By Peter G. Miller Realty Times Property taxes are a major expense, one which often totals thousands of dollars per year. But property taxes are not the same for like properties or for every owner.
Property taxes provide much of the revenue used to fund local and state governments.
Alternatively, if property values decline, then government programs tend to be squeezed or there is pressure to raise income and sales taxes to make up for short-falls. How much you pay for property taxes depends on the value of your home and also local tax policies. In the usual case, a property value is established by government assessors. Once a value is set the tax rate is then applied. The road from the tax assessment to a bill for property taxes is rarely straight, however.