5 ms·

That is a weird way to tax property. I still don't understand why you needed this autograph pencil?

aarondf 5y ago
It is, I agree. We used them to write the addresses on the envelopes.
michaelt 5y ago
> I still don't understand why you needed this autograph pencil? To trick people into opening their junk mail, because they think it's a letter from a human.
- hellbannedguy 5y ago
  Ah yes. I have gotten these before, but not produced this way. The ones I got looked like they were written by an underpaid employee. They have had signature machines for years though. The Kennedy's used them a lot. The only thing I would experiment with this project is adding significant error, and randomness to the writing. It would look more realistic? On a personal note, when I get these (Anderson Painting likes this approach.); I throw away the ad away immediately, or if printed on good stock paper--I save to pick up dust.
  - mbiondi 5y ago
    Pick up dust, that's an interesting comment. How does stock paper help with that?
    - Kliment 5y ago
      Not sure if it's the same thing, but heavy cardstock is great at collecting dust off a flat surface - for some reason it sticks to the edge.
tinco 5y ago
Is it? How do other states do it? Here in the Netherlands it's the same, roughly judged based off average values in the neighborhood.
- hamaluik 5y ago
  Same in Canada.. always seemed fair enough to me and I assumed it was standard but now I'm curious how many other ways they are and how they shake out.
  - LanceH 5y ago
    As for fair: There is little thought given to how much the individual house is worth, rather it relies on comp sales in the area. For example, a fully renovated house might go for $500k, but another in the neighborhood with the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms in a less desirable location (say the entrance to the neighborhood) might only be able to sell for $400k. It is also very common for the adjustments upward to be far quicker than adjustments downward. Then there are definitely examples out there of the city appraised value being driven by desired tax revenue and becoming detached from the reality of sale prices.
- analog31 5y ago
  In my locale, the assessment is pegged to the sale price, so if you buy a house for $X, the assessed value becomes $X. The city assessor also inspects the house shortly after the sale. In an area with a lot of turnover, the assessments tend to be fairly accurate. A major renovation (requiring a permit) will result in a re-assessment. In subsequent years, they're supposed to apply a formula, but of course "drift" can occur. And then there's an appeal process.
  - aidenn0 5y ago
    > A major renovation (requiring a permit) will result in a re-assessment. Doesn't this just incentivize people to not pull permits on major work? In California contractors often try to talk you out of getting a permit because it's more of a hassle for them, so clearly the contractors aren't liable for doing unpermitted work...
jameshart 5y ago
It's a pretty common way to tax property. All a town or county is looking for is a somewhat equitable way to split up the bill for the total tax income it wants to collect each year. All that matters is that every property's relative value is reasonably fairly assessed, and the tax rate is then set based on the amount of funds the local government budgets, with the portion each household pays being weighted based on assessed value. All that happens if an individual homeowner argues down their appraisal is that everybody else's taxes go up by a bit. If everybody successfully argued their house was 10% overvalued, all the assessments would go down, the tax rate would go up, and they'd all be right back where they started for tax bills.

It is, I agree. We used them to write the addresses on the envelopes.

> I still don't understand why you needed this autograph pencil? To trick people into opening their junk mail, because they think it's a letter from a human.

hellbannedguy 5y ago
Ah yes. I have gotten these before, but not produced this way. The ones I got looked like they were written by an underpaid employee. They have had signature machines for years though. The Kennedy's used them a lot. The only thing I would experiment with this project is adding significant error, and randomness to the writing. It would look more realistic? On a personal note, when I get these (Anderson Painting likes this approach.); I throw away the ad away immediately, or if printed on good stock paper--I save to pick up dust.
- mbiondi 5y ago
  Pick up dust, that's an interesting comment. How does stock paper help with that?
  - Kliment 5y ago
    Not sure if it's the same thing, but heavy cardstock is great at collecting dust off a flat surface - for some reason it sticks to the edge.

tinco 5y ago

Is it? How do other states do it? Here in the Netherlands it's the same, roughly judged based off average values in the neighborhood.

hamaluik 5y ago
Same in Canada.. always seemed fair enough to me and I assumed it was standard but now I'm curious how many other ways they are and how they shake out.
- LanceH 5y ago
  As for fair: There is little thought given to how much the individual house is worth, rather it relies on comp sales in the area. For example, a fully renovated house might go for $500k, but another in the neighborhood with the same number of bedrooms and bathrooms in a less desirable location (say the entrance to the neighborhood) might only be able to sell for $400k. It is also very common for the adjustments upward to be far quicker than adjustments downward. Then there are definitely examples out there of the city appraised value being driven by desired tax revenue and becoming detached from the reality of sale prices.
analog31 5y ago
In my locale, the assessment is pegged to the sale price, so if you buy a house for $X, the assessed value becomes $X. The city assessor also inspects the house shortly after the sale. In an area with a lot of turnover, the assessments tend to be fairly accurate. A major renovation (requiring a permit) will result in a re-assessment. In subsequent years, they're supposed to apply a formula, but of course "drift" can occur. And then there's an appeal process.
- aidenn0 5y ago
  > A major renovation (requiring a permit) will result in a re-assessment. Doesn't this just incentivize people to not pull permits on major work? In California contractors often try to talk you out of getting a permit because it's more of a hassle for them, so clearly the contractors aren't liable for doing unpermitted work...

jameshart 5y ago

It's a pretty common way to tax property. All a town or county is looking for is a somewhat equitable way to split up the bill for the total tax income it wants to collect each year. All that matters is that every property's relative value is reasonably fairly assessed, and the tax rate is then set based on the amount of funds the local government budgets, with the portion each household pays being weighted based on assessed value. All that happens if an individual homeowner argues down their appraisal is that everybody else's taxes go up by a bit. If everybody successfully argued their house was 10% overvalued, all the assessments would go down, the tax rate would go up, and they'd all be right back where they started for tax bills.