5 Tax Threats To Your Home On Long Island

Blog September 10, 2020 By Admin
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Taxes are out to get you. They are out to get your home. Here are just five of the tax risks to your home on Long Island, and what you can do to defend yourself and your house.

  1. Business Property Taxes

Most businesses don’t get the big property tax breaks we see in the media headlines. That means the others are forced to share the burden of rising expenses. Between shutdowns, reduced business and higher taxes, this can really put the financial pinch on. Even more so when you didn’t set aside enough for your corporate taxes, and income is down, making it hard to catch up.

This all means less money to take home, which could be compounded by any new income related taxes or inflation in living expenses as the 2020 election. Less take home money, means less to pay your home property taxes with.

  1. IRS Tax Liens

If you don’t keep up with your income taxes the IRS can hit you with tax liens. Not only can they garnish your wages and tap directly into your bank accounts, but they can put a lien against your home too. If that happens, you may owe more on your home than it is worth. You may get nothing when and if you can sell your home. Or you may not be able to refinance or sell your home. If you are struggling, try to head this issue off by talking to the IRS and working out a payment plan.

  1. Flawed Property Tax Bills

Almost half of Long Islanders’ property tax bills are incorrect and over-inflated each year. This is no secret. Nothing has been done to fix it for decades. It’s really not in the interest of those collecting and spending those tax dollars. They just hope enough people won’t ask questions and will blindly overpay, putting more money into the pot.

Given there is an almost 50% chance your property tax bill is wrong and too high, it just makes sense to challenge it, and get it fixed. Why keep overpaying? Even if you can afford it, there are probably more worthy causes and efficient ways to give your money to something good.

  1. Rising Property Taxes

Whether it is more government spending, more school spending (despite being closed for so many months), COVID-19, or your neighbors falling into bankruptcy, abandoning their homes and leaving you to pick up the slack on the budget, property taxes on Long Island just seem to keep rising. Don’t just fall for it without questioning it. Especially, as other states and counties seem to be lowering property taxes through the same circumstances.

  1. Past Due Property Tax Bills & Fees

Failing to pay your entire tax bill and any associated fees, interest or penalties will lead to a lien being issued against your home and eventually it being taken away and sold at foreclosure. This is true even if your house is worth $1M, and you simply overlooked a $10 late fee. Ignoring these notices or failing to get help can all of a sudden get really expensive and cost you everything.

There are many tax related threats to your home on Long Island. One of the best and more important things you can do to protect yourself and your home is to challenge your property taxes bills. We’re here to help you do that.