Question about property taxes and settlement day
Mike Garrison
5 years ago
Featured Answer
Sort by:Oldest
Comments (17)
shead
5 years agoDavid Cary
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoRelated Discussions
Odd question about mowing/property lines
Comments (67)Something that bothers me in particular to this situation of mowing into the neighbor's property, is how so many people have a lawn service now. Those lawn services (at least in my perspective) don't show any regard for others properties. The yards here where I live are relatively small, yet they all use huge ride on mowers. The lawn service guy is typically a lone male having his own small business, while another might have two other guys there so, again, they created a small business with their own work ethics. I don't know what governs them and speculate they just make up their own rules. The city ordinance allows them to begin at 8 a.m. and in other area's it might be 7:30 a.m.. Here, the services across the street and next door, both sides, all arrive first thing in the morning, roaring loudly, and many times there's 4 or 5 different services arround at once! The riding mowers and the powerful blowers produce noise that is so loud, it's frightening and drowns out phone call conversations. So if the services arrive on a work day when you have a conference call, it's never good. Eagerly, I await when these loud mowers will be against the rules and outlawed. I've been reading how California is headed that route... YAY! I get why they look for fast ways to mow, but realistically, these lawns are not big enough to justify riding mowers. The one service is out there now, it's just him, so he spends over an hour mowing and blowing with professional equipment! We (neighbor and I) have side fencing. The riding mower can't get into small spaces or some around landscaping, so he just mows 4 feet, even 5 feet into my yard so he doesn't have to do any of her yard by hand. He mows so far in that he's mowed over 3 of my sprinkler heads, which are far enough away from the property line to not mow, but he seems to care none. I've gently spoken with him. He blows her yard leaves up against my home side and side fence, creating a large mound. This also happens on the opposite side of my property by another lawn service. Their services cause my property to appear to be a total of at least 8 feet less wide, at times 10 feet. They mow so low they scalp the grass, and, because of the wood fencing, it's visible they've mowed plenty over the property lines. The sad part is the lawn services do it for their mowing conveniences, so it says they have no respect for my property as long as they can more easily do their jobs for the neighbors, yet the neighbors don't ever mention it to say how sorry they are, or that they're trying to remedy it. To add insult to injury, the one neighbor has been burning pinion wood in her patio chiminera that is placed so closely to my yard and blows downwind, that my home often reeks of the burning wood. The smoke fills my yard and the smell permeates into my home. She is too close in proximity to be doing that wood burning. My home will reek like it's on fire, which I used to think it was in the walls. We are not neighbors at odds, so there's nothing going on there. She burns so much pinion wood that I wear a cloth mask to sleep in because my throat has become scratchy, and now I cough a good bit, which I suspect is due to the wood burning. My sinuses seem to be highly irritated by the smoke. My bedroom is in close proximity to her patio. I'm not far from age 70, own my home and have lived here over 25 years. Her inconsiderate styles are becoming such a pain that infringe on my life, and I'm afraid the laws don't care about me in any of these situations....See MoreI didn't know this about Property taxes
Comments (10)Here in Allegheny county, in Western Pennsylvania, the house and school taxes used to be pro-rated on our home at %25 percent of market value! Then, when the county fell on hard times, they paid a judge to change the taxing formula from 25 percent to 100 percent of assessed valuation! (market value) This way, they could set a value and we could appeal, with much rigamarole, time spent at the county courthouse, and paying exorbitant parking rates downtown, to file an appeal, along with attorney fees, and other costs! This usually resulted in a slight reduction, which had to be gone thru every year! I'm a disabled veteran, living on SS and my disability check. Guess what that did to our life! And, i get no discount for that either! And then, to add insult to injury, the big shots decided to re-assess every year or so! Our home taxes keep going higher every year and we'll soon be on our "uppers", as the old saying goes! Twice a month there is a long list of poor folks homes being sold by the county sheriff for back taxes! (like 4 1/2 pages) There are lots of old folks living around here, old mill workers, all kinds of folks living out their last days, unable to move anywhere else, being hauled out to the street in the coldest weather, and left out there with no where to go! The Governer says he's going to change all that, but, he has money and time for everything else, and the sales go on! by: Rustyj...See MoreQuestion about taxes and the mortgage (northern Illinois)
Comments (9)There are calculators that will factor it in, but you need the tax information so you can input it (they basically add it to the mortgage amount and then divide by 12 to give you the monthly cost). My personal opinion is that you should avoid escrowing taxes if possible. I know several people that have had issues with the bank paying it, issues when the loan is sold, etc. Also, when you pay monthly you are basically NOW for a bill that isn't due for months (in some cases 6-12 months). That means you are giving the bank free use of your money for that time. They earn the interest, not you. Think of all the money they hold for this and how much they must make. Same thing with insurance escrow....See MoreQuestion on property taxes at closing
Comments (7)Something similar happened to us when we bought our cottage on the river in 2000. We bought it from a guy we knew, Joel, and there were no RE agents involved, but we did have a title search done. He had only owned it for a year and was moving out of state. About 2 months after we bought it, we went to the cottage one weekend and found a notice on the door saying the property was being sold for back taxes! SAY WHAT? Promptly on Monday morning my husband appeared at the title company's office and showed them the notice. They apologized profusely and paid the tax bill immediately. The problem arose because Joel had to purchase both the house and the land, the house from the seller and the land from a utility company. It seems the title company had only searched the title to the land, not the property. Joel had no idea about this, either, because he had never gotten any tax bills. It seems they had been sent to the previous owner who had thrown them away. Whew! What a scare that was....See MoreB Carey
5 years agoMike Garrison
5 years agoB Carey
5 years agomainenell
5 years agoCharles Ross Homes
5 years agotiggerlgh
5 years agoMike Garrison
5 years agoMike Garrison
5 years agohomechef59
5 years agoBruce in Northern Virginia
5 years agoUser
5 years agorobin0919
5 years agomillworkman
5 years agoCharles Ross Homes
5 years ago
Related Stories
LANDSCAPE DESIGNPros Field Your Questions About Outdoor Lighting
Find out what to consider when illuminating your landscape for safety and ambiance
Full StoryGREEN BUILDINGWhat's LEED All About, Anyway?
If you're looking for a sustainable, energy-efficient home, look into LEED certification. Learn about the program and its rating system here
Full StoryREMODELING GUIDESConsidering a Fixer-Upper? 15 Questions to Ask First
Learn about the hidden costs and treasures of older homes to avoid budget surprises and accidentally tossing valuable features
Full StoryTHE POLITE HOUSEThe Polite House: What Can I Do About My Neighbors’ Trash Cans?
If you’re tired of staring at unsightly garbage way before pickup day, it’s time to have some tough conversations
Full StoryGREEN BUILDINGConsidering Concrete Floors? 3 Green-Minded Questions to Ask
Learn what’s in your concrete and about sustainability to make a healthy choice for your home and the earth
Full StoryWORKING WITH PROS10 Questions to Ask Potential Contractors
Ensure the right fit by interviewing general contractors about topics that go beyond the basics
Full StoryARCHITECTURE10 Things to Know About Prefab Homes
Are prefab homes less costly, faster to build and greener than homes constructed onsite? Here are answers to those questions and more
Full StoryLIFEHow to Be More Intentional About Sentimental Clutter
These 7 questions can help you decide whether to keep, store or let go of those once-meaningful objects in your life
Full StoryEXTERIORSCurb Appeal Feeling a Little Off? Some Questions to Consider
Color, scale, proportion, trim ... 14 things to think about if your exterior is bugging you
Full StoryREMODELING GUIDES9 Hard Questions to Ask When Shopping for Stone
Learn all about stone sizes, cracks, color issues and more so problems don't chip away at your design happiness later
Full Story
B Carey