To think an annual property tax is incredibly unfair?

I understand people in the US are used to it but the system won’t be the same here. A wealthy area won’t get to fund its own services under Labour / Burnham.

To the same extent that is, eg schools.

Do you think we have the skills for a devolved power? What about places like Blackpool?

Council (and other "Government" employees have pensions that most of those who pay for them can now only dream about. Paid out of council tax. Sort that out first. But they wont because of the unions

Many local government pension schemes are currently in surplus and they compensate for lower salaries. “Sort that out” would mean salaries would have to increase.

www.barnett-waddingham.co.uk/comment-insight/blog/surpluses-in-the-lgps-cutting-through-the-noise/

New taxes always have massive unforeseen consequences. If council tax is changed it will be a disaster. Those old enough to remember when council changed to Poll tax will remember that.

Conservatives have never been forgiven by many (including me) for trying that, and it was one of the things that ended Maggie. My council tax doubled by the time the Poll tax had been and gone. And I lived alone then

Sure there will be winners and losers, but isn’t the key point about council tax is that it’s meant to pay for the local services. Not be a wealth tax? A family of the same size and age should in theory consume similar council costs (police, fire, schools, roads etc,) irrespective of the value of the house.

Council (and other "Government" employees have pensions that most of those who pay for them can now only dream about. Paid out of council tax. Sort that out first. But they wont because of the unions

Obviously sure there will be local effects between areas, but larger homes pay more anyway via the higher council house bands. As many have said already living in a larger/more valuable house doesn’t automatically mean you have more disposable income

There will be many consequences. Just watch what happens to house prices close to or over £2m

There are some elements of life in the US that nobody in their right mind would want.

But local control over locally raised taxes isn't one of them.

No self assessment in my neck of the (American) woods. And no armies of assessors either.

Assessment is handled by the office of the county assessor, an elected post. Residential units are assessed based on recent comparable values, the data on which is available to the assessor periodically throughout the year as deeds change hands at time of sale.

Different sections of the county are subject to reassessment on a periodic basis - maybe every five years or so. You can appeal your new assessment. It's quite a legal cottage industry. Also, the assessor can be voted out of office - it's always a hotly contested election here.

People in some parts of the suburb where I live pay as much as $50k annually. Most pay a lot less. The public facilities and services that are provided by the portion of the tax that goes to the local municipality are superb.

Increases in taxes to fund local municipal projects are subject to local approval via referenda. Keeping this level of local control over the tax is extremely important in maintaining public confidence in the concept of property tax, at a fundamental level.

They were the pensioners still dealing in cash and trooping to the post office in April to withdraw the money from their post office account and pay using the barcode in the post office all at the same time. The are often the pensioners that do not do any type of credit or debt and want the entirety demand paid at once.

there are plenty of pensioners that pay their council tax annually in April

Only the ones who haven’t invested their money sensibly. The interest’s better in our savings account than the council’s when we can pay it from income.

there are plenty of pensioners that pay their council tax annually in April, instead of in areas through the year

council tax can be set up for quarterly payments or half year along with 10 months, 11 months and 12 months in some cases

Most of us pay our council tax in ten instalments.

Here in Ontario Canada you have the option to pay your Property Tax yearly, half yearly or monthly which saves a bloody great bill once a year. Again based on area and price of the house.

They are relative and have gone up and up

outside of London, Labour has little support so they conclude that they can simply tax people there more and it won’t affect their vote.

The irony of calling the OP "triggered".

Is there a rule on how long a thread can run for, or whether it can be about something that has happened or could happen?

Or can it only run for as long as it meets some arbitrary standard set by you?

There is no obligation to continue reading or posting. If you don't like what you see, in the words of Dionne Warwick: "Walk on By."🎵

Fair point - I’m unfollowing this post now 😉
The voting result speaks for itself.

Although I will say that the South subsidises the North as we pay more income tax.

“Besides being prohibitively expensive, it means you are forced to rent unless you're sure you will stay in the place for many years.”

Stamp duty may be expensive, but it doesn't necessarily force you to rent. Most people on a normal wage choose housing security and buy where they can afford rather than where they would really like to live, because every £ paid towards your own home is £1 more in security and £1 saved from lining a landlord's pocket.

The irony of the Fairer Share or evrn mansion tax is that you might be able to afford to buy in an area but wouldn't necessarily be able to afford to live there for a long period of time. Because today's value of your home decides your tax, not your salary, which decides what mortgage you can get. Keen to hear your thoughts on why today's valuation is a fairer measure of someone's ability to pay than the mortgage they could afford when they bought the house?

Ask anybody who has bought their home in the last five or ten years if they could still afford to buy that home if it came onto the market now. Especially in overspill areas, where people priced out of more desirable areas nearby start buying, pushing up prices in your area.Yet your ability to afford to continue living there hasn't necessarily "increased".

Is this thread still doing the rounds? Jeez OP it’s not half triggered you. Mind it might not happen.

People pay different amounts in council tax now. Might be based on band your house is in or how much your council needs.

Poll tax was fairer.

So for decades our council tax in the North os sent to central government and our local council receive a smaller % back. The North is subsidising the South.

Job opportunities, public transport, even things to do socially, are all better the further south you go. It is more valuable to live in the South therefore you pay more for a house.

Move North, treat yourself to one of those £300K detached houses.

As the other commenter states even 1M doesn't buy you anything particularly luxurious in London.
Example:

https://www.rightmove.co.uk/properties/89988807#/?channel=RES_BUY

Why should someone in an expensive area pay 3-6x more tax for the same property? Are they consuming more public services? Often it's the other way around, the expensive area have high density and are cheaper to serve than areas with houses far away from each other.

Stamp duty is the most horrid tax.

We live in London and haven't bought because of it.

We will most likely move in a few years time and it's just a lot of money down the drain.

Besides being prohibitively expensive it means you are forced to rent unless you're sure you will stay in the place for many years.

It wouldn't be fairer for me. My house has doubled in value since I bought it 30 yrs ago, partly because my area has become popular with middle class lefties. I still exist pay cheque to pay cheque on minimum wage though, so taxing me based on my house value would totally screw me.

Can't wait to leave

💯 🙌🏼 I think it’s terrible, potentially expecting people to stump up 6k a year on tax. This gov just pretending people have £ the affordability to meet more and more demands. 🤦🏼‍♀️