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Comment by GloriousKoji | Hacker News Reader

Prop 13 is a limits how much property tax can increase in a year. So hypothetically without prop 13 it would possible that the value of your house jumps 10x and then you're stuck with paying 10x the amount of property tax that year.

I don't think we need to remove it completely but some adjustments like applicable only to a primary residence and not investment or commercial properties would probably go a long way.

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If the value of my home jumped 10x in a year, I would be ecstatic. Are you kidding?

I'm planning on living in my house for a very long time, it's my home, not an investment. I don't want my home value going up 10x unless I'm planning on selling it. In this market, I couldn't replace my house if I sold it anyway.

> it's my home, not an investment

Oh great! I'll take one of those. Maybe two. Where do I sign up?

If the value then drops 10x, you won’t get your property tax refunded. If prices end up going up and down like bitcoin, you’d need to have some protection.

> If the value then drops 10x, you won’t get your property tax refunded.

That's right. And why would it?

But also: your example is imaginary. When was the last time that house values dropped 10x or even 5x? It's counterproductive to make tax policy based on the extreme cases that have never happened.

Why so? You don't see that gain unless you sell, at which point you'll probably buy another house that has also risen 10x.

In a lot of places, if not most, property taxes are based on the assessed "current market value" of your house and audited annually, which can change a lot from year to year. Property taxes are paid annually, not when the house sells. If the house goes up 10x in a year, the property tax also rises which makes it very hard on a fixed income when you're retired, especially when the gov't artificially calculates inflation at a lower rate so they don't have to pay as much in social security benefits to those seniors reducing their purchasing power over time.

Property taxes are supposed to cover your local government's running services - police, fire brigade, trash/sanitation, water and roads.

Properly distributed, they should not be high.

Property taxes are not a slush fund for the government, nor should they be deferrable. They are intended to be running expenses.

And the fact property taxes are often used as a slush fund makes those of us paying attention very sensitive to their increase. With those taxes comes bureaucratic power and control, often leading to more taxes and less of a say over how one lives one's life.

Shouldn't pass on to your heirs either.

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