Quote:
Originally Posted by tuccillo
Among other things, the bond pays for the amenities such as the executive golf courses, guard shacks at the gates, and rec centers.
The Sumter "tax" bill actually has 5 components: county tax, school tax, SWFWMD (water management), fire department, and maintenance. Also on the "tax" bill is your bond payment (interest and principal) but I will exclude that from further discussion since many people choose to pay it off and will have a value of zero for their bond payment. The county tax went up about 25% (actually the millage rate increased by about 25%) and the county tax is about about half of the total "tax". The other 4 components didn't significantly change so for many people their "tax" bill went up about 13%.
If you still have a bond payment and computed the percentage change in your "tax" bill from the previous year then the percentage change would be less than 13% since the fixed bond payment is a pretty good percentage of the total "tax" bill.
Further complicating the computation of the percentage increase in the "tax" bill is the fact that some people had a change in the assessed value of their home so their county tax may have gone up by more than 25% (and the school tax would have also increased).
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Thank you for the tax explanation.
Others have said that the bond does not pay for things such as golf courses, swimming pools, etc. Isn't that what the amenities fee is for? As such, what is in essence a tax free municipal bond pays for private golf courses and such?
Thanks again. Just trying to learn.