Is the Government Misusing Your Property Tax Dollars?

Blog March 21, 2013 By Admin
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Is the government misusing your property tax dollars, resulting in you paying way more than you have too each year?

 

New York seems to be riddled with property tax issues today and residents are the ones footing the bill for all types of moves that they might not support if they knew how their money was being used. Unfortunately those tax bills just keep coming and getting higher.

 

We’ve recently seen New York’s largest teachers union suing to remove property tax caps so that homeowners’ tax bills can be raised even further, but in many cases those caps are already being blown through, despite debates over how money is being used and why some seem to be getting a free pass at others’ expense.

 

One New York mayor recently told NBC News that cities across the state were still facing bankruptcy and a lot of the short fall is coming from not everyone being forced to pay their fair share of property taxes.

 

In Rochester around half of property owners don’t pay any property taxes as they are deemed non-profits. That’s on top of developers and other commercial property owners that are receiving tax breaks and milking tax loopholes to avoid paying. While it is certainly understandable that many would argue some charitable organizations may deserve a tax break this is certainly be abused. These buildings still benefit from city services, for which the average homeowner has to pick up the bill for.

 

Now the NY Daily News has revealed mayor Bloomberg has been redirecting millions of dollars in property taxes to project short falls with obtaining approvals through the normal chains. On top of this, those hard hit by severe weather on Long Island are receiving new tax bills, when they may be forced to sell out anyway is Cuomo gets his way in using hundreds of millions to clear out coastal lands.

 

All of this together ultimately means higher property taxes in New York than may be necessary, and it is those that don’t complain and keep footing the bill for everyone else that lose out. You might not see much progress in fighting back against these issues at the top level, but all Long Islanders can fight back to reduce their own personal property tax bills and should.