Model green homes give taxpayers the blues Schenectady's energy-efficient houses start off affordable, but property tax bill a costly surprise By LAUREN STANFORTH Staff writer Published 12:01 a.m., Sunday, July 31, 2011
For three years, Schenectady has patted itself on the back for using federal money to build energy-efficient "green homes" for low- and moderate-income families.
The residents rave about their lower utility bills and the pride of owning an attractive and well-constructed new home. But their subsidized purchases have come with an expensive surprise -- a bigger-than-expected property tax bill........................>>>>.................>>>>.............Read more: http://www.timesunion.com/loca.....74.php#ixzz1Tg8QafWH
Fact is, if you fix up your home OR keep it in good shape, the City will go nuts and assess the heck out of it and your taxes double.
Conversely, if you keep your house in crappy condition, don't update it and live like a pig, your assessment and taxes won't change.
Therefore, the City isn't promoting neighborhood revitalization, rather it's punishing those people who take pride where they live. As EVERY City taxpayer knows, nothing will begin to heal the Schenectady neighborhoods until taxes are brought down to a reasonable level.
Thank you Lauren. It's refreshing that the TU actually still does reporting, not fluff.
Just remember WHO paid for these houses thanks to the "tax and spend" dems!!!!!!!! Sociliast housing.
And remember how so much goes back to Clinton's day when the dems wanted so desparately for an increase in homeonwership by the citizens, even to the point of raising the taxes on the middle class to give handouts to the lower income people to buy homes---people who never saved for a down payment, but were given taxpayer funded handouts to pay for the down payment, and then FHA mortgages which are given to people who didn't have the financial ability to buy a house the real way, so the middle class subdizied the mortgages of those who couldn't qualify for a house. Oh yeah, and then the current dems bailed them out when they couldn't pay their mortgages---green house or not
Optimists close their eyes and pretend problems are non existent. Better to have open eyes, see the truths, acknowledge the negatives, and speak up for the people rather than the politicos and their rich cronies.
I'm no longer sure that the real purpose behind what happened was to help lower income people buy homes. I think that was just a smokescreen to allow big corporations to make more bad loans. Most of the problem real estate areas after the meltdown were in places like southern california, nevada, south beach... not low income areas but "upscale" developments built for the sole purpose of speculation. There were also large numbers of defaults in places with large numbers of illegal aliens. Think about who was in charge of the whole fiasco.
I'm no longer sure that the real purpose behind what happened was to help lower income people buy homes. I think that was just a smokescreen to allow big corporations to make more bad loans. Most of the problem real estate areas after the meltdown were in places like southern california, nevada, south beach... not low income areas but "upscale" developments built for the sole purpose of speculation. There were also large numbers of defaults in places with large numbers of illegal aliens. Think about who was in charge of the whole fiasco.
It goes beyond this and gets even better. Just do some investigating and see how much it actually costs the taxpayers to re/build one of these green houses by Better Neighborhoods. And then see how much they are sold for. How much the interest is on the loans.......and if any default. Ya might wanna check to see how many were completed and ready for sale, when they get vandalized and they have to start all over again!! OUCH!
If this was such a great economic opportunity with a return/profit on their investment.....private developers would have swept up these homes, re/built them and then sold them.
It's just another failed taxpayer money pit!!
When the INSANE are running the ASYLUM In individuals, insanity is rare; but in groups, parties, nations and epochs, it is the rule. -- Friedrich Nietzsche
“How fortunate for those in power that people never think.” Adolph Hitler
It is also disheartening to see how our "leaders" still don't see the ridiculous taxes without services as the cause of Schenectady's problems.
In the immortal words of Brian Quail, the City DEMS "understand the importance of high taxes". Don't expect any changes with the current all DEM crew. For the first time in decades City residents have an opportunity to end the DEM death grip on City Hall. Throw the incumbents and Proctor's stooges out!
Logged
In the immortal words of Brian Quail, the City DEMS "understand the importance of high taxes". Don't expect any changes with the current all DEM crew. For the first time in decades City residents have an opportunity to end the DEM death grip on City Hall. Throw the incumbents and Proctor's stooges out!
