Property taxes > Mortgage

[Casey Rouse]

My property taxes are now 76% of my mortgage. Last year we had a double digit increase, and almost double digit again this year. This is not only a direct attack on investors, but also retirees and other people on fixed incomes. This also forces rents up, and adds to the homeless situations throughout our nation.

We need to take a stand and expose the waste of our cities, and how technical colleges harvest off of us also. What kind of legal action can we take??? Property taxes should never be more than 30% of a mortgage, and especially not 76%.

[Eamonn McElroy]

@Aaron K.

You should examine your holistic taxes paid across the whole spectrum (income, sales, property, etc) before you make a determination how friendly or unfriendly an area is.

It's generally accepted that when a state reduces (or eliminates) taxes on one revenue source they must raise taxes on another revenue source to compensate.  E.g. many states with no individual income tax often have much higher property taxes and sales taxes than average.

So while it's great that Prop 13 may tie your state and local government's hands on property taxes, it's not stopping the state from charging $800 per year on each and every LLC doing business in CA, regardless of revenue or net income, or setting the state's top marginal individual income tax rate at 13.3%.