Thanks to our Kirtland lobbyist for this article. The State is thinking about collecting the property taxes and redistributing it as they see fit…..Hmmm, if they give the money to the parents (vouchers) so that the schools would have to… Read More ›
Real Estate Taxes
Cleveland Heights…their property tax reaching new “heights”.
(LFC Comment: We received an email from our friend in Cleveland Heights, and we thought our response might help everyone understand the calculation of property taxes and better understand the Housing Affordability Threshold concept.) *********************1776 Brian, what is the formula… Read More ›
Distribution Methodology…devil is in the details
“Distribution Methodology”…chapter 2 Representatives Cupp and Patterson are still trying to convince lawmakers in Columbus that they have the “magic formula” for equitable funding of State resources to be allocated to the 600+ Ohio school districts. It will basically be… Read More ›
Summit County…people are taxed out
Thanks to a Kirtland lobbyist for this article on school funding in Coventry Township (Summit County). It looks like what we have been preaching is felt in other Ohio counties. Excerpt from the article: “Continuing to rely on property taxes… Read More ›
Lake County Auditor…Not Accountable to State
We heard of a continuing software problem in the Lake County Auditor’s office, and wanted to get some help from the State Auditor’s office. Here is the article we previously posted: https://lobbyistsforcitizens.com/2019/09/28/follow-up-with-the-state-auditors-office/ Here is the reply from the Ohio Auditor’s… Read More ›
Concord Fire Levy…a really spirited debate continues
(LFC Comment: Here is another article regarding the Concord Township proposed fire levy submitted to us by the ‘Affordable Concord Taxes’ group.) Township needs safety with no new taxes Concord Township has placed a tax levy on the November 5… Read More ›
Property Tax Ballot Language…Too bad Rep. Rogers does not care
We have been interested in State Representative Derek Merrin’s concerted efforts to help Ohio taxpayers better understand what they are voting for as it relates to the complex world of property taxes. Here is the Cleveland.com article that details Rep…. Read More ›
Lesson on How to Cap Your Property Taxes…
It seems that the residents of Hunting Valley believe in a revised version of the GOLDEN RULE – He who has the gold, makes the rules! Take a look at this opinion article in Cleveland.com. https://www.cleveland.com/opinion/2019/10/the-obscene-conniving-in-hunting-valley-to-get-residents-out-of-paying-public-school-taxes.html?fbclid=IwAR2RkpCzS8rhHA4kar_bRfw-eMxQnhtVQsvw8-K8pSzscLQfm6Zp1Nr67Rw
Willoughby-Eastlake Residents Speak Out
Some VERY unhappy residents in the Willoughby-Eastlake School district sent LFC this flyer that has been distributed throughout the community. They would like Superintendent Steve Thompson to answer these questions: Has the school board already passed a resolution making the… Read More ›
Residential Property Tax Rates…Northeast Ohio comparison
We expanded our research comparing the residential property tax rates for Northeast Ohio counties to the overall State of Ohio average. Here is the link to our previous article comparing Lake County to the overall State of Ohio average: https://lobbyistsforcitizens.com/2019/10/20/state-of-ohio-property-taxes-how-does-lake-county-stack-up/ Kudos… Read More ›
State of Ohio Property Taxes…how does Lake County stack up?
We wanted to illustrate how the Lake County political sub-divisions are relying very heavily on property taxes for their funding. Here is a definition of a political sub-division: “POLITICAL SUBDIVISIONS are local governments created by the states to help fulfill their… Read More ›
Proposed Property Tax Legislation…updated 10/15/19
We have found a piece of legislation proposed by State Senator Kristna Roegner (District 27 – Akron area) dealing with property taxes. SB No 216 proposed bill “To amend sections 319.302 and 5705.211 and to enact sections 323.1510 and 4503.0612… Read More ›
Looking Into Our Crystal Ball…housing affordability
As a follow-up to our last article on the Housing Affordability Threshold, we wanted to see what the future holds for Lake County seniors regarding the possibilities of being priced out of their homes due to increasing property taxes. Here… Read More ›
Housing Affordability Threshold…the “take-aways”
We have been asked once again to discuss the Housing Affordability Threshold %; how it is calculated, and why is it important to the taxpayers? We started on this journey after discovering the ~40% increase in this writer’s property taxes… Read More ›
Follow-up with the State Auditor’s Office
We followed-up with the State of Ohio Auditor’s office. We wanted to be sure that the received our first message regarding the current problems in the Lake County Auditor’s office. Here is the email we sent to them: This is… Read More ›
Who is Derek Merrin?…a legislator fighting for us
Who is Derek Merrin? Derek Merrin is the state representative for the 47th District of the Ohio House of Representatives. He is a Republican. The district comprises portions of Fulton County and Lucas County. He caught our attention when we… Read More ›
Kirtland School Levies…
Here are the current Kirtland School District’s levies. You will see that they also have a levy passed in 1976 for 42.95 mills that now has an effective tax rate of 12.110783 for Class 1 (residential/agricultural) property. It appears Superintendent… Read More ›
W-E School Levies…
We had a request for information about the existing Willoughby-Eastlake School District’s property tax levies. Here is the Lake County Auditor’s Schedule A that provides the details. Please note that the school district likes the “emergency” levies because they are… Read More ›
Concord Taxing District 8-9-10…how your property taxes have grown
By request, we are providing the property tax schedules comparing 2018 vs 2008 for Concord Township’s taxing districts 8, 9, 10, and in total. You will see that the taxing district revolves around the school district and public library that… Read More ›
Wickliffe Real Estate Taxes…taxing district 29
We were asked by a Wickliffe lobbyist if we had any information on real estates taxes, specifically for Wickliffe schools. Here is what we have on file for those in taxing district 29. You can find your taxing district on… Read More ›
W-E School Cover-Up….updated 9/20/19
We asked Mr. Thompson, Willoughby-Eastlake School Superintendent, for the chart that the school Treasurer showed at the last school board meeting. He sent the following chart to us. We, respectfully, disagree. This is not the chart that we remember being… Read More ›
W-E Schools…5 Year Financial Forecast
From the Willoughby-Eastlake website we found their 5 year financial forecast… http://fyf.oecn.k12.oh.us/genForecast.asp?IRN=45104&Format=HTML Here are some interesting numbers from the report: Category 2016 … Read More ›
Why Do Schools Keep Asking for Money?…we are way past the 3 R’s
Our last analysis of the Lake County Property Taxes by political sub-division revealed that ~68% of all property taxes (Class 1, Class 2, Class 3) are for schools. We wanted to make everyone aware of a book, given to us… Read More ›
Affordable Concord Taxes…a more sensible solution is needed
We are pleased to support the efforts of Concord’s ‘Affordable Concord Taxes’ group of dedicated volunteers by spreading the word about their fundraiser. Like any venture it takes money to get the word to the people. We ask that you… Read More ›
Continuing Property Tax Levies…”forever is a very long time”
We were asked by the Tax Working Group https://taxwg.com for our opinion on property tax levies that are “continuous” rather than for a fixed period of time. The freedoms listed in the U.S. Constitution should be forever, the ability of politicians and… Read More ›