> It's the sad truth about land-- if someone is using it inefficiently (which is the case with the single-family households having trouble with property taxes),

> It's the sad truth about land-- if someone is using it inefficiently (which is the case with the single-family households having trouble with property taxes), it's a market signal that the land should be developed more densely... If the purpose of property taxes is to encourage or force efficient land use, what happens to local zoning laws? The taxes go up and the homeowner responds by trying to build, say, a 4 unit apartment where their single family dwelling was - but the city zoning does not allow it. Now what? Where's the increased efficiency of land use?