Quote from Ed Breen:
I think what is obvious in this thread is that the reliance on property taxes which assumes that real estate values only go up, is not working. It is also clear that rising property taxes destroys real estate asset value. All the declining cities in America are characterized by declining city real estate values, declining private home ownership, abandonment and vacant properties.
NYC is one of the exceptions. It is interesting to note that the property tax for residential ownership in NYC is dramatically lower than it is in the suburbs. A $1M coop or condo in NYC will have property tax of about $6,000 to $7,000 while a $1M is the suburbs will have property tax of $20,000. Of course NYC has a city income tax that it relies on for revenue. This has produced a lively and growing residential real estate market in NYC that did not decine during these years of financial crises.
Contrast this with a recent article about Providence Rhode Island which faces a municipal funding crises. It has asked Browne University to pay city property taxes on voluntary basis since they are otherwise exempt. The article reveals that in Providence private ownership of real property has given way to non profit institutional and government ownership of real property....so, they are runnning out of owners to tax. You would think that they might notice that the rate of the tax drove the private owners away and left the only buyers and users as those who did not have to pay the tax and could then take advantage of the low real estate prices! You can look across the country and see how this has played out. The high property tax cities are in spiral decline with collapsing revenues as the only substantial owners of buildings, and employers, are Hospitals, Courts, Governement Services, Universities, Churches, Schools, Univesities and Cultural and other Non Profits....The tax rates create the city scape. Contrast Newark, Worcester, Harford, Povidence, Detroit, Buffalo with Greenwich Village; and look at the property tax structure that has played out over time.
The Suburbs are not immune to this and they continue with raising property taxes at their perril. Baby Boomers will not stay and thier children will not come.