2012 Property Taxes

[postmortemIA]

wow some of these taxes are 4% of property. in buying terms, it is like you are buying new house every year.
4% of $400K home property tax is like extra 30% tax on $50k income.

 

[Eug]

Mine went up HUGELY this year? Why?

Cuz I did a renovation legally. They used to do centrally computed or at most drive-by assessments, and the previous assessments were low. This time after the new building permits and everything, they actually sent out a real assessor to get a much more reliable assessment, which means a huge increase this year.

I guess I shouldn't complain too much though, since I've been paying less than I should have been for the area for the past 4 years.

 

[Via]

Mine went up a ton when I began my basement refinish. I planned a 4th bedroom downstairs, but it's not done yet.

Doesn't matter to the state of IL - my assessed value went from 138,000 to 158,000 because I put in that fricking wall.

I'm paying $3700 a year now.

 

[Squisher]

Mine have steadily gone down for the last 6 years, but bottomed out a year ago. I might be seeing a slight increase. Detroit real estate: on the forefront of the housing bubble.

 

[imagoon]

Fellow IL resident checking in and loathing my bill. My value dropped by $30,000 and my taxes went up $1000. Paying almost $10,000 a year on a $395,000 house in the middle of the f'n country. Yay.

Oh and that's not even counting the 50% state income tax increase we had the pleasure of receiving recently.

Yay IL! If my family wasn't entirely based here I'd be out of this tax riddled shithole in a heartbeat.

Same here. The bragged that they reassessed so something like "land" went down but "structure" went up with a net increase..... stupid IL / county

 

[imagoon]

At least CA had decent weather

And with IL it's more than just the income taxes. It's every fricken thing else too. We are like NYC lite. In some areas the sales tax is over 11% for certain things. I pay 10% sales tax on every 1$ cheeseburger I buy at McDonalds.

Our gas is the 7th most taxed in the country. And I'm just waiting for them to go to a personal tax/adjusted value tax on motor vehicle registration where the basic plate cost is $100 a year and could be upwards of $500+ a year for high end luxury vehicles.

Can't drown our sorrows, (liquor tax was jacked up in 2009) now cigarettes are going up a $1 a pack [not that I smoke]. I seem to vaguely recall we are #2 or #3 highest taxed in the country atm behind Cali at #1 and maybe NY at #2...

Taxes galore in this state.

 

[Eug]

Mine have steadily gone down for the last 6 years, but bottomed out a year ago. I might be seeing a slight increase. Detroit real estate: on the forefront of the housing bubble.

I guess that's the one silver lining of a real estate market crash.

 

[Red Squirrel]

My taxes constantly go up. They always say it's temporary but we all know there's no such thing as a temporary tax. I forget the exact amount per year but it comes up to around 400 per month. I have the option to pay at certain intervals (3 I think) per year or pay per month, decided to pay per month as it hurts less. It's like doing the mortgage payment twice every month. Guess it's worth it at the end, at least I own property eh.

 

[spacejamz]

My assessed value is about the same but our millage rate won't be finalized until October. The millage rate is multiplied with the assessed value to determine total tax amount.

So even if your assessed value goes down, your taxes still might go up if your local millage rate increases.

 

[rh71]

long island - taxes go up every year because of unions... police and teachers... teachers with a masters & tenure make 6 figures (and there are plenty). So do detectives. The school superintendents make $350k/year and up. Yes that much. The superintendent in the next town over makes $435k/yr. You can guess how many days a year they work too. Not like the rest of us.

A regular 3-bed ranch costs $11k in taxes per year. A colonial is $16k/yr which is what we're looking at next year. After our kids are done with the schools here, we're out. Too bad they're only 3 right now. About 15 years ago I went to school here - parents are in a 3-bed split and the taxes were about $8k/year and that house is now $11k/year.

A recent elected official decided to cap increases at 2% per year which is helping *some*. Something's got to give though - this is unsustainable. I H A T E U N I O N S.

 

[BurnItDwn]

I'm in Illinois, and my property tax bill came down a bit (due to lower assessed value.)

Of course the state income tax went up so overall, it is more costly vs before, but, the property tax going down did soften the blow.

 

[JeffreyLebowski]

long island - taxes go up every year because of unions... police and teachers... teachers with a masters & tenure make 6 figures (and there are plenty). So do detectives. The school superintendents make $350k/year and up. Yes that much. The superintendent in the next town over makes $435k/yr. You can guess how many days a year they work too. Not like the rest of us.

A regular 3-bed ranch costs $11k in taxes per year. A colonial is $16k/yr which is what we're looking at next year. After our kids are done with the schools here, we're out. Too bad they're only 3 right now. About 15 years ago I went to school here - parents are in a 3-bed split and the taxes were about $8k/year and that house is now $11k/year.

A recent elected official decided to cap increases at 2% per year which is helping *some*. Something's got to give though - this is unsustainable. I H A T E U N I O N S.

Um if the kids are only 3 why stay for the schools? Move now.

 

[Stifko]

Um if the kids are only 3 why stay for the schools? Move now.

move & go where? NYC assessments go up every year. Under bloomberg's tenure the assessed values have doubled.

westchester county has one of the highest real property and school taxes in the nation? NJ is crazy too. I don't know about CT, but he would have to move out west to escape the taxes and maybe not even then.

 

[rh71]

Um if the kids are only 3 why stay for the schools? Move now.

we moved here for them... look how I turned out!!!!!!

we moved from the next town over which had poor schools (it was just me and my wife then anyway), but the taxes were comparitively cheaper. Sort of a pay-to-play situation.

And yeah we'd have to be in the downstate NY area... this is where our roots are, 3 generations (now 4) since the 70s have been here. At some point when we're in our 50s with an empty nest we'll go "adventuring".

 

[Red Squirrel]

Mine went up HUGELY this year? Why?

Cuz I did a renovation legally. They used to do centrally computed or at most drive-by assessments, and the previous assessments were low. This time after the new building permits and everything, they actually sent out a real assessor to get a much more reliable assessment, which means a huge increase this year.

I guess I shouldn't complain too much though, since I've been paying less than I should have been for the area for the past 4 years.

Yeah the whole permit thing pisses me off. Why should I be penalized for following the rules? That's why I say screw it. I'll get a permit for outside things that are noticeable but screw them if they want me to pay more taxes just because I chose a new color for the bathroom or changed the layout of the basement. Even if I get caught 10 years down the line the fine will be less than if I had gotten my taxes raised.

 

[iRONic]

Yeah the whole permit thing pisses me off. Why should I be penalized for following the rules? That's why I say screw it. I'll get a permit for outside things that are noticeable but screw them if they want me to pay more taxes just because I chose a new color for the bathroom or changed the layout of the basement. Even if I get caught 10 years down the line the fine will be less than if I had gotten my taxes raised.

Around here if you get caught they make you return the house/property to pre-permitted condition and fine you.

 

[Sheep]

Around here if you get caught they make you return the house/property to pre-permitted condition and fine you.

Curious as to how that works. So if you finish your basement or do something else to the interior that's not obvious when driving by the house, how in the world are they going to make you revert it back?

 

[jagec]

Curious as to how that works. So if you finish your basement or do something else to the interior that's not obvious when driving by the house, how in the world are they going to make you revert it back?

If you get CAUGHT they make you revert it back.

 

[Sheep]

If you get CAUGHT they make you revert it back.

Sorry I didn't make myself clear. If you get caught, are they going to make you tear out the new flooring, walls and any other improvements you made and replace it with decaying wood and busted tile like it was before? That seems a bit harsh. I would think they'd just fine you out the wazoo.

 

[Leymenaide]

Hawthorn woods IL payed 680 bank would let me refi based on value of 350. Taxes: 14200.00

Buck's County nPA payed 780 taxes 11200.00

 

[rh71]

Sorry I didn't make myself clear. If you get caught, are they going to make you tear out the new flooring, walls and any other improvements you made and replace it with decaying wood and busted tile like it was before? That seems a bit harsh. I would think they'd just fine you out the wazoo.

that does sound absurd... some towns here just make you pay back-taxes, but that's the worst case. When you get a permit, that alerts the town to re-assess... easy to see why people don't... it's so easy to get away with it. The only chance of them finding out most times is when they go to sell... I'd risk it too.

 

[iRONic]

Sorry I didn't make myself clear. If you get caught, are they going to make you tear out the new flooring, walls and any other improvements you made and replace it with decaying wood and busted tile like it was before? That seems a bit harsh. I would think they'd just fine you out the wazoo.

The inspectors and assessors here are 1st class dicks backed by statute. I don't know anyone who was caught personally but the contractors who built my addition have horror stories. Decks removed... framing taken down... etc.

They said those people were caught on drive-by sightings.

 

[boomhower]

Ours went up. It's at $1.35/$100 now. Tax value is 35% more than I paid for the house. In exchange we get zero quality restaurants(i.e. nothing no Olive Gardens or any other chain sit down place at all fast food or bust). No malls, no new car dealerships, no shopping other than walmart. But it's where I work and I have no intentions of changing jobs.

 

[fstime]

There should be zero property taxes.

What a fucking scam. I can have had my house paid off for the past 15 years yet it still feels like renting because property taxes come out to $450+ a month minimum.

We should have no property taxes on your primary residence, anything after that is fair game.

For the most part it goes to the education system. So we pay a ton more property taxes than anywhere else in the world yet rank so poorly in education.

I don't know about CT, but he would have to move out west to escape the taxes and maybe not even then.

Do go to CT, the CT suburbs of NYC are just as bad.

 

[Red Squirrel]

I think property taxes as a concept or fine, but it should go by the size of the lot, not what's on it. It makes no sense that because I make a change to the place that *I* own and live in, that the city gets more money for it.

Though idealy the way taxes should work is there should be a single income tax that goes to a central tax agency that then distributes it federally, provincially and municipally. That way instead of paying all these different taxes we pay one single big tax, and that's it. Take 40% of my salary instead of 30% but let me actually keep the rest instead of taxing it again. Of course there is so many logistics issues with that concept it would never happen, but it sure would be great.