Why Are Your Property Taxes So Darn High?

While the majority of people pay the most attention to the taxes they see regularly, i.e. income and sales tax, there are other taxes that cost you a lot of money that you may tend to forget about. One of those taxes that cost a lot, but that kind of goes unnoticed is property tax. In fact, depending on where you live and how much property you own, your property taxes can be huge. For some people, like residents of New Jersey for example, property taxes seem extreme.

A 2014 study by Monmouth University found that 26 percent of New Jersey residents said that they were “very likely” to move to a different state, with the most common reason being the high price of housing and property taxes – with property taxes being the main culprit. Residents of Connecticut and New York are also often on the list of highest property taxes. Why is that some locations have much higher property taxes than others?

There are several reasons that property taxes vary from state to state and city to city. Here are just a few of the main causes:

  • State employees make a lot of money – if your state pays its workers well, like New Jersey does, then chances are your property taxes are higher in order to help foot that bill.
  • Not Much Tourism – if your state lacks a lot of out-of-town visitors then property taxes could be higher to make up for lost revenue.
  • Good schools – in order to have the best schools you have to pay for the best teachers and education services. The funds for those expenses often come from property taxes.
  • Valuable property – no matter where you live, if you have a valuable home then you will almost assuredly pay more in property taxes. That’s because your property tax is based on the assessed value of your home times the local tax rate. A higher value home equals higher property taxes.

There are other possible reasons for high property taxes, but these are some of the most common. If you want to avoid outrageous property taxes, then your best bet is to simply move to a state where property taxes are lower.

Posted in

FATCA Is Officially Underway

We’ve been talking about it for months and according to the IRS, FATCA is now officially underway. The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act is live and the IRS is actively exchanging information with several other countries that have signed on. So what does that mean for you and your information if you have funds in…

Be Careful of Scams When Donating to Charities

The world is full of good Samaritans, those people who see other people suffering, and want to help or who get involved in a good cause. Donating time, talent and money to charities and other good causes is a noble endeavor. However, as with most things in life, there are always those on the other…

What’s the Hold Up On A $5.22 Million Tax Refund?

What would you do if you filed your tax return and it showed that you were owed a refund of $5.22 million dollars? However, despite the fact that your return was legitimate the IRS still hadn’t paid up. It’s not a very common scenario, but nevertheless that is exactly what is happening to one man…

Things to Consider for Your 2015 Capital Gains Tax

There are all kinds of investors in the world. Some are looking to make a quick buck by buying and then quickly selling stocks as soon as they increase in value. Other investors buy stocks with an eye toward the future, which means they are in it for the long haul. In any case, anyone…