[jedberg]

On my block we have five nearly identical houses. My house, which I bought 12 years ago, my neighbors house, which they have been in for 22 years, my other neighbor, who has been there 45+ years, the neighbor two over who bought about five years ago, and the neighbor two over the other way who bought two weeks ago.

If my tax bill is X, the rates are as follows, for nearly identical houses, all valued nearly the same on Zillow/Redfin:

    2.3X
    0.4X
    1.0X
    0.1X
    2.0X

The two lowest payers don't have kids in school, so an argument could be made for them to have slightly lower taxes, but they still use the police, fire department, parks, and they have access to the senior center, which I do not.

The rest of us have kids roughly the same age.

So basically the people who just moved in are subsidizing the rest of us significantly.

It's completely unfair.

[lambdaops]

I grew up with the schools here back in the 90s and we largely couldn't pass new parcel taxes because "their kids already went through school and they didn't need it". They were more concerned with all the growing crime, which you would think that maybe the lack of after school programs and growing unaffordability for everyone else was part of the issue.

[jedberg]

We still have that problem today, passing new parcel taxes. That's why every parcel tax we pass now has a clause that allows people over 55 to get out of paying it. It's the only way to get all the over 55 people to vote for it.

[andy-x]

I don't think so. You lived there for a number of years and you already paid fair taxes and when you bought the property you knew what the taxes are going to be and that allowed you to plan your life. People who are buying it now also know what their taxes are going to be now, and they should thank you for your share of the taxes that you paid over the years to keep community in good shape.

[jedberg]

And yet, in the other 49 states without Prop 13, somehow people are able to plan their lives and pay their taxes too. Keeping the taxes artificially low doesn't help with tax planning.

> and they should thank you for your share of the taxes that you paid over the years to keep community in good shape.

After four years, I'd already paid more in lifetime taxes than my neighbors. After eight years, I've paid more than they will ever pay in their lifetime.

After twelve years, my new neighbor will have paid more than my lifetime tax bill.

It's completely out of line.

[foogazi]

> It's completely unfair.

Somebody call the waaahmbulance.

No CA homeowner should be surprised by this. Guess what you probably paid a higher price than them - voluntarily!!!

[jedberg]

I pay less than 1/2 of what they do. It’s not fair to them.

Also, I'm not sure how what I paid is at all relevant to a tax that is based on current value.

When you register a car, which is also taxed on current value, it has nothing to do with what you paid. If you got a good deal you don't save on your registration fee. Even in the first year.

[dragonwriter]

> So basically the people who just moved in are subsidizing the rest of us significantly.

Not as much as the ratio of property taxes would make you think; given Prop. 13’s other provisions, like the limit on nominal rates, much of the revenue functions that are served by ad valorem property taxes in places that aren't crippled by Prop 13 are, in California, served by a combination of:

(1) Mello-Roos fees (per-parcel assessments that are weighted by value and so aren't affected by the Prop 13 assessment increase discrepancy),

(2) state and local income taxes,

(3) state and local sales taxes.