|
Wisconsin’s property taxes are the
8th highest in America, and now some state leaders
want to double the “Home Tax” you pay when a home
is sold.
In other words, the “Home Tax” will
cost an additional $492 for the average priced home
in Wisconsin. That’s a 100% increase, or $984 per
home when it changes hands.
The “Home Tax” occurs when any home,
farm or commercial property is sold and the
ownership change is recorded (the Real Estate
Transfer Tax). We call this double taxation and
it’s unfair. This is the wrong time to slap an
increase on homeowners, and could have a serious
impact for buyers seeking affordable housing.
We believe this tax
increase should be rejected for the following
reasons:
-
The Home Tax hurts
housing affordability.
Raising the Home Tax will hurt housing
affordability in Wisconsin, raising the cost of
selling and/or buying a home.
-
The Home Tax singles out just those citizens who
are selling or buying a home or other real
property. The seller
is responsible for paying the transfer tax in full,
at closing, at a time when both buyers and sellers
must incur numerous closing costs.
-
The Home Tax hurts
the state’s economy.
Real estate is a leading economic indicator,
leading the state and national economies into and
out of economic troughs, and thus every effort
should be made to avoid harming this sector of
our economy, especially now.
-
Home Tax revenues
have gone up significantly in recent years.
The Wisconsin Taxpayers Alliance reports that
transfer tax receipts have increased from $4.8
million per year to $100.7 million per year from
1980 to 2006 and have gone up an average of over
12% per year in the past 5 years!
-
The Home Tax is
unfair, regressive and discriminatory.
The Home Tax is regressive because
it is imposed on home values at a flat rate.
Moderate-income families headed by teachers,
police officers and firefighters, and lower
income families pay a greater percentage of their
incomes on housing and will suffer most when they
sell their homes.
-
The Home Tax is
also a Business Tax.
This tax is applied to all real estate transfers
- everything from the sale of farms to commercial
buildings.
-
Home Tax revenues
are unreliable. Revenues from
the Home Tax are extremely volatile, fluctuating
with real estate market cycles. Given the
current cooling of real estate markets in
Wisconsin, this is a particularly bad time to
raise this tax.
On behalf of homeowners and property owners
throughout Wisconsin, we urge you to reject this
proposal. |
Related Stories
Wausau Daily
Herald
Property fee is a tax by any definition
Manitowoc Herald
Times Reporter
Real estate transfer fee may increase
Wisconsin Real
Estate Magazine
REALTORS® Oppose Governor’s Tax on Homes
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Quiet state tax hike on buying a house forecloses
other plans |
