Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Stupid Government Tricks - High Point, NC
Yup, our government does it again. And it's partially my fault - I'll admit it up front.
See, I own several rental properties, and pay about $5,000 a year in property taxes.
Here's the deal. I screwed up slightly, and still owe about $329.00 on my property taxes. (I had several units empty out unexpectedly, and I have one still not ready for renting due to the fact the woman's boyfriend decided to tear up the property just because I expected them to actually pay rent.)
I just paid the city government $100.00 last week on the property, and expect to have it paid off within 30 days. I'm willing to pay the late fees, too!
So what's the problem?
It seems the City Of High Point, North Carolina, wants to forclose on my home for unpaid taxes.
This is the same city that raised my electric bill 6% then gave the money to a jet manufacturer that isn't even locating in our city, as 'incentive' money.
This is the same city that built an $11.5 million dollar bus stop roof in downtown High Point in a misguided effort to keep the semi-annual furnature market from moving from here to Vegas.
They could have spent only one million dollars to build a roof that would have worked just a well, and used the remaining $10.5 million to build a few more classrooms for our over crowded schools. I doubt there will be a single market visitor that would look at it and say, "That bus stop roof isn't nearly fancy enough. Let's go to Vegas instead."
This is the same city where the city councel has spent the better part of the last six months squabbling over whether or not it's ok to say the word 'Jesus' in the opening prayer - excuse me - 'invocation' at the start of their meetings, time they could have used to actually accomplish something.
This is the same city that is so scared of offending someone who's not even in our country legaly, that city employees aren't even allowed to ask for proof of residency if the person in front of them is speaking anything but southern English.
And while I have paid out over $4,500 in property taxes, and have less than a 6% balance which will be paid off in a few weeks, they want to forclose on my house.
I have news for them: If you hadn't raised my electric rates so you can buy off a jet company, and if you spent less money on a bus stop roof, you wouldn't have to charge the 4th highest tax rate in the state and I, along with the over 9,000 other people who's names you posted in the paper, wouldn't be behind in our taxes!
Folks, I wrote a letter to a junior councel member asking her to try to avoid raising taxes, and the response I got back was 'what services do you want to do without so we don't have to raise your taxes?'
Well, I could do without an $11.5 million dollar bus stop roof. I could do without my hard earned cash being given away to a company that's not even locating as much as a broom closet in our city. And I can do without the services of junior councel members who can't seem to figure out a way to provide the same services and do the same job as 96% of the rest of the state can. (Only three other counties out of 100 have rates equal to or slightly higher than our own. What are the other 96 counties doing right that we can't seem to do?)
Here's a thought: Raise more money by charging the city councel members to park their cars.
Check out my lens and get some Free Jigsaw Puzzles!
See, I own several rental properties, and pay about $5,000 a year in property taxes.
Here's the deal. I screwed up slightly, and still owe about $329.00 on my property taxes. (I had several units empty out unexpectedly, and I have one still not ready for renting due to the fact the woman's boyfriend decided to tear up the property just because I expected them to actually pay rent.)
I just paid the city government $100.00 last week on the property, and expect to have it paid off within 30 days. I'm willing to pay the late fees, too!
So what's the problem?
It seems the City Of High Point, North Carolina, wants to forclose on my home for unpaid taxes.
This is the same city that raised my electric bill 6% then gave the money to a jet manufacturer that isn't even locating in our city, as 'incentive' money.
This is the same city that built an $11.5 million dollar bus stop roof in downtown High Point in a misguided effort to keep the semi-annual furnature market from moving from here to Vegas.
They could have spent only one million dollars to build a roof that would have worked just a well, and used the remaining $10.5 million to build a few more classrooms for our over crowded schools. I doubt there will be a single market visitor that would look at it and say, "That bus stop roof isn't nearly fancy enough. Let's go to Vegas instead."
This is the same city where the city councel has spent the better part of the last six months squabbling over whether or not it's ok to say the word 'Jesus' in the opening prayer - excuse me - 'invocation' at the start of their meetings, time they could have used to actually accomplish something.
This is the same city that is so scared of offending someone who's not even in our country legaly, that city employees aren't even allowed to ask for proof of residency if the person in front of them is speaking anything but southern English.
And while I have paid out over $4,500 in property taxes, and have less than a 6% balance which will be paid off in a few weeks, they want to forclose on my house.
I have news for them: If you hadn't raised my electric rates so you can buy off a jet company, and if you spent less money on a bus stop roof, you wouldn't have to charge the 4th highest tax rate in the state and I, along with the over 9,000 other people who's names you posted in the paper, wouldn't be behind in our taxes!
Folks, I wrote a letter to a junior councel member asking her to try to avoid raising taxes, and the response I got back was 'what services do you want to do without so we don't have to raise your taxes?'
Well, I could do without an $11.5 million dollar bus stop roof. I could do without my hard earned cash being given away to a company that's not even locating as much as a broom closet in our city. And I can do without the services of junior councel members who can't seem to figure out a way to provide the same services and do the same job as 96% of the rest of the state can. (Only three other counties out of 100 have rates equal to or slightly higher than our own. What are the other 96 counties doing right that we can't seem to do?)
Here's a thought: Raise more money by charging the city councel members to park their cars.
Check out my lens and get some Free Jigsaw Puzzles!
