California Proposition 13 and 58

Conversation with Mr. Devin Lucas continues, from Page One…

Property Tax Transfer: Mr. Lucas, what is your opinion of Prop 13 critics, and we assume opponents of Proposition 58 as well, who continue to tell the media that the so-called split-roll measure is a great solution to local government  tax revenue shortages, and supposed pension under-funding?

Devin Lucas: Well, just because the local government thinks if they raise commercial property taxes that more revenue will flow into their coffers – this is silly. They’re not considering the fact that in the end the public will have to pay for the fact that commercial landlords and business property owners will raise rents on their commercial tenants. They’ll also be hiring less people.

Property Tax Transfer: So how does that work?

Devin Lucas: If businesses, stores, supermarkets, are  paying higher taxes – this will increase prices on everything – all goods and services purchased by consumers every day would go  consistently up, year after year, as their rents go up.  It’s ridiculous for split-roll supporters to think that magically all of a sudden they’ll have so much more money coming in and that will solve all their problems.

Property Tax Transfer: So who pays for all this in the end?

Devin Lucas: The public will pay for this in the end!  Even if their home taxes remain the same by avoiding property tax reassessment – all their daily expenses, day to day cost of things they need to live. They still need to buy bread and food and gas, don’t they? If that gas station owner’s property taxes go up, his gas prices will go up. He has to raise his prices to compensate for his increased taxes, right?

Property Tax Transfer: A business owner doesn’t actually have any specific obligation to raise his prices on everything…

Devin Lucas:  He has to survive! You know, that gas station owner’s property taxes can go up from $20,000 to $300,000… and who will suffer? With consumer goods, gas, utilities, clothes, food, basically all living expenses, all prices on goods and services going up? Consumers, of course. In the final analysis,consumers will suffer.

Property Tax Transfer: Thank you so much, Mr. Lucas, for talking with us today.  We greatly appreciate your time.

Devin Lucas: Thank you. Take care.

We trust Mr. Lucas’ forewarning will be heeded, so that California does not find itself slipping backwards, and in many ways forwards – into an entirely new set of unpleasant tax increases with a whole new series of jarring consumer goods and services price hikes, that would most likely occur, crippling many Californians who are just getting by, or perhaps are already saddled with numerous debts.

Devin Lucas, and seemingly most Californians, appear to believe it would be preferable to maintain Proposition 13 as is, leaving the consumer side alone, while keeping Proposition 58 as is, to be able to keep parent to child transfer of property low on taxes, avoiding property tax reassessment  or parent to child exclusion from present-day property tax reassessment.

California home owners feel very strongly about being able to maintain their parents property taxes… Without question, CA supports low rate property tax transfer; to be able to transfer parents property taxes, keeping their parent’s low rates intact… Just as Californians have grown accustomed to, when inheriting property taxes associated with inheriting a home and/or land from their parents, at any financial level. All in all, CA supports low rate property tax transfer simply by avoiding property tax reassessment at  present-day tax rates.  That’s all Californians want. Nothing complicated.  It’s really quite simple.

It’s refreshing to know that there are seasoned real estate professionals like Mr. Devin Lucas around, that do not approve of complicating matters with a confusing and unpopular “Split-Roll” property tax measure that bears the same name as the wildly popular 1978 Proposition 13 property tax shelter… Yet it is slated not to continue capping property tax rates, but to block the cap on property tax reassessment of commercial properties and industrial facilities all across California; thereby accomplishing the exact opposite affect – a tax hike   on businesses, with far-reaching consequences, that property owners in California have expressed extreme dislike and disfavor for.

Besides the clear cut popularity of Proposition 13, Californians of all incomes, residing in all areas, middle class to wealthy, have said repeatedly in surveys and polls that they’d also  prefer to leave Proposition 58 and Proposition 193 untouched, so loans to trusts, from trust lenders, are always available to citizens, whether it be a small trust loan,  or large loans to irrevocable trusts for families or for entrepreneurs – simply to help sustain a middle class or upper middle class lifestyle, household or business… whenever it’s needed.

Not that much has been written about Proposition 58 (a parent to child transfer of real property, or parent to child exclusion from avoiding property tax reassessment on any property at all) as well as Proposition 193 (grandparent to grandchild transfer of a home and/or land) so Click Here for more info on Proposition 58 and the ability to avoid property value reassessment on inherited real estate… For specific information on a related subject, property-based trust loans – Click Here.

Lucas Real Estate, property brokerage and real estate law, can be found at https://lucas-real-estate.com, if you or your family requires services such as Real Estate Sales; Real Estate Purchases; Family & Private Transactions / Propositions 58 and 193 (i.e. selling or gifting to children & grandchildren); Trust, Estate and Probate Sales / Trust Administration and Management for Real Property;  1031 Exchanges; plus numerous other residential and commercial real estate services for Californians.