must say that I am very worried that your $$ that you are taking with you will manifest and inspire the NYS government in taking another pound of flesh from the middle class. I fear what next year’s budget is going to look like without Obama’s stimulus monies and the mass exodus of people leaving this state. I am so fearful that I am looking to help my family leave the state too. Its going to be hard to do and going to take a lot of work on my family’s behalf, but given that state budget, the political connection bs and the lack of jobs, I fear we will be part of the mass exodus.
I do not agree that NYS has the best schools. I have worked in education is three states and NY is by far the worst. The NY system teaches to a test and falls short when it comes to preparing our youth for college and life.
My property taxes more than doubled in the last four years! The two years before we went to 100% assessment our assessor jacked the value of our farm by over 30%. So she got a 50% advantage when the 100% assessment came into play. The land values a few miles either side of me have gone up considerably because the area is good for vineyards. However, we are so high up that it is too cold for grapes or orchards on the farms right around me. Since we are in the same town our assessments went up right along with theirs but our per acreage sale value did not.
I am selling my farm, most likely to the Amish, and moving to GA or FL. The taxes are out of hand in NYS on everything and I can not afford to keep on paying. When figure in income, sales, gas, service and property taxes I am paying more than 60% of my income NY government in one way or another. That is ludicrous!
When you look at what Tom Galisano will save in ONE day, you can not blame him for getting out. He does not owe this state anything. He has paid more than his share. Good luck Tom! Maybe I will see you in Florida.
The property taxes, which grow forever, are unsustainable and we need to find an alternative answer. In addition to capping spending and finding way to be more efficient, the government needs to allow people to feel that they really own their property and are not leasing it from the government. Think about this, if you decide to stay in your home until you pay your mortgage in full, by then your property taxes would have far exceeded the monthly mortgage payment you started with. This means that you will never really own your house and if you lose your job, although you owe nothing on the house, you still have a huge monthly payment and the local government can foreclose your house and kick you out. What kind of property ownership is that? It is a joke when you think that you own your house, you are renting from the local teachers union and the rest of the bureaucrats in your New York local area.
Solutions (In addition to controlling the crazy cost increases):
1. Move the property taxes to sales taxes. Take a one time adjustment to the sales taxes by calculating the amount needed to make up for the current property taxes and figuring out the corresponding required increase in sales taxes. This seems like a big hike in sales taxes, but the advantages are many as follows:
a. When you purchase your home with a fixed rate mortgage, you always know what your monthly payment will be and could feel/be more secure knowing that they will not increase forever to the point where you could no longer afford them. For example, when I bought my house 8 years ago, my monthly real estate property taxes was $400/month and now it is $625/month, and worse yet, I am faced with the never ending increases that could one day cripple me financially. What kind of fake homeownership is that! I know a friend in Canandaigua who bought his house on the lake over 30 years ago when the prices were low. He was fortunate/unfortunate that the property value went up to close to a million dollars, but he is forced to leave his home now because his property taxes are over $30,000/year. Paul (who is 64 years old) was crying one day telling me that he cannot pay the property taxes and is forced to either borrow money against the house or leave it. Do we really think that it is fair to put a senior citizen, who worked hard all his life and paid taxes, through this burden? He loves his home, all his family memories were made in it, and he would like to stay in it but cannot! $30,000 a year is totally insane! This could happen to any of us although it may be at a smaller scale but it would be the same dilemma for us.
b. With the burden shifted to sales tax. When I finish paying my mortgage in 7 years, if I loose my job, I can control my spending and reduce my expenses, yet I wont have to worry about losing my home and I can keep a roof over my family’s head instead of having an army of tax collectors sending me to live in the street so that they could foreclose on my house to get their God given right property taxes.
c. We will truly permanently own our homes and no one can take them away from us once we pay off our mortgages.
d. More people would be able to afford homes because their monthly payments would be that much less.
e. Sales taxes collected by the county can now be evenly spread on schools to help improve all the schools not just the ones in wealthy neighborhoods thus giving every kid the same chance to succeed. (Obviously the parents have a large roll to play in the kids’ success too not just the school).
2. Although less desirable, Cap the property taxes at an affordable fixed percentage of the property value. This is a second best solution, but it could still be problematic if the local assessors pick a high percentage to begin with. This would not solve Paul’s problem, but it would help control the increases to some extent.
Etc… What do other good citizens think of this?
NY taxes are too high because our NY representatives spend too much, and we continue to allow them to do so. Our government has no idea what it means to “do more with less.” Property taxes are not the issue. If our state representatives would reduce the budget (I would suggest 30%) you would see the property taxes going down. Focusing on the tax issue just clouds the issue of overspending. We all pay for the budget. We also pay for the “pet projects” of our representatives.
While I realize that these are tough decisions to make, this is what must happen in NY. If our representatives don’t have the stomach to make the tough decisions, then they need to be replaced. A 9% increase in the state budget is outlandish when people are losing their homes and jobs.
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