Vacant and Vacancy Tax Spreading?

[D&D]

Isn’t that what happened in the movie Dr Zhivago?

Homes allocated by the state?

Soon there will be no where to go…

Some of the least stressed people I know are on Section 8… it’s like being retired and having all your needs met…

No worries about the roof over your head, filing tax returns, food on the table, health insurance, discounted or free utilities, cell phones, computers, property insurance, school tuition, etc.

Guess people fail to realize hollyweird productions and reality don’t share a whole lot. Taxing me and mine out of existence does nothing to ensure your future. It merel pushes a larger burden onto a smaller populace.
Reality? Do the baby boomers have too much wealth? Do they really have to share what they’ve inherited/earned?

 

[plowhog]

I would hate to imagine what things would be like if taxes didn't require voter approval.

Do you know what process was used to begin the vacant parcel tax?

Does the money collected to a specific budget, or just into the general fund?

 

[dodge man]

I saw another proposal introduced in San Francisco. Grocery stores would have to give six months notice before closing and the fact they are losing money isn’t an excuse to close. Before they close they have to meet with the local community, post notices etc. How in the world can you force a business to stay open that is going broke?

 

[2manyrocks]

If the grocery store is a chain that has an overall profitable operation from stores elsewhere, they are counting on that profit to absorb the cost of staying open 6 months.

If the grocery is a mom/pop operation that doesn't have the cash flow, that's a different situation. It would really be awful if the rules imposed fines on mom and pops that had to close because they didn't have the finances to stay open.

There was a local independent grocery that closed because their refrigeration equipment failed, and they decided it wasn't worth the cost of replacing it in order to stay in business. One of the long term grocers in the area had already closed up after Walmart opened a grocery department, and he had predicted it would drive the least profitable grocer out of business.

The problem with a proposal like that is grocers can go out of business for a variety of reasons, and they aren't all chains that can absorb the cost.

 

[MossRoad]

Canada has had it too.

Vacant Home Tax

If you would like to dispute your Vacant Home Tax Notice of Assessment because your property qualifies for an exemption, or to change its occupancy status, please submit a Notice of Complaint. If required to do so, you may submit additional documentation, file an appeal of any complaint...

www.toronto.ca

I think that's just Toronto city, no?

 

[plowhog]

It would really be awful if the rules imposed fines on mom and pops that had to close because they didn't have the finances to stay open.

Hmmm ... a return of debtor's prison?

Debtors' prison - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[dmccarty]

Ireland has had housing shortages for centuries. I read a few years ago that the cost of housings was up to 60% due to taxes and complying with regulations. The government has made changes to reduce that expense but I don't know how much that has really been reduced.

Six or so years ago, I read there was talk by some Irish political parties to force elderly people from their homes since they no longer needed all of the space they had in their homes. Basically, the elderly people were not using all of their bedrooms, so kick the people out of their homes they had lived in for decades, force them out of their neighborhoods, have them loose their friends and community, so the house could be given to younger people. We had a taxi driver bring this up and he supported this idea. Unreal. He thought his mother should leave her house so he and his family could have a bigger place to stay and closer to the center of Dublin.

I believe some Irish jurisdictions have implemented taxes on vacant land and buildings to try to generate housing. Course, part of the problem is that the cost to fix the buildings up to code or build on the land is beyond the reach of the owner which forces the owner to sell.

To make the housing shortage worse, there are thousands of homes that have been built with defective cement blocks that fall apart when wet. There really is no fix other than to tear down the homes and rebuild. Then there is the large number of migrants that have arrived in the last few years taking up even more space and money.

 

[ultrarunner]

Do you know what process was used to begin the vacant parcel tax?

Does the money collected to a specific budget, or just into the general fund?

It depends but Tahoe is based on collecting signatures and the funds are suppose to help house that are housing challenged.

Others arrive via city council...

 

[ultrarunner]

I think that's just Toronto city, no?

The Underused Housing Tax is an annual federal 1% tax on the ownership of vacant or underused housing in Canada that took effect on January 1, 2022. The tax generally applies to foreign national owners of housing in Canada

 

[MossRoad]

The Underused Housing Tax is an annual federal 1% tax on the ownership of vacant or underused housing in Canada that took effect on January 1, 2022. The tax generally applies to foreign national owners of housing in Canada

Ouch!