Susan in KY Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 ....where is it? We are trying to choose a good place to settle down, and the taxes are quite high in our area. For those of you in Australia, we are not likely to move there, so please refrain from sticking your tongues out at those among us stuck in the USA. :lol: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rhonda in TX Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 ....where is it? We are trying to choose a good place to settle down, and the taxes are quite high in our area. For those of you in Australia, we are not likely to move there, so please refrain from sticking your tongues out at those among us stuck in the USA. :lol: I would have to look at the whole tax burden, not just school taxes. Texas has high school taxes, but we don't have state income tax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keptwoman Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 No school taxes in Australia, or New Zealand for that matter ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elegantlion Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 It may vary by county. Our taxes are lower (rural area) compared to my parents who are 30 minutes away in suburban sprawl county. They'd like to move out of the county because of the tax situation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuntieM Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Neither Florida nor Texas have state income taxes; there are probably other states like this, I just don't know which ones. The cost of living - housing, utility costs, groceries - is generally lower in the South. Also, you don't truly need as many clothes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 It varies from county to county across the country. You might consider looking for cost of living comparisons. You can find them by googling, but you probably have to have a location in mind first. Just because a state has no state tax doesn't mean it's necessarily cheaper to live there. The taxes will be made up in vehicle registrations, property taxes, higher gas taxes, etc. When we were looking to move, we pored over the Places Rated books that included info in metropolitan areas on education, health care costs, cost of living, housing prices, transportation, weather and more. Here's a connected website, http://www.bestplaces.net/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momof3littles Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 (edited) When I lived in NC it was about half what I pay in a suburb of a major midatlantic city. eta: However, in NC most food and clothing was taxed at 7%. My current state does not collect sales tax on clothing and food. Edited February 11, 2012 by Momof3littles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Desert Rat Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 We live in Nevada. We have no state tax, sales tax is around 8%, property taxes are pretty low (we paid less than $1,000 last year). The desert takes a bit of getting used to, but we truly love it here in the Mojave. I've lived in Northern Nevada, too. Mountains and snow, smaller towns, very pretty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riverland Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 Washington, near the Oregon border. Live in Washington with no income tax, and shop in Oregon with no sales tax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mommymilkies Posted February 10, 2012 Share Posted February 10, 2012 My taxes here are really cheap. We live in a prime area in a nice old house right across the street from a Catholic school. Very small county (16,000?). I think our taxes were $1800 this year altogether. Southern IL. Northern IL and some more populated counties are ridiculously expensive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 See I think when it comes down to it it generally balances out. Our taxes are quite high, but cost of living isn't so bad (and house prices aren't so bad in my city). Sure there are no school taxes in Australia, but some sort of tax somewhere is paying for it. What are the sales tax and the income tax? I venture to guess it is much higher than many are paying in the states. I think you would find that total taxes in Australia are pretty comparable to total taxes paid in America plus the outrages amount you spend on private health. revenue from mining pays for lots of the perks we get from living in Australia. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Melissa in Australia Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 No school taxes in Australia, or New Zealand for that matter ;) :lol: think this is sticking out tongue:tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keptwoman Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 :lol: think this is sticking out tongue:tongue_smilie: *gasp* Surely not! I think the point is that we don't have taxes that differ based on where in Australia we live, state or city. The taxes are across the board for every citizen. Not much use for those stuck in the US though eh. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 Taxes are low here. Cost of living is low too. Our taxes on a 350,000 dollar house were 1615. We do have an income tax but it doesn't work out to be much either. Oh, and there are many, many homes that are much less expensive than ours. We just bought what we hope to be our home for many years now that dh has risen to a certain level. It is not a starter home but more of a home for a person who has made it so yes, there are many much cheaper homes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hsmom Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 Wyoming has no state tax, no sales tax on food and sales tax on everything else is 6%. Not sure what yearly property taxes are, but I have never heard anyone complain. Tax on our vehicles varies on how much it is worth of course. So, like my 2003 Toyota Tundra runs me a little over a hundred each year to license. Which too me is not too bad. It may be to others. I hear everyone talk about school tax when I lived in Arkansas was the only time I ever got a bill in the mail to pay for ps tax. Here you don't have that. I think another thing you need to consider is price of living, while taxes are low here we tend to pay more for things like food and such. But for me it is totally worth it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThisIsTheDay Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 I hear everyone talk about school tax when I lived in Arkansas was the only time I ever got a bill in the mail to pay for ps tax. Here you don't have that. I've just always assumed that property taxes in every locality pay for schools. They certainly have where I've lived (CA, CO, VA). But I googled I saw your post, and apparently in WY, schools are paid for by the "extraction industries" (mining, etc.). Isn't that interesting? This would make sense that people don't complain about property taxes, because the largest percentage of property taxes go to schools. I can't find quick info about my current home, but in CO, 75% of my property taxes went toward schools, but it's not a separate bill. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Momma H Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 My taxes are super low. We have a 1900 sq ft home on 38 acres. We are in a small town but we are 3 minutes from it and pretty much anything we need can be found there. Our taxes are $480 a year. I have a love/not so sure (not hate) relationship with where I live. We have no building codes and it is pretty hands off as far as restrictions go. You get the good with the bad---most people are responsible and respectful but there are some who are just kind of base, (as far as keeping up on thier homes, litter etc.). You get the good with the bad. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
georgialee Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 (edited) I live in Knox Co (E. TN) and think it's pretty reasonable. Our sales tax is high (9.25%) but we have no state income tax. Property taxes aren't bad IMO - we paid $1200 for a 3500 sf house on 11 acres. We don't have to do vehicle inspections - just a $60 fee to renew registration (the fee is lower in surrounding counties). Other considerations - you won't need to buy snow gear for your kids every year - just a sweatshirt paired with a regular jacket would work fine for most winter days. We have a very long growing season if you have a green thumb, if not we have tons of farmers markets with competitive prices. eta: If you enjoy the country, if you have more than 15 acres here you can apply for a greenbelt something or other (can't remember exactly what its called, lol) but if you're approved you don't have to pay any property tax at all. Very easy to get approval, too. Edited February 11, 2012 by georgialee Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kari C in SC Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 We live in Lexington SC - right outside of Columbia. I should say not IN TOWN Lexington, but the outskirts. We have a 2600 sq ft home lake front acre lot. Our taxes are about $600 per YEAR. I about had a stroke reading about other people's taxes. Ugh! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bbkaren Posted February 11, 2012 Share Posted February 11, 2012 We're in Morris County, NJ now and pay $9,000 a year in real estate taxes (mostly school tax). We have an 1800 s.f. house and 1/2 acre of land on an unpaved road. We're moving to Roane County, TN, and on that house we pay $460 a year in real estate taxes. We have an 1100 s.f. house and 4 acres of land on a paved county road. Both houses are about 20 minutes from what I require for "civilization"...Wal mart, groceries, gas, post office, etc. So especially as homeschoolers (once we move), the better deal is obvious... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb in NZ Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 See I think when it comes down to it it generally balances out. Our taxes are quite high, but cost of living isn't so bad (and house prices aren't so bad in my city). Sure there are no school taxes in Australia, but some sort of tax somewhere is paying for it. What are the sales tax and the income tax? I venture to guess it is much higher than many are paying in the states. New Zealand has no school taxes, but income tax is 20-33% (depending on your income), gst is 15% on everything including taxes :glare:, & PS is not free. We paid over $2k for ds#1 to go to our local PS for highschool last year. Schools are funded by government money & local fund-raising. All teachers are paid by the federal Ministry of Education. I agree with Wendyk, you need to look a the total of all taxes to compare the tax burden in different areas. JMHO, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deb in NZ Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 *gasp* Surely not!I think the point is that we don't have taxes that differ based on where in Australia we live, state or city. The taxes are across the board for every citizen. Not much use for those stuck in the US though eh. Here in NZ rates (property taxes) can vary a lot from area to area. But unlike the US, rates do not fund the local schools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QueenCat Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We live in Lexington SC - right outside of Columbia. I should say not IN TOWN Lexington, but the outskirts. We have a 2600 sq ft home lake front acre lot. Our taxes are about $600 per YEAR. I about had a stroke reading about other people's taxes. Ugh! Wow! Is that all of your property taxes, or just school? Do you pay additional for things like fire, sewer? Those are really low!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berta Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 I'm in Kershaw County SC in a rural area about 10 mins from everything. Unpaved road, 4 acres that back up to 100's of acres of woods, 1900 sf home and my taxes are $450 a yr. I have a house in Burlington County NJ (that I can't sell!) and we pay $7,000 a yr on an 1100 sf house on less than .25 acre. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 Yes, but aren't property taxes about 3%? It doesn't matter how they tax, they get their money somehow. Washington, near the Oregon border. Live in Washington with no income tax, and shop in Oregon with no sales tax. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DawnM Posted February 12, 2012 Share Posted February 12, 2012 We are in NC. I think our property taxes are around 1%. We do pay NC state taxes per year as well. It is less than CA. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted February 16, 2012 Author Share Posted February 16, 2012 :lol: think this is sticking out tongue:tongue_smilie: :iagree: :D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Susan in KY Posted February 16, 2012 Author Share Posted February 16, 2012 Thanks for that link, This Is the Day. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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