OrangeChat

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"Revenue neutral" redux

Submitted by mschultz on 07/24/2009 - 15:07

Remember the Orange Tax Revolt?

Hundreds of people crowded meetings months ago to protest Orange County's revaluation. They said the new assessments were too high for a recession and would lead to higher property taxes.

Some 5,000 taxpayers appealed, four times what the county had seen in prior revals. Many assessments were lowered, but overall, the county said the assessments were accurate. The new values fell in line with what area homes were actually selling for.

Last week I sat down with Mark Zimmerman, a Realtor and columnist for the Chapel Hill News. Mark believes we will see a resurgence of Tax Revolt in September when the county mails out property tax bills. Why? Because, as we've reported, revenue neutral -- a term by which the county says it will generate the same amount of tax revenue as the year before revaluation -- doesn't mean revenue neutral.

As we reported even the county commissioners were stunned to learn real property tax bills will rise under the revenue neutral rate to make up for declines in other taxable property. The average property owner will see a $159 increase in his or her county tax bill. But Mark has done additional research for a column running Sunday that shows just how much tax bills are increasing throughout the county.

Since Mark is a Realtor, I asked him what motivated him. I mean, higher property values mean higher commissions, right?

"I think [revenue neutral] is a Trojan horse that allowed them to raise [tax] rates without having to say they effectively did so," he said. "People are going to get their tax bills, and I think people are going to fall off their chairs."

As much as Realtors trading in high end properties might benefit, Zimmerman said he does not want to see Chapel Hill become a Greenwich, Conn.

"There are people who are not going to be able to live here who made this a place people want to live in."

Read Mark's column Sunday in The Chapel Hill News.

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Thu, 11/12/2009 - 05:17 — DARSH33

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Fri, 11/06/2009 - 09:18 — alamri

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دردشه|العاب|منت

Wed, 10/07/2009 - 16:45 — semsem777

Zimmerman isn't just any realtor

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 15:58 — rubyji

Quoting Mark Zimmerman as if he is simply an average realtor is disingenuous at best. He led the effort to squash the Land Transfer Tax in 2008 (http://www.orangepolitics.org/land-transfer-tax). He has long been an advocate of lowering taxes here, even though he is not even a Orange County residential tax payer himself.

Your Point Being...?

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 21:43 — Claudius

Your Point Being...?

Let's Stay on Topic

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 18:45 — MarkZimmerman

Glad to hear you don't think I'm average, Ruby. :-)

First, let me clear up (again) that I do reside in Durham now, but continue to own property in Orange County through an LLC. So, I do pay taxes here. I corrected Joe Capowski when he first made this claim during our debates about the Transfer Tax. In addition, my business is in Orange County, which means I have a very direct stake in the community and I also pay property taxes indirectly through rent.

When blogs post inaccuate information, I am not surprised it gets perpetuated. When it comes to talking about taxes, then or now, I guess I'm also not surprised to see proponents try to change the subject by making ad hominem attacks.

I'll certainly admit long being an advocate of lower taxes, here, and elsewhere. I do have a bias toward more limited government and more personal freedom. I think that's apparent in this, and most of my columns.

As for this column, lower taxes is one important point, made even more important during times when families are struggling economically. But as important is transparency in our government decisions. Each jurisdiction could have gone through this process and concluded higher taxes were necessary to keep a level of service they felt we need or want. That would have been politically unpopular with some, and politically applauded by others. But we never had that debate. This revenue neutral mechanism didn't identify what the real property tax rate should have been to keep the average real property tax the same after revaluation.

We can't have truly representative government if those being represented can't judge how their elected officials are making critical decisions. Raising taxes is not unusual in Orange County but this year taxes were raised without the usual open discussion and deliberation. No matter how you feel about the tax burden, that process is not good government for anyone.

Mark Zimmerman

Those evil people

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 18:24 — elvisboy77

Who think that some of our tax money is wasted. How dare them.

People like you would continue to pay taxes until they are flat broke, then wonder what happened.

What an Obamanation that would be!

A serious invitation

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 22:21 — marcoplos

I invite the both of you, Mark Zimmerman & John Kramer, to meet and discuss how we can affect the incredible waste of taxpayer money by the federal government through the militaristic adventures in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Central America, etc.

If these incredible military expenditures were halted, we would not need to scrape and claw to figure out how to meet local needs. If you are serious about taxation issues, please join with me to form a local grassroots effort to rein in runaway federal military spending. We know where the money is.

Mark, I sure hope

Sat, 07/25/2009 - 23:08 — jcbarr

you didn't print this fear-mongering in the paper tomorrow.

"I think [revenue neutral] is a Trojan horse that allowed them to raise [tax] rates without having to say they effectively did so"

The BoCC does not care one bit about tax rates. They care about the total amount of taxes that come in to OC. And they set a rate which kept the amount from property taxes overall (including cars, etc) THE EXACT SAME AS BEFORE THE REVALUATION.

To say that they raised tax rates is to take a portion of the overall picture (real property) and say that people are paying more taxes than before WHEN THEY ARE NOT in the overall scheme.

And if you printed half-truths to another effect, you should be ashamed.

The truth

Sun, 07/26/2009 - 07:28 — elvisboy77

will be in your property tax bill. Between over-valuation and the rate they set, your real estate property taxes will be higher. Don't believe me, just wait til your bill shows up.

Orange County does not care that there is a recession and unemployment is at record levels.

The home tax valuation appeal process

Fri, 07/24/2009 - 23:29 — elvisboy77

Is a joke. A house in my neighborhood was appraised at $420k and sold for $375. When I appealed my valuation (in January) based on that ratio, I first was told the appeal was lost, then to call in May, then June, then to refile. It is almost August and I have heard nothing. They are stonewalling. What a rip off.

Trojan Horse - A Trick That's Worked a Thousand Times

Fri, 07/24/2009 - 19:06 — CitizenWill

I found Mark Zimmerman's comment to be sadly humorous.

"I think [revenue neutral] is a Trojan horse that allowed them to raise [tax] rates without having to say they effectively did so," he said. "People are going to get their tax bills, and I think people are going to fall off their chairs."

I've been highlighting Chapel Hill Town Council's use of this "Trojan Horse" for the last 6 years.

I found this year's news release particularly disingenuous though, in fairness, the Town did respond to my earlier criticism of their comments about a tax reduction leaving an impression that a lowered tax rate (revenue neutral) meant lower taxes.

06/05/2009 - The Chapel Hill Town Council will consider the adoption of the 2009-10 budget on Monday night. The recommended general fund budget totals $49.8 million with a tax rate reduction to 49.4 cents per $100 of assessed value. To view the budget information online, visit townhall.townofchapelhill.org/agendas/2009/05/06/1/

Generally, the tax rate is lowered to offset or "neutralize" the effect of higher property values that occur in a revaluation process. Every four years, Orange County updates listed property values, and that revaluation process occurred in 2009. If adopted as proposed, the Town would reduce its property tax rate about 14 percent and collect no additional taxes from property owners than last year. Some property owners' tax bills may still increase because the total amount Chapel Hill residents pay in property taxes also depends on the actions of the Board of Orange County Commissioners, which sets the county tax rate, and the special schools tax for Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools.

Why is this misleading? By June 5th, 2009, when this PR puff piece went out, it was already well established that the average valuation for a Chapel Hill resident was well north of %14 - in fact, %28 or so before the recalculations of the County.

The Town knew that "some" really meant "many".

Usually, though, the Trojan Horse trick plus fingering the County (look at Mayor Foy, et. al. comments every election season) works.

OrangeChat

"Revenue neutral" redux

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xzcxc

Zimmerman isn't just any realtor

Your Point Being...?

Let's Stay on Topic

Those evil people

A serious invitation

Mark, I sure hope

The truth

The home tax valuation appeal process

Trojan Horse - A Trick That's Worked a Thousand Times

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Homes View All

"Revenue neutral" redux

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