Why the Exurbs Are Poised to Take Off

[royce]

How in the world would there be any chance of slowing sprawl when the outer rings continuously have a property tax rate that is 50% to 70% lower than the core and the inner rings?

You can't stop people from voting with their wallet. It's impossible. If they can get more house out of the monthly payment by paying a lower tax rate further out, it will never stop. The wrong tax is flat in Michigan and it has costed us many Billions in failing communities with only more to come until something changes.

Somebody help me out here. Don't those in the exburbs have to pay property taxes for the same services that the city and inner-ring suburbs pay? Don't their property taxes pay for police and fire protection; schools, parks, roads, and garbage pickup? So how is it that the tax rate in exburbs is 50% to 70% lower than the city and inner-ring suburbs?

[Hermod]

Somebody help me out here. Don't those in the exburbs have to pay property taxes for the same services that the city and inner-ring suburbs pay? Don't their property taxes pay for police and fire protection; schools, parks, roads, and garbage pickup? So how is it that the tax rate in exburbs is 50% to 70% lower than the city and inner-ring suburbs?

1. They have very low legacy costs for employee retirement [[which will change as they age).

2. The requirement for policemen per capita will be quite a bit lower because of a lower crime rate.

3. Low density means fewer firemen and less fire equipment.

4. Tax collection costs and delinquency rates will be much lower.

5. Parkinson's Law hasn't had enough time to affect the size and complexity of their bureaucracy.

[Wesley Mouch]

1. They have very low legacy costs for employee retirement [[which will change as they age).
...snip...

Given the major portion of budgets that are going to pay for your parents employee costs, this may be the single biggest issue to be addressed for the health of our cities.

Collective bargaining between unions and government management doesn't seem to be the right way to ensure good employees nor fair benefits. Some benefit disproportionately to their contributions. And of course we could also fix this by 'accounting' for the future cost today -- but that's politically toxic.

[Hermod]

Given the major portion of budgets that are going to pay for your parents employee costs, this may be the single biggest issue to be addressed for the health of our cities.

Collective bargaining between unions and government management doesn't seem to be the right way to ensure good employees nor fair benefits. Some benefit disproportionately to their contributions. And of course we could also fix this by 'accounting' for the future cost today -- but that's politically toxic.

Bingo: The politicians incurring huge legacy costs expect to be long gone when the ordure contacts the rotating blades and taxes have to be raised.

[royce]

1. They have very low legacy costs for employee retirement [[which will change as they age).

2. The requirement for policemen per capita will be quite a bit lower because of a lower crime rate.

3. Low density means fewer firemen and less fire equipment.

4. Tax collection costs and delinquency rates will be much lower.

5. Parkinson's Law hasn't had enough time to affect the size and complexity of their bureaucracy.

Thx, Hermod.

[Bham1982]

Somebody help me out here. Don't those in the exburbs have to pay property taxes for the same services that the city and inner-ring suburbs pay? Don't their property taxes pay for police and fire protection; schools, parks, roads, and garbage pickup? So how is it that the tax rate in exburbs is 50% to 70% lower than the city and inner-ring suburbs?

I don't know where people get the idea that newer suburbs have low property taxes. Places like Northville, Novi, Rochester, West Bloomfield, Bloomfield, etc. aren't particularly low tax. Birmingham is fairly high tax. They have high property values and generally high-ish tax rates. In Birmingham there are people living in modest bungalows paying 10k in annual taxes.

They aren't as high as places like Detroit, but cities with ridiculously low valuations will always have high rates.

[Cincinnati_Kid]

I don't know where people get the idea that newer suburbs have low property taxes. Places like Northville, Novi, Rochester, West Bloomfield, Bloomfield, etc. aren't particularly low tax. Birmingham is fairly high tax. They have high property values and generally high-ish tax rates. In Birmingham there are people living in modest bungalows paying 10k in annual taxes.

They aren't as high as places like Detroit, but cities with ridiculously low valuations will always have high rates.

I have to agreed with this. Southfield and Lathrup Villiage. also has high property taxes.

[BankruptcyGuy]

I don't know where people get the idea that newer suburbs have low property taxes. Places like Northville, Novi, Rochester, West Bloomfield, Bloomfield, etc. aren't particularly low tax. Birmingham is fairly high tax. They have high property values and generally high-ish tax rates. In Birmingham there are people living in modest bungalows paying 10k in annual taxes.

They aren't as high as places like Detroit, but cities with ridiculously low valuations will always have high rates.

Recent article in that regard.

http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/...th_michig.html

[ABetterDetroit]

Recent article in that regard.

http://www.mlive.com/news/index.ssf/...th_michig.html

Thanks for this link.

It's not hard to tell which communities already have big financial problems or are going to in the near future by this data.