By: Marlene Condon
Every year a government assessor decides how much our homes are worth for the purpose of taxing our real estate. This method of supplying local government with money is immoral because the assessment presumes real money in our pockets, which isn’t valid.
Yes, you can borrow against the home’s assessed value, but such an action puts you into debt. If the assessed value of your house was truly money in your pocket, as deemed to be the case with this manner of taxation, you wouldn’t need to borrow or get into debt.
Obviously then, our homes don’t represent cold hard cash for us to spend as if it’s money in the bank accruing interest. This being the case, people can be easily taxed out of the homes they’ve lived in for decades, if not their whole lives, just because richer folks can afford to pay exorbitant prices for properties in the neighborhood.
Government may love such “gentrification”, but for the legacy homeowner who’s faultless in this process that makes his home so valuable he can no longer reside there, it’s cruel punishment. And, especially for those on a fixed income, ever-increasing property taxes are an unbearable burden.
Real estate taxes should be based upon what the homeowner spent to purchase the property rather than what someone else pays for nearby property. If someone thinks a property is worth a high price, he can pay higher taxes. And if someone decides to sell, he can pay a percentage of his capital gains to the locality because he then possesses real cash.
We had a revolution because of taxation without representation. Now we need a revolution because of taxation without commiseration.
Note: This letter was submitted to the Daily Progress in February but was not published. SchillingShow.com serves as an alternate venue for various points of view.
The government doesn’t care. They want our money.
Exactly. I’m a single mom on a fixed income. I purchased my home at the price I can afford. I could not afford a home at the assessed value of my home now. I live here. If I sell, they can tax be on capital gains. This is outright robbery of the poor and middle class, not to mention I pay for private school because ACPS is an indoctrination camp.