the Scout wrote “it now seems like a penalty to own a property in this country,”

Yes there is a penalty but it is up to the Government to ensure that poor and middle class Barbadians are not unduly punished for property ownership.
The COWs of this world might start grazing on distressed and foreclosure grass.

Property Tax reform should be a hot topic in the next election.

While anyone is free to refer to me as naive, I have never been of the opinion that people don’t like paying taxes. Studies have repeatedly demonstrated that individuals who deem their taxes as fair and reasonable, and who perceive their taxes resulting in positive tangible benefits, feel it to be their patriotic duty to do so. Correspondingly, there is also a much smaller number attempting tax evasion. However, governments PERCEIVED to be plagued by inefficiency, cronyism , misfeasance or malfeasance garner no such patriotic fervor.

Today in Barbados there are now approximately 34,000 public sector employees accomplishing the work of 18,000. When one attempts to deal with public sector personnel only to be met with indifference or outright incivility, from OUR civil servants (rapidly becoming oxymoronic) the thought of paying their salaries rankles. The terribly expensive and underutilized (though one can create a nice echo) Supreme Court edifice, as well as the terribly expensive and never utilized Greenland Landfill stick in one’s craw. The poor state of roads and other infrastructure appalls. Dilapidated structures and overgrown property everywhere the eye can see. There is more but enough of the picture has been painted.

All of these examples in one of the most highly taxed jurisdictions in the world, and yet government seeks more. People are not balking at taxes per se, only the perceived waste of government.

Property ownership should be the foundation for building wealth in a family.

I can state for a fact that I know one person who kept his property until he died because he decided that he would leave it for his children.
It was not the best decision because he died property rich but cash poor and a living standard not as good as it should have been.

Barbados claims to have accomplished a lot since the colonial days and Government must be careful not to put people’s properties to pasture for the COWs and vultures to graze on.

The thing is, I wonder if these high valuations, inadvertently serve to avoid a catastrophe for the mortgage business?

Does the Central Bank have available mortgage figures showing how much is in negative equity, as happened in the US?

Such figures are freely available in the US, not here?
How many in Barbados borrowed and borrowed based on the expected gravy train of real estate…now to find themselves owing?

Of course, with high land tax valuations, there should not be many in negative equity…no? 😉

The banks and mortgage companies must be praising the high tax valuations. Avoids write-offs.

There is always a reason in Barbados.

Oh and one last thing. CLICO balance sheet must be looking a bit better with revaluations…no?

RFLMAO 😉

@GG

All unimproved land is taxed at 0.6% of the value. Check the
following Website which will help you and others understand how
you are being taxed.

http://www.landtax.gov.bb/Rates.html

Independent responds to Christopher:
Whereas the Land Tax value was $1.000.000.00
I did have an offer for $695.000.00.

Independent
Response to Straight Talk
Thanks for the clarification. It’s 31,000 sq ft with 1,500 sq ft of house.
The land is not 100,000 sq.ft.

would also be saying to me “let the children fend for themselves”.

@Chuckles
Never thought of that! will do…thanks

Also received a huge valuation increase for a piece of agricultural land in zone one which land tax describes as “vacant – land residential”. Only this year the Chief Town Planner refused permission to develop or subdivide this land.

So doesn’t Land Tax talk to the Chief Town Planner?

Isn’t the Minister responsible for Town Planning the same as the Minister responsible for Land Tax.

I think it is high time that the Minister have a conversation with himself.

For the agricultural land in zone one which the Land Tax Commissioner calls “Vacant Land – Residential” the valuation is $166,800. The land changed hands this year through inheritance (not sale). The lawyer was paid $5,300 and the land tax payable for 2011-12 was $1,000 which had to be paid before the transaction could be completed. The Land Tax Commissioner granted a discount of $99.28, so that $900.72 tax was paid for a piece of land in zone one for which permission to build or subdivide has been refused by the Town Planning Department.

@Random Thoughts….girl I was wondering what happened to you. I was about to put out an APB for you. Glad to see you here again.

I remembered one year receiving a land tax bill that was lower than previous years. When I went to pay I asked why, the clerk checked and told me that I was being over billed the past few years. She told me to bring in the bills for the last three years and she would calculate the refund. Yes a REFUND. So I did as was asked and I did receive a refund cheque. My husband told me that he would never have asked in case they had made a mistake with the lower figure. I wonder if I have a case to appeal this 30% increase?

this is pure madness ,more harship on the people

This gov’t joking. I don’t know if they suicidal or they betwitch. Sinkler must be planning to make an adjustment. if they don’t thigns would hav eot be worse than they letting on.

@Scout

Before you write, check to asceratain what is in the Healt Services Act and Regulations.

@Hants
You did get butt by a BOVINE in your youth or whao??????LOL

The bovine knight has already been requested to cease and desist from his proclivity to acquire the entire island. You milking this cow at every opportunity.LOL.

While government will not change the property tax rates, owners will be asked to pay more because in some cases the valuation is doubled, hence we pay the same rate at a higher valuation which works out to a large increase in property tax.