On taxing empty houses - I once had an opportunity which required me to move across the country and my old house sat vacant for months despite pricing it pretty

On taxing empty houses - I once had an opportunity which required me to move across the country and my old house sat vacant for months despite pricing it pretty low (when you are 2k miles away it is hard to sell something), and a tax combined with the state laws preventing me from giving it to the bank would have been a perfect storm of misery despite my desire to let someone else live there.