Comments on: Prop. 13 Split Roll Would Be Ripoff

By: Kimberly

Kimberly — Sat, 07 Jan 2012 00:29:56 +0000

Wait, what? You’re saying the commercial properties don’t take advantage of legal and accounting loopholes to avoid reassessment?

I am reassured.

By: Democrats Against UN Agenda 21

Democrats Against UN Agenda 21 — Sun, 25 Sep 2011 06:30:13 +0000

Elegantly done. The hounds howling at Prop 13 are out to destroy private property ownership. It’s obvious that the hope is that no one will come to the rescue of the big bad commercial property owners (who have committed the crime of wanting to make a profit). Once the boot is in the door residential properties will be next. The vilification of private property ‘because it is inequitable and enriches some people’ is the keystone of United Nations Agenda 21. I hope that you, Wayne and Chuck, have looked into it. As a commercial appraiser specializing in eminent domain valuation I was stunned to find UN Agenda 21 at the heart of the planning revolution we’ve seen over the past 10 years. Smart Growth is the result.

By: Wayne Lusvardi

Wayne Lusvardi — Sun, 26 Jun 2011 07:09:48 +0000

Jennifer
Suggest you contact William Hamm, PhD and Jose Alberro, PhD, regarding their 2008 study
“The Economic Effects of Adopting a Split-Roll Property Tax System” –

Link: http://www.cbpa.com/documents/split_roll_final_report.pdf

You keep leaving comments but never cite your sources. The methodology you use to support your assertion that shopping centers, gas stations and other commercial properties are undertaxed is MISLEADING and would not meet professional appraisal standards. You lack the professional competence necessary to support your assertions.

No one can take seriously the comments of those who have no understanding of finance, real estate markets, or economics.

Your complaint, if I understand it correctly, is that every shopping mall, gas station, and retail store does not pay the same taxes. This is Leftist thinking that everything must be equal. But not every commercial property is equal.
Some are new, some old. Some are inside malls, some are free-standing, some are mom and pop operations.

Some have land leases on them which means the landlords pays taxes on the rent received and the tenant separately pays property taxes, income taxes, and corporate taxes. Your methodology is to find the tax, say, for the tenant who pays property taxes but does not consider that the landlord separately also pays taxes on the land rent received from the tenant. Then you erroneously claim the property is undertaxed. This is unethical.

You failed to mention that commercial enterprises are quadruple taxed by property taxes, income taxes, corporate taxes, and real estate capital gains taxes upon sale, to say nothing of business license fees and utility user’s taxes.

Nothing will convince you otherwise however. This comment is for readers who are not knowledgeable of your tricks.

By: Jennifer

Jennifer — Sat, 25 Jun 2011 19:11:02 +0000

Fascinating use of statistics — using your methodology on 2010 Census results, I see the average age in the US is 37.2 years, up 1.9 since 2000. So that means I’m less than two years older than I was ten years ago! Hooray. And, from a tax perspective, since the average age is just over 37, we don’t need either Medicare or public schools, because we’re all too young AND too old to benefit from them!

Come on, guys. Prop 13 has created a very uneven playing field — which discriminates against new and growing businesses in California. Hiding behind faux statistics is as bad as hiding behind widows and retirees to perpetrate commercial free-ridership on the backs of new businesses and the vast majority of residential property owners. Take one look at the Los Angeles or Santa Clara County assessor’s annual reports and you’ll see that one in five commercial property owners is enjoying an 80% subsidy on his taxes — funded by his customers, clients, and employees.

By: ONTIME

ONTIME — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 23:32:29 +0000

I have a better plan and it would cut the cost off doing biz in Ca tremendously and save our essential services, it’s called common sense. We need a part time legislature on a salary, no perks, no retirement, an end to the progressive tax to be replaced with 10 year ballot plans based on flat or national sales tax, an end to government unions and yearly public audits for those holding office elected and appointed and no more career politicians based on incumbency. We the people want to control the government, we do not want elites to become the government, those elected are there to serve and I beleive this thinking could be applied to all Federal government as well as state.

By: Stanley K.

Stanley K. — Tue, 21 Jun 2011 21:42:41 +0000

What a revelation to find that commercial and apartment properties as a whole are already being assessed at 100% of their market value. So much for Michael Hiltzik and Steve Lopez at the L.A. Times and their crusade to persuade us otherwise.