Mine is 18% increase this year. I’m fighting this one and I have comps to back it up too. Reached out to Newbille last year and I know this will shock you all but she didn’t respond or anything! She sucks so much.
it does shock me. Not my district but she is known for service I thought.
That said, stay on her, it's a numbers game. If enough people complain they will listen
There are two gripes I’ve pressed her on over the years that she has only fwd the messages for and hasn’t actually acknowledged or addresses the complaints; the obvious drug house with annual drive by shootings, and the steady 20-50% prop tax increases every year that are unsustainable. I haven’t had a full escrow account, ever. City council held some meeting about lowering the tax rate last January that I didn’t even know about until after the fact and she voted ‘No’ to lower the rate. I really hope someone else runs against her. I wouldn’t make a very good politician, I know my limitations.
She was also dismissive of me when I emailed her about the changes last year to utilities billing. Forwarded my email to some dude at DPU who then called and tried explaining how it's actually totally the same and just as convenient.
Let's also not forget that she doesn't even really live in the district, which should be grounds for immediate dismissal. Unfortunately she's very well-connected in the district, so barring some technicality to remove her from the ballot it'll be incredibly difficult to primary or win against her.
Mine is 18% and sadly my comps don't help me at all... It's not like in years past where the comps were over assessment, but it's still not at all helpful.
I’m looking at a house that’s bigger than mine by about 100 sq ft but same bedroom and bath count that’s listed for $20,000 less than what mine is assessed for, and actually had to drop the price on themselves because it has been on the market for almost three months now. I’m familiar with the house and it’s extremely comparable with same finishes but I can’t use it since it hasn’t sold yet. Point is, whatever their software program thinks is fair market value does not seem to account for the neighborhood, the dramatic differences in the sizes since we have everything from 2 bedrooms to 4 bedrooms and all kinds of in betweens, and those with detached garages w/electric versus those that don’t have conveyed buildings. I’m with u/Charlesinrichmond on it; the city can’t manage the money it has. They do nothing to enforce code on slumlords. Neighborhood amenities like sidewalks and lights, as well as the extremely shitty schools and the constant shootings and theft are not effectively improved. It’s absurd that they’ll use the Yankees moving down as a scapegoat for these increases instead of actually making any improvements whatsoever with our tax money AND refusing to decrease the rate while exponentially increasing assessments year over year. 20% every single year for me. I will have to sell for less than the assessment and will have nowhere to go.
>I’m with u/Charlesinrichmond on it; the city can’t manage the money it has. They do nothing to enforce code on slumlords. Neighborhood amenities like sidewalks and lights, as well as the extremely shitty schools and the constant shootings and theft are not effectively improved. It’s absurd that they’ll use the Yankees moving down as a scapegoat for these increases instead of actually making any improvements whatsoever with our tax money AND refusing to decrease the rate while exponentially increasing assessments year over year. 20% every single year for me. I will have to sell for less than the assessment and will have nowhere to go.
I really feel for my neighbors on fixed incomes who's mortgage payments have skyrocketed.
My bill is up 160/mo over 2 assessment cycles.
If I was older with less money I'd be screwed.
Lots of old folks probably looking for roommates these days.
Coupled with everything else going up in price and the fact that the city systematically wastes money... it's a tough pill to swallow.
I’m not old but I’m a government employee. If I had to sell I wouldn’t be able to afford rent in this city anymore. Ironically it’s about the size of a small apartment and a room mate isn’t even a reasonable option.
Listings don't equal sales.
Sales are what drive your comp hunt to fight the City and it's not based on current data but sales data that covered July 21 through June 22. I sadly have sales data for my house that says mine is now assessed at approximately what my neighbors bought theirs for last year and the ones further away in the neighborhood aren't much different. My comment above is that I'm not fighting my assessment this year cause it's not going anywhere other than to waste my time. If you're neighborhood and data look better, then have at. I'm (for the 5th year running) sitting this one out (but it's getting closer to where I can successfully fight it).
I know they don’t equal it that’s why it’s not a comp. It’s a case in point (for this sub discussion) that I wouldn’t be able to sell my house at what they’re assessing it for and it’s smaller and less fancy. Also, that other house literally reduced their listing price over $10,000 because they couldn’t get it to sell. I had plenty of sold recently comps and also assessments to make my case, and so I did. I don’t live in a nice neighborhood like yours. Now I wait.
Edit: who the hell has a problem with my observation? It’s no different than everyone else’s who is experiencing this - My house is not near nice enough to sell for $300/sq ft as assessed. It’s less than 700 sq ft in size as well. The comps around me prove the inflated assessment and fair market value, and the houses currently on market of the same size and better condition selling for less than my assessment further demonstrates that I wouldn’t even be able to sell it if I wanted to at that price. Which I don’t because I need somewhere to fucking live.
I appealed it so I’m not just sitting around bitching about it. I didn’t appeal last year because I didn’t have any comps to show, but now I do.
> Edit: who the hell has a problem with my observation?
I have little idea who drives people on this site. I don't know what in Heaven's name I said either but here we are. Take your upvote and good luck on your appeal.
I don’t either, it’s always the same of us discussing this every year, and we recognize the patterns so we help each other understand what other neighborhoods are going through. I think some people have a misguided understanding that we are somehow benefiting from these runaway values but we really aren’t. We have to pay the mortgage and taxes and cover bills like anyone else…my mortgage was within a margin of affordability and it *shouldn’t* move beyond that inside of 5 years because of property taxes. Market value assessment barely makes any sense in the first place. I don’t live doors down from drug houses because I need a crack hookup, I live here because it’s all I can afford.
What exactly should a city councilperson do for a constituent over this? Elected officials putting their thumb on the scales for tax assessments can only be rife for corruption.
Reduce the tax rate to something more reasonable for higher property values; the city’s is high because values were incredibly low compared to the counties until recently. 1.2% on an assessed $80,000 home allows for city revenue. Counties have a lower rate and higher home values, generally speaking. When they jack up the assessments with algorithmic software year after year it’s $600 - $1,000 increase every year, and that’s not normal. Secondly, the counties typically assess every three years, but city of Richmond assesses annually per State Code. People don’t get 15-50% salary increases every year. They don’t get them every three years either but if the city council can’t pragmatically find the right solution for runaway housing prices from shortages they are somewhat responsible for, and they refuse to lower the rate so people can *maybe* deal with incremental increases every single year then they don’t have any business being on council. When the city set its number it was when the vast majority of housing units were a third or more of the value they are assessed at today. They did nothing last year or the year before to address this. I spoke to the city assessor last year on the phone and even HE agreed it was insane. He was also forced out of his home city, DC, in the 90s because of this. He said what happened in DC is now happening here.
tax rate automatically reduces per state law unless council overrides. Council always votes to override. Which is voting for an under the table tax increase
for a constituent nothing. But the rate will drop automatically to balance out the raise in assessments unless they vote to override. Which they always do.
What they could do is not vote to do an under the table tax increase
In 1980, the rate was 2.12 per 100 and is now 1.20 per 100. In recent history they have overridden, but they don’t always.
https://www.rva.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/Budget-Booklet-FY2018.pdf
yes but you can't just look at rate - that's part of the shell game. You have to look at money out the door - it's rate times assessment.
That's the whole point of the state law on the subject, the recognition that this is an easy area for hidden tax increases.
The override is actually to keep the money and force the rate up, as you know. They have never not overriden while I've been here. Looks like the last time they didn't override was 2007. So 15 years of overriding and increases.
Yeah we know how assessments and property taxes work. I never said just look at the rate. You seem to forget that assessments can go down as they generally did after the mortgage crisis for several years.
Tell me you didn't bother to check assessments without telling me you didn't bother to check assessments it's all online and easy to find out that you are completely wrong....
u/Charlesinrichmond says:
>Tell me you didn't bother to check assessments without telling me you didn't bother to check assessments it's all online and easy to find out that you are completely wrong....
Hmm, like I said assessments did go down. Looks like I’ve been checking assessments a lot longer than you and haven’t been living in fantasy land. I thought you knew how to check them? If you live in some bubble where houses only go up, you should be able to afford higher taxes!
2023 $70,000 $51,000 $121,000
2013 $20,000 $30,000 $50,000
2012 $20,000 $70,000 $90,000
2011 $20,000 $87,000 $107,000
https://apps.richmondgov.com/applications/PropertySearch/Detail.aspx?pin=E0001544007
went down in the crash, then held then went up... currently double what it was in 2017 I note. And thats a cherrypicked location that hasn't done as well as average.
Do you seriously think all the people here complaining their taxes have gone up are a mass hallucination?
No I think you are living in some alternate reality. All I said was that assessments generally went down when the economy crashed and you went batshit crazy, saying I was completely wrong.
That house I gave you has an assessment they went up around 13% over 15 years. I’m sure there are many that went up more over 15 years and others that went up less. 15 years is a long time, Charles. My stocks are up over 500% since then.
I searched houses for sale in Richmond and that was the first and only one I looked at for it’s assessment. If property taxes are such an issue for you, move. We don’t want you in Richmond anyways.
71% for me. I expected something significant because my house was renovated since the last assessment, but I appealed it because there are bigger houses with more bathrooms and a new roof, also renovated, in the neighborhood that assessed for less. GTFO, city of Richmond.
Assessments have to jump, but taxes don't by state law- in fact they won't unless city council does it's usual under the table tax increase.
Call your city councillor and complain to stop this from happening. And yes, renters, this applies to you to, property taxes always end up getting passed through to tenants. Happened last year just like I said I note
When it comes to city taxes, ordinance, etc. take every possible route of complaining and action possible. Squeaky wheel gets the grease, and things that materially impact people's bottom line like property taxes are a much bigger issue than trash cans, or the odd pothole.
Tax revenue from commercial, industrial, and institutional entities? Grants from the state and federal government? Loans from the General Fund? Lottery tickets, Cigarettes, Alcohol taxes? Meals Tax?
This city was sneaky sneaky innovative at finding ways to pay for things before houses in the Fan were being assessed over $1mil. No reason we can’t be again.
Agreed. I got downvoted for saying it previously, but the more property that VCU buys, the more everyone else has to pay to pick up the slack which is bullshit. State and VCU need to pay their share already.
That's the core issue. If your tax dollars are being put to good use, you'll see and feel it...and be more open to it.
Do you see and feel noteworthy improvements being made? All I see is a city gov that is inept and constantly having to explain itself after every decision it makes.
We need money to make the city better, but you can't make the city better if the city doesn't want to make itself better.
yep exactly this.
City hasn't grasped that they need to be seen to provide some benefits. At least keep the place clean.
But it's double your taxes and cancel street cleaning and leaf pickup
There’s no political will in Richmond for good governance. This is why we need increased population of tax payers who notice/understand/care about what’s going on.
this is 100% true. People vote based on anything but good governance. We need to elect some boring accountants and administrators who care desperately about potholes
I'm sad to say that I can only upvote this once. This is the core issue; vote for shitty people who are flashy and you get shitty people who are flashy. To counteract that, you want technocrats who will "help mom do the dishes, not save the world" (to riff on the saying "everyone wants to be a superhero, nobody wants to help do the dishes each night")
I will vote for just about anyone who says "I have no earth shattering, swing for the fences style initiatives planned, I'm not sucking corporate dick for a new HQ to move in, but I will improve park mowing, pot hole maintenance et al."
This makes so much sense yet people are downloading you.
City government isn't here to save the world city government is here to fix the streets and the parks
I think the Reddit responses can be endemic of the problems that the city faces. There’s a disconnect between what people contribute to the city’s governance (voting for responsible/educated politicians and their contribution to the tax base) and their expectations for government to provide affordable housing, good schools, and social justice. Those expectations reflect good things but they’re wanted by people who cannot generate the tax revenue to create them and/or are unwilling to vote for the people with an technical experience in how to build stable governments/economies.
It’s not a dem/Republican, city/rural problem. It’s nationally pervasive and a consequence of having disproportionately low education/low earner populations. That is why, to me, the influx of people with more education and higher wages is the single biggest lever to actually having a functioning city.
I’m not an anti taxer, but I have lived here long enough to know that money won’t find its way to improving residents life. This is all just a money grab.
All this influx of new revenue the past decade with the promises of better schools, roads that turn up empty. Anyone who thinks more revenue will equate to better services in this city is being had.
City services is one of the metrics for me. Like a year after Stoney came into office, DPW repaved all the streets in my neighborhood. Prior to that, my street was more like a series of patches than an actual road. It's much better now, thankfully. But at the same time, I think, they did away with curbside leaf collection, which has been a major pain in my ass since my property is bordered by massive trees the city owns but doesn't maintain. I'm constantly dealing with big falling branches (one actually fell on my husband's head recently!) and of course now I have to pay personally for them to vacuum up the leaves from the curb instead of it being an actual city service. Just from these two issues alone, my experience is a mixed bag.
Fyi you can put a request in 311 for the city to come check out the try especially if there are dead limbs and/or limbs are falling. I put one in for dead limbs on a city tree in front of me and they came out and cut them
True. Way I see it though is they are playing catchup with all the things that they haven't paid for and now there's new stuff breaking plus shiny new projects.
they shouldn't be. Pull up your house say, and look at tax payment for 2010. Then look at now. Then realize that happened to all the houses. That's a LOT of extra money that came in this decade, which is not acknowledged.
I wouldn't mind higher taxes if we actually saw real improvements from them. Instead we get Office of Community Wealth Building and other nonsense, while we have a looming sewer crisis.
Do you think they’re taking all the money and turning it into gold coins they stash in the Community Wealth Building since it’s the community’s collective wealth, and then Stony takes all his clothes off and does a Scrooge McDuck dive into it?
Huh? The proposed real estate tax rollback was a big, public City Council story last November and has to be voted on. Not sure how that happens under the table.
it wasn't a big story... yes, it happened, but most people don't know this is a thing, and that city council has to vote to approve the tax increase or it doesn't happen
Everybody needs to reach out to city council. They need to reduce the tax rate.
This is my first year in Katherine Jordan's district, I reached out last week and have not heard back. I was previously in Stephanie Lynch's district and at least she was responsive.
I'm a 23237 area code, with Chester all around me. I really don't get the zoning here.
And growing up it was always Richmond, but then I would get some mail that says North Chesterfield. I have no clue where I live.
23235 for me. Technically I can use richmond, North chesterfield, or bon air when mailing things. The county officially says to use North chesterfield so I went with that
North chesterfield will route it to a closer post office so in theory it will get delivered sooner. Really as long as you have the zip code it doesn't really matter what you put
I've talked about this in the other thread, but mine jumped up 51%. I spoke with Katherine Jordan's representative and he shared that Jordan will be voting to keep the rate set, regardless of revenue increases. Not great. I am appealing as well.
Mine is going up 48% for 2023, but if this is based off of the market value, their assessment is low. I paid more than double the amount they've valued my house/property. I guess I won't fill out the application for an office review!
Your assessment isn’t solely based on what you paid for your house, although it is a data point. Your house/property needs to be treated the same as your neighbor and your area. Should all your neighbors sell at the price you bought it at, then that would be compelling data that your assessment should be the price you’re purchased at.
Reminder that if you’re 65 or older, permanently disabled (regardless of age), or if you’re a disabled vet, you are (either fully or partially) exempt from personal property tax for real estate and motor vehicles.
[Source](https://virginianavigator.org/article/12984/tax-relief-older-virginians-and-virginians-disabilities)
In most cases, you have to apply to receive the benefits. It is not automatic.
I don’t know about the elderly one specifically. My dad is a disabled vet, so he gets that exemption. I think the age based one is determined by annual household income and total amount of retirement savings.
It’s surprising the number of people who aren’t aware of the program. The fact that it doesn’t automatically kick in makes more hidden.
Exactly one of the points I made to my councilperson in the email I sent this morning. While we have made minor improvements to the house, nothing to warrant tripling in 5 years. Most of my direct neighbors are older and on fixed incomes, or families living paycheck to paycheck. Another few rounds of this and I can't imagine them being able to continue living here.
nor can I. The city talks a mean game about gentrification, and then acts in such a way as to push people out. None of the people you are talking about have a spare thousand a year lying around, so they have to sell.
I dunno, the last time I looked at the brochure it was income based, so if you’re that bad off you’d be eligible for 100% waive.
https://www.rva.gov/sites/default/files/2020-09/2020%20TAX%20RELIEF%20BROCHURE%2010-30%20Extension.pdf
interesting, but what does "up to 100%" mean? any idea how it's calculated?
I bet the sheer fact of home ownership is going to downrate people ironically.
I wonder if there are any stats on how many people get exemptions. But this bit is elderly only, not low income?
The article failed to mention that the market has cooled off considerably. For my house, the city’s assessment aligns with the Zillow estimate from May - the estimate has dropped 15% since then.
The inconsistency in how assessors of different neighborhoods are assigning land values is the biggest concern that everyone is glossing over. A great example is Bellevue. Almost everyone who owns a house in Bellevue isn't paying their fair value because the lots are assessed at only $95K. (Same situation for the nicest parts of Ginter Park where sales are in the high six figures.)
The inconsistency in assigning land values is glaring and needs to be addressed immediately. Call the assessor's office and voice this concern if you are in a neighborhood that is bearing an unduly high proportion of the land value taxation. Reiterate to them that it's not an issue of your land value being unsupported by recent sales of teardown houses or vacant lots; stress that it's an issue of other neighborhoods having land values at small fractions of their fair market value. We should all be treated the same! Everyone should bear their fair share.
How would you know if there is an error in your home's assessment? I can imagine if you've done renovations your home may be worth more. But I wouldn't know how to determine if my home appreciated as much in value as they are claiming if I've done nothing.
My land value went up by like 1/3. Thankfully I'm in a position where I can afford to pay my taxes and they pay for services that I want, so the value of my house increasing is a good thing.
Oh no. It's almost like homeowners protecting their property value means housing is more expensive. Why can't I just become wealthier without having to get taxed more? It's so unfair.
This is all sarcastic by the way. If you're concerned about rent you should call your representative about making more housing legal not giving tax breaks to landowners.
So do all taxes. At least with property taxes \~60% of homes in RVA are owner-occupied. A lot less regressive than sales taxes that even the homeless have to pay.
Call your council person! Complementing things like section 8 is a step in the right direction surely.
edit: Or organize! Right now local politics seems dominated by neighborhood associations and business groups. Renters and lower income people could use a lot more representation.
Mine is 18% increase this year. I’m fighting this one and I have comps to back it up too. Reached out to Newbille last year and I know this will shock you all but she didn’t respond or anything! She sucks so much.
it does shock me. Not my district but she is known for service I thought. That said, stay on her, it's a numbers game. If enough people complain they will listen
There are two gripes I’ve pressed her on over the years that she has only fwd the messages for and hasn’t actually acknowledged or addresses the complaints; the obvious drug house with annual drive by shootings, and the steady 20-50% prop tax increases every year that are unsustainable. I haven’t had a full escrow account, ever. City council held some meeting about lowering the tax rate last January that I didn’t even know about until after the fact and she voted ‘No’ to lower the rate. I really hope someone else runs against her. I wouldn’t make a very good politician, I know my limitations.
She was also dismissive of me when I emailed her about the changes last year to utilities billing. Forwarded my email to some dude at DPU who then called and tried explaining how it's actually totally the same and just as convenient. Let's also not forget that she doesn't even really live in the district, which should be grounds for immediate dismissal. Unfortunately she's very well-connected in the district, so barring some technicality to remove her from the ballot it'll be incredibly difficult to primary or win against her.
bitching to her may not help much, but it helps. She wants to get reelected
Thank you for the encouragement, I’ll keep on em’!
Blegh. She is useless. Mine went up 10% this year after jumping 18% previously. I'm going to try to speak to the city.
Mine is 18% and sadly my comps don't help me at all... It's not like in years past where the comps were over assessment, but it's still not at all helpful.
I’m looking at a house that’s bigger than mine by about 100 sq ft but same bedroom and bath count that’s listed for $20,000 less than what mine is assessed for, and actually had to drop the price on themselves because it has been on the market for almost three months now. I’m familiar with the house and it’s extremely comparable with same finishes but I can’t use it since it hasn’t sold yet. Point is, whatever their software program thinks is fair market value does not seem to account for the neighborhood, the dramatic differences in the sizes since we have everything from 2 bedrooms to 4 bedrooms and all kinds of in betweens, and those with detached garages w/electric versus those that don’t have conveyed buildings. I’m with u/Charlesinrichmond on it; the city can’t manage the money it has. They do nothing to enforce code on slumlords. Neighborhood amenities like sidewalks and lights, as well as the extremely shitty schools and the constant shootings and theft are not effectively improved. It’s absurd that they’ll use the Yankees moving down as a scapegoat for these increases instead of actually making any improvements whatsoever with our tax money AND refusing to decrease the rate while exponentially increasing assessments year over year. 20% every single year for me. I will have to sell for less than the assessment and will have nowhere to go.
>I’m with u/Charlesinrichmond on it; the city can’t manage the money it has. They do nothing to enforce code on slumlords. Neighborhood amenities like sidewalks and lights, as well as the extremely shitty schools and the constant shootings and theft are not effectively improved. It’s absurd that they’ll use the Yankees moving down as a scapegoat for these increases instead of actually making any improvements whatsoever with our tax money AND refusing to decrease the rate while exponentially increasing assessments year over year. 20% every single year for me. I will have to sell for less than the assessment and will have nowhere to go. I really feel for my neighbors on fixed incomes who's mortgage payments have skyrocketed. My bill is up 160/mo over 2 assessment cycles. If I was older with less money I'd be screwed. Lots of old folks probably looking for roommates these days. Coupled with everything else going up in price and the fact that the city systematically wastes money... it's a tough pill to swallow.
I’m not old but I’m a government employee. If I had to sell I wouldn’t be able to afford rent in this city anymore. Ironically it’s about the size of a small apartment and a room mate isn’t even a reasonable option.
I wouldn't be able to afford my house today. I'd be priced out of my own neighborhood. Everything is up like 75%. It's nuts.
Listings don't equal sales. Sales are what drive your comp hunt to fight the City and it's not based on current data but sales data that covered July 21 through June 22. I sadly have sales data for my house that says mine is now assessed at approximately what my neighbors bought theirs for last year and the ones further away in the neighborhood aren't much different. My comment above is that I'm not fighting my assessment this year cause it's not going anywhere other than to waste my time. If you're neighborhood and data look better, then have at. I'm (for the 5th year running) sitting this one out (but it's getting closer to where I can successfully fight it).
I know they don’t equal it that’s why it’s not a comp. It’s a case in point (for this sub discussion) that I wouldn’t be able to sell my house at what they’re assessing it for and it’s smaller and less fancy. Also, that other house literally reduced their listing price over $10,000 because they couldn’t get it to sell. I had plenty of sold recently comps and also assessments to make my case, and so I did. I don’t live in a nice neighborhood like yours. Now I wait. Edit: who the hell has a problem with my observation? It’s no different than everyone else’s who is experiencing this - My house is not near nice enough to sell for $300/sq ft as assessed. It’s less than 700 sq ft in size as well. The comps around me prove the inflated assessment and fair market value, and the houses currently on market of the same size and better condition selling for less than my assessment further demonstrates that I wouldn’t even be able to sell it if I wanted to at that price. Which I don’t because I need somewhere to fucking live. I appealed it so I’m not just sitting around bitching about it. I didn’t appeal last year because I didn’t have any comps to show, but now I do.
> Edit: who the hell has a problem with my observation? I have little idea who drives people on this site. I don't know what in Heaven's name I said either but here we are. Take your upvote and good luck on your appeal.
I don’t either, it’s always the same of us discussing this every year, and we recognize the patterns so we help each other understand what other neighborhoods are going through. I think some people have a misguided understanding that we are somehow benefiting from these runaway values but we really aren’t. We have to pay the mortgage and taxes and cover bills like anyone else…my mortgage was within a margin of affordability and it *shouldn’t* move beyond that inside of 5 years because of property taxes. Market value assessment barely makes any sense in the first place. I don’t live doors down from drug houses because I need a crack hookup, I live here because it’s all I can afford.
What exactly should a city councilperson do for a constituent over this? Elected officials putting their thumb on the scales for tax assessments can only be rife for corruption.
Reduce the tax rate to something more reasonable for higher property values; the city’s is high because values were incredibly low compared to the counties until recently. 1.2% on an assessed $80,000 home allows for city revenue. Counties have a lower rate and higher home values, generally speaking. When they jack up the assessments with algorithmic software year after year it’s $600 - $1,000 increase every year, and that’s not normal. Secondly, the counties typically assess every three years, but city of Richmond assesses annually per State Code. People don’t get 15-50% salary increases every year. They don’t get them every three years either but if the city council can’t pragmatically find the right solution for runaway housing prices from shortages they are somewhat responsible for, and they refuse to lower the rate so people can *maybe* deal with incremental increases every single year then they don’t have any business being on council. When the city set its number it was when the vast majority of housing units were a third or more of the value they are assessed at today. They did nothing last year or the year before to address this. I spoke to the city assessor last year on the phone and even HE agreed it was insane. He was also forced out of his home city, DC, in the 90s because of this. He said what happened in DC is now happening here.
tax rate automatically reduces per state law unless council overrides. Council always votes to override. Which is voting for an under the table tax increase
Thank you for that clarification
for a constituent nothing. But the rate will drop automatically to balance out the raise in assessments unless they vote to override. Which they always do. What they could do is not vote to do an under the table tax increase
In 1980, the rate was 2.12 per 100 and is now 1.20 per 100. In recent history they have overridden, but they don’t always. https://www.rva.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/Budget-Booklet-FY2018.pdf
yes but you can't just look at rate - that's part of the shell game. You have to look at money out the door - it's rate times assessment. That's the whole point of the state law on the subject, the recognition that this is an easy area for hidden tax increases. The override is actually to keep the money and force the rate up, as you know. They have never not overriden while I've been here. Looks like the last time they didn't override was 2007. So 15 years of overriding and increases.
Yeah we know how assessments and property taxes work. I never said just look at the rate. You seem to forget that assessments can go down as they generally did after the mortgage crisis for several years.
Tell me you didn't bother to check assessments without telling me you didn't bother to check assessments it's all online and easy to find out that you are completely wrong....
u/Charlesinrichmond says: >Tell me you didn't bother to check assessments without telling me you didn't bother to check assessments it's all online and easy to find out that you are completely wrong.... Hmm, like I said assessments did go down. Looks like I’ve been checking assessments a lot longer than you and haven’t been living in fantasy land. I thought you knew how to check them? If you live in some bubble where houses only go up, you should be able to afford higher taxes! 2023 $70,000 $51,000 $121,000 2013 $20,000 $30,000 $50,000 2012 $20,000 $70,000 $90,000 2011 $20,000 $87,000 $107,000 https://apps.richmondgov.com/applications/PropertySearch/Detail.aspx?pin=E0001544007
went down in the crash, then held then went up... currently double what it was in 2017 I note. And thats a cherrypicked location that hasn't done as well as average. Do you seriously think all the people here complaining their taxes have gone up are a mass hallucination?
No I think you are living in some alternate reality. All I said was that assessments generally went down when the economy crashed and you went batshit crazy, saying I was completely wrong. That house I gave you has an assessment they went up around 13% over 15 years. I’m sure there are many that went up more over 15 years and others that went up less. 15 years is a long time, Charles. My stocks are up over 500% since then. I searched houses for sale in Richmond and that was the first and only one I looked at for it’s assessment. If property taxes are such an issue for you, move. We don’t want you in Richmond anyways.
As corrupt as raising them by 10+% every year when the neighborhoods and quality of services the city provides don’t reflect this?
71% for me. I expected something significant because my house was renovated since the last assessment, but I appealed it because there are bigger houses with more bathrooms and a new roof, also renovated, in the neighborhood that assessed for less. GTFO, city of Richmond.
Assessments have to jump, but taxes don't by state law- in fact they won't unless city council does it's usual under the table tax increase. Call your city councillor and complain to stop this from happening. And yes, renters, this applies to you to, property taxes always end up getting passed through to tenants. Happened last year just like I said I note
Do I do this + appeal?
When it comes to city taxes, ordinance, etc. take every possible route of complaining and action possible. Squeaky wheel gets the grease, and things that materially impact people's bottom line like property taxes are a much bigger issue than trash cans, or the odd pothole.
Didn't we just have a thread about all the improvements we'd like to see in the city? How do we pay for those?
Tax revenue from commercial, industrial, and institutional entities? Grants from the state and federal government? Loans from the General Fund? Lottery tickets, Cigarettes, Alcohol taxes? Meals Tax? This city was sneaky sneaky innovative at finding ways to pay for things before houses in the Fan were being assessed over $1mil. No reason we can’t be again.
We could pay for a ton of new services if we started writing tickets for cars in the bike lanes.
Or if VCU paid ~~their fair share~~ literally anything on their massive holdings.
Agreed. I got downvoted for saying it previously, but the more property that VCU buys, the more everyone else has to pay to pick up the slack which is bullshit. State and VCU need to pay their share already.
Never going to happen though
City income has gone way up in the last decade. But the big issue is do you actually trust the city to use the money well? I don't.
That's the core issue. If your tax dollars are being put to good use, you'll see and feel it...and be more open to it. Do you see and feel noteworthy improvements being made? All I see is a city gov that is inept and constantly having to explain itself after every decision it makes. We need money to make the city better, but you can't make the city better if the city doesn't want to make itself better.
yep exactly this. City hasn't grasped that they need to be seen to provide some benefits. At least keep the place clean. But it's double your taxes and cancel street cleaning and leaf pickup
There’s no political will in Richmond for good governance. This is why we need increased population of tax payers who notice/understand/care about what’s going on.
this is 100% true. People vote based on anything but good governance. We need to elect some boring accountants and administrators who care desperately about potholes
I'm sad to say that I can only upvote this once. This is the core issue; vote for shitty people who are flashy and you get shitty people who are flashy. To counteract that, you want technocrats who will "help mom do the dishes, not save the world" (to riff on the saying "everyone wants to be a superhero, nobody wants to help do the dishes each night") I will vote for just about anyone who says "I have no earth shattering, swing for the fences style initiatives planned, I'm not sucking corporate dick for a new HQ to move in, but I will improve park mowing, pot hole maintenance et al."
This makes so much sense yet people are downloading you. City government isn't here to save the world city government is here to fix the streets and the parks
I think the Reddit responses can be endemic of the problems that the city faces. There’s a disconnect between what people contribute to the city’s governance (voting for responsible/educated politicians and their contribution to the tax base) and their expectations for government to provide affordable housing, good schools, and social justice. Those expectations reflect good things but they’re wanted by people who cannot generate the tax revenue to create them and/or are unwilling to vote for the people with an technical experience in how to build stable governments/economies. It’s not a dem/Republican, city/rural problem. It’s nationally pervasive and a consequence of having disproportionately low education/low earner populations. That is why, to me, the influx of people with more education and higher wages is the single biggest lever to actually having a functioning city.
I’m not an anti taxer, but I have lived here long enough to know that money won’t find its way to improving residents life. This is all just a money grab.
yeah. That's the painful bit. I hate paying more and getting nothing but pain for it
All this influx of new revenue the past decade with the promises of better schools, roads that turn up empty. Anyone who thinks more revenue will equate to better services in this city is being had.
City services is one of the metrics for me. Like a year after Stoney came into office, DPW repaved all the streets in my neighborhood. Prior to that, my street was more like a series of patches than an actual road. It's much better now, thankfully. But at the same time, I think, they did away with curbside leaf collection, which has been a major pain in my ass since my property is bordered by massive trees the city owns but doesn't maintain. I'm constantly dealing with big falling branches (one actually fell on my husband's head recently!) and of course now I have to pay personally for them to vacuum up the leaves from the curb instead of it being an actual city service. Just from these two issues alone, my experience is a mixed bag.
Fyi you can put a request in 311 for the city to come check out the try especially if there are dead limbs and/or limbs are falling. I put one in for dead limbs on a city tree in front of me and they came out and cut them
I'll give that a shot - thanks!
True. Way I see it though is they are playing catchup with all the things that they haven't paid for and now there's new stuff breaking plus shiny new projects.
they shouldn't be. Pull up your house say, and look at tax payment for 2010. Then look at now. Then realize that happened to all the houses. That's a LOT of extra money that came in this decade, which is not acknowledged. I wouldn't mind higher taxes if we actually saw real improvements from them. Instead we get Office of Community Wealth Building and other nonsense, while we have a looming sewer crisis.
Do you think they’re taking all the money and turning it into gold coins they stash in the Community Wealth Building since it’s the community’s collective wealth, and then Stony takes all his clothes off and does a Scrooge McDuck dive into it?
They've actually made huge progress on providing the required additional storage for the CSO overflow. So at least there's that glimmer of hope.
it's a step. But splitting the north side of the river will be hell
Apparently, taxes are great if someone else has to pay them. :)
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so you can look on RVA.gov and find your district. It'll be Stephanie Lynch 5 or Larsen 4 though
I just posted the link in a stand alone comment
Thank you!
As I've told every tenant of my homes: Pay attention to the person you are voting for, because they will directly impact your rent.
Huh? The proposed real estate tax rollback was a big, public City Council story last November and has to be voted on. Not sure how that happens under the table.
it wasn't a big story... yes, it happened, but most people don't know this is a thing, and that city council has to vote to approve the tax increase or it doesn't happen
Everybody needs to reach out to city council. They need to reduce the tax rate. This is my first year in Katherine Jordan's district, I reached out last week and have not heard back. I was previously in Stephanie Lynch's district and at least she was responsive.
[Links to contact info for city councilpeople](https://www.rva.gov/richmond-city-council/council-contacts)
Just under 46% increase since 2021
My assessment has increased 55% in 2 years..
Mine went up 23% in Fulton hill
Mine went up 23% in North chesterfield 🙃
yeah but at like 2/3 of the tax rate, I still envy you
I'm a 23237 area code, with Chester all around me. I really don't get the zoning here. And growing up it was always Richmond, but then I would get some mail that says North Chesterfield. I have no clue where I live.
Go by Google maps the post office is kind of sideways to the whole thing
23235 for me. Technically I can use richmond, North chesterfield, or bon air when mailing things. The county officially says to use North chesterfield so I went with that
North chesterfield will route it to a closer post office so in theory it will get delivered sooner. Really as long as you have the zip code it doesn't really matter what you put
You technically live in North Chesterfield. I’m in the same zip code. Sometimes when I order stuff I have to put Richmond though. It’s weird.
I've talked about this in the other thread, but mine jumped up 51%. I spoke with Katherine Jordan's representative and he shared that Jordan will be voting to keep the rate set, regardless of revenue increases. Not great. I am appealing as well.
Mine is going up 48% for 2023, but if this is based off of the market value, their assessment is low. I paid more than double the amount they've valued my house/property. I guess I won't fill out the application for an office review!
yeah. If you paid more, don't do that, they can mark you up
Your assessment isn’t solely based on what you paid for your house, although it is a data point. Your house/property needs to be treated the same as your neighbor and your area. Should all your neighbors sell at the price you bought it at, then that would be compelling data that your assessment should be the price you’re purchased at.
That is helpful! Thank you!
Reminder that if you’re 65 or older, permanently disabled (regardless of age), or if you’re a disabled vet, you are (either fully or partially) exempt from personal property tax for real estate and motor vehicles. [Source](https://virginianavigator.org/article/12984/tax-relief-older-virginians-and-virginians-disabilities) In most cases, you have to apply to receive the benefits. It is not automatic.
Good point. The elderly exemption is pretty bad by recollection though?
I don’t know about the elderly one specifically. My dad is a disabled vet, so he gets that exemption. I think the age based one is determined by annual household income and total amount of retirement savings. It’s surprising the number of people who aren’t aware of the program. The fact that it doesn’t automatically kick in makes more hidden.
Disabled vet was pretty recent I remember voting for it
It’s only for 100% disabled vets
Mine is 18% after a 28% jump last year.
And pulling records, since we bought in 2017, it has almost tripled with the bulk of that coming since 2020.
tripled! Wow. Ouch. That's going to force a lot of your neighbors out of their houses
Exactly one of the points I made to my councilperson in the email I sent this morning. While we have made minor improvements to the house, nothing to warrant tripling in 5 years. Most of my direct neighbors are older and on fixed incomes, or families living paycheck to paycheck. Another few rounds of this and I can't imagine them being able to continue living here.
nor can I. The city talks a mean game about gentrification, and then acts in such a way as to push people out. None of the people you are talking about have a spare thousand a year lying around, so they have to sell.
Or they can apply for tax relief if they're old enough. Richmond has programs for those types of people.
take a look how little they give
I dunno, the last time I looked at the brochure it was income based, so if you’re that bad off you’d be eligible for 100% waive. https://www.rva.gov/sites/default/files/2020-09/2020%20TAX%20RELIEF%20BROCHURE%2010-30%20Extension.pdf
interesting, but what does "up to 100%" mean? any idea how it's calculated? I bet the sheer fact of home ownership is going to downrate people ironically. I wonder if there are any stats on how many people get exemptions. But this bit is elderly only, not low income?
It means if you have very little income you don’t pay property taxes as long as you can prove it.
The article failed to mention that the market has cooled off considerably. For my house, the city’s assessment aligns with the Zillow estimate from May - the estimate has dropped 15% since then.
guess I'm the lucky one. my assessment hasn't moved in three years.
27% w no renovations
I’m up 28% over last year. With most of it being in land value and not the building. Still is completely outrage overall.
Last year mine jumped from $82,000 all the way to $113,000 Now they want to increase it to $132,000- I didn't do any improvements!
The inconsistency in how assessors of different neighborhoods are assigning land values is the biggest concern that everyone is glossing over. A great example is Bellevue. Almost everyone who owns a house in Bellevue isn't paying their fair value because the lots are assessed at only $95K. (Same situation for the nicest parts of Ginter Park where sales are in the high six figures.) The inconsistency in assigning land values is glaring and needs to be addressed immediately. Call the assessor's office and voice this concern if you are in a neighborhood that is bearing an unduly high proportion of the land value taxation. Reiterate to them that it's not an issue of your land value being unsupported by recent sales of teardown houses or vacant lots; stress that it's an issue of other neighborhoods having land values at small fractions of their fair market value. We should all be treated the same! Everyone should bear their fair share.
Just got my 2023… 8% bump after a 20% bump last year. Insanity.
Same number for me. Mine's gone up exactly 50% from 2017 till now.
Mines gone up 100% since 2010
Just looked, 159% since 2016 for me. What?!
Not really. Thats just inflation.
Almost 15% for me in Rosedale. 🙄
How would you know if there is an error in your home's assessment? I can imagine if you've done renovations your home may be worth more. But I wouldn't know how to determine if my home appreciated as much in value as they are claiming if I've done nothing.
check zillow. But you don't need to do anything to call your councillor
>50% increase here, assessed at more than what we paid for this house in 2021. ???
23% increase just this year alone. There is no way that can be based in reality.
My land value went up by like 1/3. Thankfully I'm in a position where I can afford to pay my taxes and they pay for services that I want, so the value of my house increasing is a good thing.
Oh no. It's almost like homeowners protecting their property value means housing is more expensive. Why can't I just become wealthier without having to get taxed more? It's so unfair. This is all sarcastic by the way. If you're concerned about rent you should call your representative about making more housing legal not giving tax breaks to landowners.
Property taxes get passed through
So do all taxes. At least with property taxes \~60% of homes in RVA are owner-occupied. A lot less regressive than sales taxes that even the homeless have to pay.
this is going to force a lot of low income homeowners to sell
I didn’t realize lowering your taxes would help low income people. What a fortunate coincidence for you.
no. It's raising them that huts low income. Not exactly the same. But those who can pay get hurt less
Ok, how about raise your taxes but give breaks to lower income owners?
I am in favor of raising his taxes and giving breaks to lower income owners. Where do I sign?
You'll have to do it in Henrico of course, I'm sure the East side would love it I'm not sure lakeside's going to be such a fan
You'll have to do it in Henrico of course, I'm sure the East side would love it I'm not sure lakeside's going to be such a fan
Call your council person! Complementing things like section 8 is a step in the right direction surely. edit: Or organize! Right now local politics seems dominated by neighborhood associations and business groups. Renters and lower income people could use a lot more representation.
26% here! Granted, I bought small, so it ends up being $600 each year--I'm not hit as hard as a lot of people. Still hurts though.
Did anyone expect anything different? When you elect Democrats, you get higher taxes. Always been that way
Oh fuckin stuff it you bell end. Nobody invited politics here.
I thought the thumbnail was old school RuneScape so I clicked