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john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

The wife and I got our new tax bill this year. Apparently, for some reason, the 2007 tax year is based on the 2005 evaluation and the assessment is like $35,000 more than I bought it for this time in 2006.

Not only is this bogus, but my mortgage company contacts us and asks us to add to our escrow account and even though it was our first notification, they wanted to charge us like $250 for a "late charge" in addition to the $200 per month premium for the escrow account. It was another one of those dirt bags that you get at a call center in India. I am hearing time and time again that the people at the call centers in India are awful, sleazy, off the hook terrible. The person finally backed off the "late charge" and then when my wife said she would pay it over the phone; he wanted to charge her $20. These people are not going to help the US / India relations that are for sure, what type of people are these folks and I hope they don’t represent their society? You know some nice old lady most likely paid this outrageous fee.

From buying a house, getting financing, the whole nine, and now with the real estate taxes and the finance company it has been a complete Keystone Cops comedy of errors with these awful complete hacks in this industry. I am getting weary having to deal with complete nonsense and sleaze every step of the way.

Anyway, if property taxes are as high all around because for whatever reason, they are based on 2005 evaluations, it just ate a bit more into affordability and I'm reading that salaries were stagnant over the past year. If you’re thinking about buying, get the current real estate tax situation for the property.

admin · Posted: Wed Aug 29, 2007 2:14 am GMT Post subject:

Man, that's awful. I'm sorry to hear it. Can you appeal the assessment?

- admin

JCK · Joined: 15 Feb 2007 Posts: 559

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

I will show you two houses that sold in this (a small town) within two weeks of each other

My house bought Sept. 1, 2006:
paid $543k
current assessment- $577k
current assessment- 106% of what I paid
http://www.zillow.com/HomeDetails.htm?zprop=57182998

Another house, same town, sold August 17, 2006 (less than 2 weeks prior to my sale)
paid $295k
current assessment $253k
current assessment- 85% of market value
http://www.zillow.com/HomeDetails.htm?zprop=57182470

I am paying 21% more in property taxes based on fair market value.

When I spoke to the town assessor she seemed very, very prepared and on top of things, so I don't know if this is an anomaly in the market behavior and price structure in the past few years or her metrics don't align with the reality. I mean when we bought the house it was assessed at $510 and we paid $543k (including stuff like washer, dryer, refrig, window treatments, electric dog fence, etc.) For it to go from $510 to $577 in one year sounds sketchy. My wife and I have the money to cover it, and we don't have a variable rate, but if this is something that others will face on top of the variable rate it might be enough to overheat the situation and lose their financial stablity. Now think about all those financial folks that got fat last winter with their Christmas Bonuses. I wonder what Christ would have thought about their selfishness and how his name got attached to that sort of reward.

I should have some of you cats over for a bender one weekend.

JCK · Joined: 15 Feb 2007 Posts: 559

I assume your town only does assessment every two years? Otherwise it's very odd that 2005 and 2006 are the same, and a huge jump for 2007.

$510k-$575k is a $65k jump which is about 13% of the lower estimate. If this represents two years of change from 2003-2005, that doesn't sound unreasonable (about 6% per year for those two years).

Haven't looked at the other home you're comparing to, but it is in a difference price class...

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

Running the numbers for affordability based on real estate taxes:

http://www.dor.state.ma.us/apps/TaxRates/taxrate.pdf

Based on the tax rate, if a house costs $500k in Halifax which has a tax rate of 11.78 per thousand, that would yield the same mortgage payment as a $513.5k house in Lynnfield. Essentially, the cheaper tax rate gives you $13,500 more to spend to reach the same mortgage payment.
Don't forget to think about this.

Also, ask each Town Administrator what the bond rating is and if a detailed 5 Year Capital Plan is available for your review. If you get a deer-in-the-headlights look you should put an asterisk next to this town.

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

Hell, I shouldn't have chosen Lynnfield, but rather Halifax's neighbor Hanson.

Halifax- 11.78
Hanson- 9.38

Neighboring towns, both with commuter rail stops (Hanson being closer)

Based on just the tax rate, you could afford $14,500 more in Hanson to get the same mortgage payment.

Add the surcharge of the commuter rail (Zone 6 Hanson versus Zone 7 Halifax) $223 per month versus $235 per month and you have an extra 12 bucks a month. That adds up.

http://www.mbta.com/fares_and_passes/rail/

Add that surcharge to the discount for the cheaper tax rate and you can spend $16,000 more dollars on a house in Hanson than you can in Halifax (neighboring towns) to get the same mortgage rate.

Sometimes the little things add up...

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

mortgage payment...

hyperbad · Joined: 24 Sep 2007 Posts: 3

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

Let's do it baby!!!

She likes to drink Old Grand Dad and her shoes all shuffle around doot dew doo...

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/l/lynyrd+skynyrd/whiskey+rock+a+roller_20086129.html

If you don't know the words, you can just humm.

Read these God damm lyrics, nobody other than Neil Diamond can do this sort of stuff:

Here's a song about a young kid appreciating an everyday legend.

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/l/lynyrd+skynyrd/the+ballad+of+curtis+loew_20086157.html

Here's one Doug Flutie referenced at his retirement (pretty grouded guy considering what he's accomplished...)

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/l/lynyrd+skynyrd/simple+man_20086106.html

We'll get some of this going on the hi-fi. You know it.

john p · Joined: 10 Mar 2006 Posts: 1820

Read 49 then the lyrics for Curtis Loew

http://www.religiousworlds.com/taoism/ttcstan3.html#49

http://www.lyricsfreak.com/l/lynyrd+skynyrd/the+ballad+of+curtis+loew_20086157.html

read the last Disney Quote:

http://www.toinspire.com/author.asp?author=Walt+Disney

http://www.stoneycreek.com/new_disney/portrait.jpg

Here's a native American story about a little mouse and the strength of the tribe, everyone matters and can play a role... Creation of lacrosse story...

http://www.ilhawaii.net/~stony/896myths.html

What is disgusting now is that the Native Americans are selling out to casinos, targeting the weak, and our Governor is trying to bribe taxpayers so they will turn their backs on the communities that will absorb the negative impacts.

The problem with Harvard and MIT folks are that they often time don't know what it is like to be the little guy. The rich lure them away from their sight. The sad part is that the inspiration for everything great can be found in the very areas that the rich and greedy want to destroy. Simple folks are the salt of the earth.