Inverse ratio of tax to home price

Irene is doing some homework regarding places to retire, as we consider fleeing to Canada, and this is exhibit is interesting.  I also thought it was obvious that there was an inverse relationship between taxes and home prices, but I guess it isn't until there is a map. It is revealing to see the nation rates.

The only reason California has a lower tax rate is the people voted in the law limiting the tax rate.  The old days, when the state could elect Reagan as a governor.  The tax ceiling infuriated democrats.  I think the legislature can't undo Proposition 13, as it was known. (I also recall it was 3%, so the number above may reflect a practical number than the official rate.)

Look at D.C.  That is a thing to ponder: 3.76 tax rate. If you don't know, Congress controls D.C. and members happen to have real estate there. So, to address the needs of D.C., one of the worst communities in America, Congress just takes your money, rather than have a high tax rate that would include them.

So, the "red" states, in politics, are, generally, the blue states, here.  (Except for D.C. where Congress people own real estate. Perhaps, we should just have a Georgetown exemption.)

And, as we are told, the really smart people live in places such as NY.  

People from NYC, LI, NJ, and MA have taken over Vermont; if you look, you see a very real estate high rate. That is relatively new.  The interesting thing is most towns don't have: police, fire, garbage, mass transit, water or sewer department.  You may wonder where the money goes? The state has taken control of the schools away from the towns, where local people met to control their costs as the people saw fit. Socialists can't have that.

Texas is interesting.  Very high property tax, perhaps, that is the main tax, as it is in NH.  In any event, high taxes keep the prices down. 

This analysis makes sense where one is not in the working years and not injured by high income tax and over regulation, which is another map.

Those, here, in Saratoga have seen in the  past few years, realty value go up rapidly, so revenue has gone up. Since governments never expect economic cycles, they assume the same, increasing revenue flow forever, and create a budget crises when tax revenues decrease, when values go down.  Since a government never lowers its costs, Saratoga is raising its tax rate in the face of decreasing home prices (tax revenue will drop as homes are revalued).  All goverments know is to raise taxes.

The problem is, this will increase the rate of devaluation, of tax assessment, of revenue. So, the cycle speeds up: prices down and taxe rate up --- prices down, tax rate up---etc.   Not a good prospect as more people go "upside down" in their homes, which rate is 25%.  We may get a taste of what California, NY, and Florida are dealing with - insolvency coupled with "rich" targets.

My recommendation is a house boat in waters federally controlled.