Anyone else shocked

[Tmag]

Another hit for us again this year. Home value went up 33% and land went up 12%. I became locked in this year so mine should cost me the same the rest of my life and hopefully I will be able to pay it. On the other hand my kids are being slammed with $300 - 500 increases annually on their tax bills.
Some of y'all like paying taxes and complain about the amounts schools and government are wasting. Our county has a surplus and they still choose to take more than they should. The state has a surplus and they still take more than they should. I hope our state elected officials get HB2 pushed through, we need relief.

[locknload]

Take plenty of pics of everything needing fixin and painting, fence, appliances, counter tops, etc. All the things you would need to update before you sold the house at their estimated value. Lots of pictures and receipts for your proof before the tax commission. Be relentless and challenge taxes every year. If no change or tax hike than have them lower it. The state is out of control on property taxes. This works for us.

[cbd10pt]

We are at 30 and change as well

[M16]

They are going to get all they can while they can.
ISD's and county government are the real crooks.

Don't leave out the state. Ever hear of unfunded mandates. Pretty easy to pass all kinds of requirements without providing the money to fund them.

[Ishi&Elvis]

I protested a couple of years ago. It is inconvenient. They are usually hostile, mostly because everyone that goes in to protest has a huge chip on the shoulder and is hostile in the first place. They treated us like we did not know what we were talking about. I had it all listed out, you only get a minute or two to speak and present your case. Have it all written out in a statement and the reasons you believe that it should be reduced and be able to justify it. They knocked some off of mine, and I will do the same this year. It is an inconvenience to have to appear in person, had to take time off of work for it, but it was worth it, and it sends a message to them that you are not going to lay down on them. Be respectful, have your ducks in a row and be ready to not get what you want and have to live with it.

[JHT]

I am not in this group of people but you do have a choice on taxes just don't own anything like land or houses and you get a free ride I think more and more people are figuring this out sell and live in a motor home or camper but I don't think I am ready to do it yet.

It's already happening here in Houston on the apartment side. They have all the amenities a five star hotel has minus room service. Think of them like co ed dorms for adults.

In the summers the pool scene looks like something in Vegas minus the nudity. No one I have met has any intention on leaving them either.

[BitBackShot]

You don't get a "free ride" if you rent. Property taxes are priced into the rent.

Silly comment.

[Kenner97]

I got a question that relates to property taxes. I received a letter yesterday from the appraisal district. They are in the process of getting the property values for this coming years taxes and want to do a physical inspection of the property. I don't have anything to hide, no improvements other than a 10x20 cover we built to park 4 wheeler, etc.

Do you let the appraisal district come out and appraise or just let them estimate?

[SFAbowhunter]

Luckily my house in Texas didn't go up too much. The house value was down a touch, but the land value was up.

My taxes for my land in Oklahoma are dirt cheap. Paid $47 in taxes for my 70 acres. That's the main reason I didn't buy in Texas.

[meltingfeather]

It's called appreciation. Would you sell your house for what you bought it for 15 years ago?

[JHT]

You don't get a "free ride" if you rent. Property taxes are priced into the rent.

Silly comment.

It's a bigger picture if you add up all the expenses of home ownership vs not having the headaches it entails. Property taxes is just one factor to take out of the equation. Add in how much you pay in interest on your note as well. The list goes on and on if you think about it.

Go sign a five year lease on a place and your set. Go buy a house today and as the testimony from most everybody on this thread will attest that they will be paying way more in five years to stay in the house. There is no sign of any of this stopping either.

[meltingfeather]

Luckily my house in Texas didn't go up too much. The house value was down a touch, but the land value was up.

My taxes for my land in Oklahoma are dirt cheap. Paid $47 in taxes for my 70 acres. That's the main reason I didn't buy in Texas.

That green grass in an income tax state looks pretty good. The income taxes I'd pay there (not including my wife) are higher than the property taxes on my house in central Austin.

[BitBackShot]

It's a bigger picture if you add up all the expenses of home ownership vs not having the headaches it entails. Property taxes is just one factor to take out of the equation. Add in how much you pay in interest on your note as well. The list goes on and on if you think about it.

Go sign a five year lease on a place and your set. Go buy a house today and as the testimony from most everybody on this thread will attest that they will be paying way more in five years to stay in the house. There is no sign of any of this stopping either.

Nope, everything your wrote is completely wrong.

When you lease, you're paying your portion of the property taxes, upkeep, insurance, everything you'd be paying on a home, PLUS income to the property owner.

The reason you're thinking it's cheaper is because you aren't getting nearly the same asset allocation in an apartment or by renting a house that you would be owning.

No one rents out their property to lose money, absent an incredibly weak real estate market with zero alternative options. That's another silly comment.

[BitBackShot]

Here's the one and only true way to beat the system:

Live far, far below your means. If you can afford a $700k house, buy and stay in a house worth $250k. You're living in a no-income tax state that assumes people will live in their respective relative worth homes. So for a couple that jointly makes 500k a year, you'd expect them, on average, to live in a home valued a little over a million dollars. The property taxes assessed on said home will roughly make up for the lack of income taxes that couple pays on a state level. For that couple, the projected taxes to the state would be roughly 20k, which would be the equivalent of a 4% income tax. You live in a house worth 300k instead and you're paying 7k on that same income level because you're living in a house that's an outlier for your income level.

So if you live in a home way, way below your means in a 0 income tax state like Texas, you're beating the system. When you retire, move to a state with low property taxes that bases its revenue on income.

That's really the best you can do. Many (dang near all) people will just say, "Nope, I want a nice house with a pool in a good area" more than they want to save a few thousand a year in taxes, and that's fine too. Just know how the system works and you can decide for yourself if you want to game it.

[JHT]

Nope, everything your wrote is completely wrong.

When you lease, you're paying your portion of the property taxes, upkeep, insurance, everything you'd be paying on a home, PLUS income to the property owner.

The reason you're thinking it's cheaper is because you aren't getting nearly the same asset allocation in an apartment or by renting a house that you would be owning.

No one rents out their property to lose money, absent an incredibly weak real estate market with zero alternative options. That's another silly comment.

Your not getting where I was going. And I don't disagree with what you have said either. My point is the system is broke and some have choosen another route that works for them.