Get with your local government on property taxes: it's your money and if you don't speak up no one will. And Denver's rental licensing program hits home for me.
Get with your local governments on property taxes.
It's your money and you should demand a seat at the table.
I saw an article in my local paper (linked first below) this week detailing how one of the special districts that I paid property tax to was disbanding and giving its money back to the county.
This was not a surprise to me. In fact, it was something I wrote about back in September.
How did I find out prior to my local paper printing it? Not by magic. Not by journalism school training (I am not a journalist and have never had any formal education in same).
I found out because back in September I called my county clerk and asked how I could find out what taxing districts my house was in and I called each and every one.
And when I found out the flood district was dissolving because they couldn't feasibly do anything they were charged with doing, I spoke to my county commissioner about what they planned to do with the money. Doing so actually gave me an opportunity to put my ideas forward to one of the people who would be deciding what to do with the excess money.
There is nothing special about me or what I can (or have) done.
What I did you can do.
Contact your county clerk and ask what districts you're in. Then contact each district and ask what they intend to do to blunt the tax increase you'll face.
The choice is yours. Being angry and feeling like you ought to do something about it is a good start. Actually taking that next step and making the calls and emails is the followup.
It's your money. Speak up for it because no one else will do it for you.
https://www.journal-advocate.com/2023/12/06/logan-county-receives-million-from-dissolved-water-district/
Related:
The transit authority up in Aspen (Roaring Fork Transit Authority) is going to get a huge amount of new revenue due to property tax increases.
Few things to note from the link below, my hot take on the article:
--The people running the transit authority say it's not a windfall. As they of course would. Government knows no satiety when it comes to YOUR money.
--Ridership is only 5% of revenue. If they can't make the money they need from riders, why are they operating? Why are they not asking the people who pay taxes up there to support them with increased taxes.
--When I went to talk about property taxes to my local school board, I was told a great deal about how we need to wait til the vote on Prop HH. In this article, the transit district people are talking about how we need to wait until after the Property Tax Commission meets. I wonder if I can ask the people that come to collect my taxes to wait til we know more.
Overall point, the government is loathe to separate from your money. There will always be something (some vote, some commission, some something).
Stay on top of them and keep asking what they intend to do. It's your money and if you don't speak up, no one else will.
https://www.aspendailynews.com/news/rfta-to-reap-50-more-in-property-taxes-in-2024/article_cc50d870-9d75-11ee-b0b1-bbe97b734d44.html
Denver’s Rental Licensing
I am currently beating my head against a wall working through Denver's licensing website and coordinating people in a town two hours away to make sure that I am compliant with Denver's new licensing requirement for renters.
Got frustrated enough to write an op ed and then send that along with a quick letter to the Denver City Council.
The email is below and the source links follow that.
An open email to the Denver City Council about their rental licensing.
To the Denver City Council,
Hello to all. My name is Cory Gaines. I am a former resident of Denver, currently living in Logan County. My wife and I still own her condo which is located in Denver and are currently renting it out.
I just received notice that I must sign up for a rental license through your city, at the cost of a fair bit of my time and money, time that must be worked around the other commitments I have (my full time job and family), and 250 dollars that must come out of my family's budget.
All of this so that, in the words of the Department of Excise and Licenses spokesman Eric Escudero, this " ... most beneficial [of all the] pieces of legislation passed in the history of Denver ... " can protect my tenant from being my victim.
I wonder too if Mr. Escudero means me when he says, "it is becoming much harder for slumlords to operate in Denver". I say this because, despite the idea that I or my wife are slumlords is so ridiculous as to not even merit a retort, I assure you that it is indeed becoming much harder for any landlord to operate in Denver. This is particularly the case for people like us that fall into the middle of the "not big enough to have staff to handle the regulatory burden" and the "sympathetic enough to get a waiver from the city" category.
You see, people like us that fall into that category get to pay for a license out of hard-earned money (we're both teachers) and experience the joy of the beyond-mind-numbing experience of navigating your city's licensing site. Well, it's either that I get to do it myself or pay retail to have someone do it for me.
I wrote about the frustration and difficulty I felt at the process into an op ed. You're welcome to read it. I hope others seeing this email do as well. I know that my wife and I are not alone in this frustration and difficulty.
I do not for the life of me understand why the policy you promulgate must be the same kind coming from the Progressives in our state Assembly: why on earth must it be always a dichotomy of oppressor and oppressed with you? We have rented out that condo for 6 years now, have had two separate tenants in that time, and have not had one single complaint. The relationship we have had with our tenants has always been an example of how the process should run. It has been a mutually beneficial (and respectful) agreement between two parties, and, I know this may shock you, but we did it completely without any government intrusion!
I'm not saying there aren't bad landlords, just like there are bad tenants, but your policy does nothing to separate the two. Rather, it lumps all landlords of all characters and financial means into the same bucket. This is wrongheaded and unfair.
I hope others reading this join me in condemning this policy and asking you to change it. I say that because I, like many others, am not required to rent and could just as easily cash in this condo and take the greatly-appreciated value and walk off.
Cory Gaines
https://denverite.com/2023/04/18/denver-landlords-who-havent-registered-their-buildings-could-face-fines-this-week/
https://pagetwo.completecolorado.com/2023/12/18/gaines-denver-rental-licensing-scheme-misses-the-mark/