I am fuming mad after receiving my latest real estate tax bill. It is up 14.5 percent from my 2015 tax bill, which was up 12.2 percent from my 2014 tax bill, which was up 6 percent from my 2013 tax bill… and on and on accordingly. I am not one of these crazy rich yuppies who have bid the housing market up to outrageous levels.
I have owned my 3 family house in Jamaica Plain since 1984, when it was considered by many to be a questionable neighborhood, and it sits on a measly 1/11th of an acre of land. For this I am now being taxed $8,725 a year, even after my owner-occupancy exemption. When valuations go up, the tax rate should go down accordingly.
As most of us know, wages have barely risen over the past few years for most people, and many folks are retired on a fixed income. How can people be expected to pay their new tax bills, and how can a 36.3 percent increase over three years possibly be justified? I do not expect that when interest rates go up to normal levels and property prices go down accordingly, that I will see any benefit of lower taxes.
At the very least, rates should be determined at the beginning of the fiscal year being taxed, rather than in the middle. My latest tax bill is 30 percent higher than it was in my last quarter estimated bill. I guess that our assessing gods must think that an extra $552 this quarter is no big deal. After all, I have almost 30 days notice to come up with it.
Whatever happened to what Proposition 2 ½ was supposed to stand for? If I am paying 36.3 percent more than I paid in 2013, then who is paying less and why? I can’t believe that the city is only collecting 2 ½ percent more on existing property than it did last year. I hope that someone will enlighten me as to whose taxes have gone down 33.8 percent to compensate.
Our mayor and city councilors claim to want affordable housing in the city of Boston. I have not raised the rents to anywhere near the outrageous level that I could now get for my two rental apartments, because I do not believe in price gouging. However, with my ever-increasing real estate taxes, my ever-increasing city water bill, new city fees (taxes) on rental units, unregulated electric bill, etc., I am going to have to reconsider raising my tenants’ rent accordingly, just to try and keep up with the expenses for my house. So much for my tiny part in trying to keeping housing affordable. Due to city greed, I can no longer afford to do my part.
I hope that our mayor and city councilors will see fit to pass some legislation to keep city taxes and fees affordable for those of us who are not doctors, lawyers, bankers, CEOs or software engineers before the rest of us have to move on to cheaper pastures.