Last Friday we received our *new* (as of March 2007) tax assessment for our property, which had been previously assessed at $76.3K, then dropped to $72K.Now we were fully expecting that after the SNAFU over Allen County's assessment "formulae", we'd be seeing a far different number (read LOWER...much lower, and NO, that's NOT our house in the photo). This SHOULD be based on other property sales in our area, which have gone for FAR under assessed (and even market) values. Having seen most every other decent person move AWAY from here and taking a hit on THEIR selling prices (nobody got close to what they originally asked, which was tame in comparison to OTHER parts of the city), I was sure we'd see an appreciable DROP in OUR assessment.
This is one of those RARE times when I was WRONG (mark your calendars, 'cause this happen all that often).
The NEW assessment is $2.8K HIGHER than the previous $72K.
I was like...WTF?
Geez, it must be that only WORKING people who MAINTAIN a HOUSE THEY OWN (and also live in) are the ones that get socked for higher taxation in "distressed" areas. Does the city want to see our house become another Section 8 rental THAT damn bad? You "buy us out" for the amount of (the original) $76.3K, and watch HOW FAST we book outta town!!!
We bought this house (and property) on contract from my in-laws for $40K almost ELEVEN years ago, and I know for CERTAIN that we cannot get that amount today. In fact, I'd be surprised if we got within $3K of that number (based on other sales in the area over the past 5 years).
Funny thing was, every other person that was paying taxes on properties assessed WAY HIGHER than "real-market" values were all WHITE (in predominantly ethnic areas). I had checked the tax records online and SAW the numbers. Imagine that.
I saw one (former) neighbor have a 108% rise in HIS taxes on his property. I guess we were fortunate that ours "only" went up 82% in that last assessment. And yet we have properties selling for as low as $2500 within a one block radius! Who the hell is making these assessment numbers up, anyway, because they definitely need to check REALITY at least once in a while.
So let's "do some math" on this, shall we?
--Our property (land & structures) is assessed at $74.8K (this week).
--Our property MIGHT give us $40K if it were to be FOR SALE tomorrow.
--We'd probably ONLY get around $35k-$38K (tops).
--Basically, the house is worth what it WAS TEN YEARS AGO (if not less).
Make no mistake, the neighborhood has NOT gotten better, ergo property values are AT BEST...STATIC, and AT WORST...depreciating EVERY SINGLE year. And yet, we're bucking this trend, as the COUNTY actually has the balls to say to us, in our "distressed and blighted" part of Fort Wayne: "Your property is worth MORE every year...honest".
That's a crock of you-know-what.
We're looking at a $40K property that the COUNTY says should be TAXED AS IF it were ACTUALLY worth $74.8K. Where is this additional $34.8K coming from, other than the clear blue sky, because I'm sure as hell NOT seeing it?
Somebody at the City/County building is making some SERIOUS MONEY off of (just) us, aren't they? And I'd wager this very pattern is being REPEATED all over the city (and county). Why is that? Because Allen County can GET AWAY WITH RIPPING PEOPLE OFF...that's why!
Maybe it's time to "call them" on this once and for all, and stop the bull$hit! This whole ass-backwards rhetoric concerning "real" value vs "assesed" value is just so much crap for the compost pile.
If you own a vehicle, there aren't any "two differing and distinct values" that the vehicle is worth. You don't pay insurance on some "assessed" value of the vehicle, and then trade it in for the lower "real book" value of the vehicle.
That dog just won't hunt.
I need someone to "splain" this BS to me, because my logic is in conflict. My COMMON SENSE tells me one thing (which I believe to be correct, based on decades of acquired knowledge), while some dip$**t assessor from the COUNTY ( that hasn't even seen this neighborhood OR my house) "says" something completely "180" from what SHOULD be the FACTS.
I got a novel solution for all this...how's about I pay ONLY the tax on the HONEST TO CHRIST REAL VALUE of OUR F$CKING PROPERTY, which is around $40K, and you circle-jerk someone ELSE for the rest of the money (that would be this "magical" $34.8K you pulled out your ass) that you're trying to swindle me out of, kapesh?
I'm not playing YOUR "game" any longer, so you can take your toys and go the hell home.
And don't let the door hit your ass on the way out.
Then maybe I won't feel so bad about paying taxes on what I REALLY OWN and WHAT IT'S REALLY WORTH, as opposed to some arbitrary number that YOU "think" I should be paying, because I TAKE CARE of the property I OWN, and am not some rental transient piece of human $**t, that Section 8 is subsidizing into what USED to be a nice area of the city, turning it into another damn ghetto.
Yeah...that about sums it up nicely.
NOW...we have parity, folks!
5 comments:
You're a credit to the neighborborhood and your reward is a punishment. That's certainly not right.
Fairplay:
I neglected to mention that we also got the HOMESTEAD CREDIT (that a neighbor told us about more than FIVE years after we moved here), and that SHOULD have almost halved our taxes, but after the past SIX years since we got the credit, it's all but gone away by the RISING property taxes...AGAIN.
Basically, we're back where we started...after ELEVEN years...paying almost the SAME rate of taxes in a neighborhood that's been going anywhere but...UP.
Or as I prefer to call it, our humble little abode at the corners of NO & WHERE.
Nice way to keep taxpayers footing the bills, huh?
B.G.
The real concern should be not in the notice you received on land and structures of 100% True Value.
Rather be concerned with the bold letters: At this time, the amount of taxes you will be required to pay cannot be calculated given the tax rates have not been established.
Simply put, your taxes are determined by a formula that back
ends into what we need, what we will spend and then you will learn
what your rate of tax will be.
Listen, I have my folks in section 8 housing that has ammenities I would have died for as a youth. Brand new Senior housing with Internet, Computer Room, Exercise Room, Library, Extra community center with Big Tv, Kitchen, lovely decor, elevator, garbage shoot, laundry room....Activities Galore, transportation, on site doctor, case worker, you name it they've got it.
The thousands of dollars over the last twenty years I have spent and now I'm gonna save. We need to get you set-up B.G.
But if the government ever decided to confiscate your property for one of their special projects, you can be assured that it would be reassessed once again. - This time to it's true value.
@Phil:
Hey great...maybe THEN I can get THRICE what it's really worth (like most of the properties gobbled up for the "Costaplenty Square" project...!
That would kick ass!
@Bobett:
It's that "formula" like I said that bothers me.
Actually I have no real problem with the newer Sec-8 properties - they meet all the codes, have VERY nice ammenities (as you stated) and are architecturally quite sound structures.
My beef is with the subsidies for Sec-8 for all these HOVELS we have down here. Some look like they belong in a 3rd world nation...not in America.
I say bulldoze the lot (over 400) of these rat-traps and start over...and get some GOOD, HIONEST people in them to boot, and not a bunch of lying, cheating, stealing drugged-out frauds.
But that's just *my* opinion.
;)
B.G.
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