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.
What to Do About Corporate Taxes?
What to Do About Corporate Taxes? The debate over corporate taxes has raged for years, but even though the battle has been going on for decades, it has definitely experienced some changes. The business world, and the world in general, has changed since the days when Ronald Reagan was in office. That means politicians have…
Can Life Insurance Policies Solve the Estate Tax-Retirement Conundrum?
Can Life Insurance Policies Solve the Estate Tax-Retirement Conundrum? Many top-level company executives and business owners share a common problem when it comes to planning for estate taxes and retirement. The problem is that many of these individuals wonder how they are going to both pay the necessary estate taxes while at the same time…
Will NBA Star Choose New Team According to State Taxes?
Will NBA Star Choose New Team According to State Taxes? There are usually a lot of factors that people consider when they are trying to determine where they are going to live, with their choice of work being a very common one. On the other hand, not everyone typically chooses where he or she is…
Do You Owe Money To The IRS?
The vast majority of Americans get a tax refund from the IRS each spring, but what do you do if you are one of those who have received a tax bill? What do you do if you owe money to the IRS and can’t pay? The IRS encourages you to pay the full amount of…