What is the property tax policy in the United States?

American real estate taxes are mainly transaction tax and property tax (property tax).

The transaction tax is paid in full at the time of one-time transfer, which is about 2%-4% of the house price, and is generally divided equally between the buyer and the seller. Property tax is a property tax, which is paid every year. The quantity is the property valuation multiplied by the tax rate. This tax rate is about 0.8%-3%. Because the land in the United States is private, the property tax in the United States refers to a tax that imposes a uniform tax rate on all assets contained in land and buildings on the ground. The land part of American property tax has no influence on the distribution of land resources, but the unified asset tax will reduce people's willingness to improve and renovate their houses and appreciate them. Therefore, the unified tax rate of land and property will make the land develop extensively rather than intensively, and the property tax with the nature of property tax cannot effectively use the land.

Because the United States is a federal country, all states are autonomous and local governments are relatively independent. All 50 States in the United States have levied real estate tax (property tax). Relevant departments of the state government regularly evaluate the value of real estate every year as the basis for collecting real estate tax. Therefore, rising house prices not only means an increase in the value of assets, but also means an increase in personal taxes. In view of the difference between buying and selling houses, some state governments also levy real estate value-added tax, which stipulates that houses sold after living for more than two years can enjoy a large amount of value-added tax concessions, while investment houses cannot enjoy corresponding concessions, so it can effectively curb real estate speculation.

Property tax has two major factors, property valuation and tax rate. These two items are decided by government agencies, including county governments, municipal governments and school districts. They collect county tax, city tax and school tax. The general property tax is the sum of these three taxes. Generally, in areas with the highest property tax, schools are also the best because of financial support. So the real estate here has a lot of room for appreciation every year. And children don't have to pay tuition fees from preschool to high school graduation. Levying property tax has also become the pillar source of local government financial funds and the main source of public welfare financial expenditure, which can promote the construction of public facilities and services.

American property tax exemption conditions

Comprehensive tax exemption. Property owned or occupied by government departments, non-profit organizations, educational organizations and religious organizations shall be exempted from property tax. Property owned or occupied by the government is exempt from real estate tax (property tax), but in some cases, the government must also pay taxes on its taxable property.

Partial tax exemption. Personal living allowance. States in the United States have different ways of tax exemption for self-occupied houses. California grants a fixed tax exemption for the taxable value of property. Some States give a certain percentage of tax exemption according to the taxable value of the property, such as Massachusetts giving 20% and Indiana giving 4%. This tax-free item is the largest.

Veterans' allowance. At present, 30 States in the United States provide a fixed amount of tax exemption for the evaluation of veterans' own residential properties. This item and personal living allowance cannot be enjoyed repeatedly.

State circuit breaker. 1964, Wisconsin, USA, adopted the measure of state power cut for the first time, that is, when the real estate tax burden (property tax) exceeds a certain proportion of household income (meaning power cut), the excess can be used to deduct the state income tax or be refunded. The cost of tax reduction and exemption caused by this measure is borne by the state government, and the main beneficiaries are elderly homeowners because of their low income level and relatively high real estate tax (property tax).

In 2009, the United States updated the first home buyer tax credit of the Workers' Housing and Business Assistance Act and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, and increased the interest-free loan for 15 years.

Comments from all walks of life in the United States on property tax exemption policy

People usually criticize the scope of tax exemption for the following reasons.

First, like people who work in buildings or institutions that are not owned by the government, people who work in government-owned houses also enjoy municipal services, so they should also pay taxes.

Second, differential treatment means that owners and managers who are included in the scope of tax payment bear higher costs than those who enjoy tax-free treatment. The difference between the two means the difference in competitiveness between market entities and between government and private economic entities.

Third, different tax treatment will affect the regional distribution of resources, types of activities and other related economic decisions.

Fourth, the setting of the scope of exemption narrows the tax base, increases the burden on taxpayers, or will reduce the level of local public services. According to the appraisal of relevant experts, the tax exemption policy may reduce the tax base by 50%-70%, or even more, and lead to the loss of potential tax revenue.

Fifth, the tax exemption ratio is different in different towns, which distorts the tax burden between different communities. Therefore, it is very difficult to cancel or even modify the exemption policy.