New taxes in NY for my property, up 150%!

[Savannah]

What a great feeling when you open your mail and there is a letter from your vacation property municipality that there is a new assesment and your taxes are going up 150%! I live in Buffalo NY, but have hunting property in the Town of Freedom, NY. Like other hunters, I just have vacant land with a trailer on it, and some utilities. I called (like many others will be) and the just of it is land taxes used to be a 4% of their value for tax purposes. I guess to encourage farming and such. Well that all changed for 2012 and now your land value for tax purposes is now 100% market value. Nothing like this happening 6 years after owning the land. You try and work hard (blue collar here) to have a little piece of heaven and now have to seriously think about whether its financially worth it, the hours worked for all the taxes paid.

[popeyoung9]

Ny, CAl.,Greece........Someone has to pay for the entitlement programs.

"Socialism is great till You run out of other peoples money"

Margaret Thatcher 1984.......................................Love it.

[Savannah]

unreal, and your quote is right on.

[Tree Spud]

You must be one of the rich that Obama has been looking to go after ... about time he found you and your ilk ...

Welcome to the new world order ... work hard so two people can live off your taxes ...

[THOMAS9N]

i put my place in wildlife habitat area and pay 1 dallor an acre.

[Chainsaw]

I live in New York as well. Sales of property here over the last ten years has gone from a few hundred an acre to 3,000 for good tillable land. If you went up on assessment on vacant land that much it sounds like you are not listed as agricultural property. Ag values in our area are assessed at roughly between 400 and 900 an acre depending on the soil category and use of the land.

You can find the rules for including land in Ag program on the internet. Just do a search. We have until March 1 to fill out the AG exemption form if our land is eligible. If not we have until March 1 to make it eligible in order to include it in this assessment. Our assessor provides the form to us if we ask. If you need any more info on this just let me know.

To help with your search it is form #RP-305-r (AGRICULTURAL ASSESSMENT RENEWAL APPLICATION)

[bush hill]

I feel your pain, my taxes on my steuben county property went up quite a bit this year too.

I'm not quite to the point of selling but it sure does suck!

[woodsman324]

Thats exactly why I sold my land in NY and moved out here almost 2 years ago. They sent me a note to inform me my taxes were gonna go from $2400.00 a year to $8400.00 a year on 200 acres of vacant land with no bldgs. Best move I ever made. At times I miss the land but it just wasn't worth it. I have made plenty of friends and can hunt their land for free. Land is very expensive out here but taxes are pretty cheap.

[Billb66]

Blue state Red State and it will get worse....

I can't speak for NY but my Father in Law owns land in NJ and the only way he keeps it is because he is under farmland/woodland Assessment. Much Lower taxes.

Requirements are a licensed forester putting together a timber plan and actively pursuing the plan. Which is not killer when you're waiting for a 4" white oak to become a tiber log.

There is a small earning off the land requirement but it's not to hard to sell your neighbor firewood and then buy some from him so you both meet the requirement. (just sayin)

I think NY has something similar. You need the advice of a Licensed NY private forester. Your local tax accessor is not going to volunteer this info to you.

Here is some info on NY
http://www.tax.ny.gov/research/prope...g_overview.htm

Also

From: http://www.farmland.org/resources/pu...ownerGuide.pdf

"Forest Land Exemption
To encourage the long-term ownership of woodlands, Section 480-a of the Real Property Tax Law allows eligible owners of forest land to receive reductions in tax assessment. Landowners must own a minimum of 50 acres of contiguous forestland and be willing to commit the land to forest crop production. In addition, landowners must follow forest management plans that have been prepared by qualified foresters and approved by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC). Owners of tracts certified by DEC must apply annually to their local assessors for the exemption. Landowners must comply with the program for nine years following the last year of commitment. Penalties may be imposed if a landowner fails to follow the approved management program or converts the land to a use that prevents continued forest crop production.
For more information about the forest land exemption, contact the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, Division of Lands and Forests, Bureau of Private Land Services."

[dogghr]

Yep mine went up nearly 25% in 2011. I feel your pain. The $/pound deer meat keeps rising, especially since I seem to let most walk these days.