It's counterintuitive, but in Detroit, the hope is that by lowering property taxes, the city might actually collect more in property taxes.
"Detroit's multiyear effort to update property tax assessments so that they more accurately reflect market values is coming to a close," reports Matt Helms, "with the city poised for another round of lower rates for some neighborhoods and increases in others."
The city reappraised 255,000 residential properties, for the first citywide reappraisal process in decades, according to Helms. In the meantime, homeowners were stuck with "property tax bills far exceeding market values as the city's population declined and blight engulfed neighborhoods at alarming rates."
Mayor Mike Duggan has stated that by reducing property taxes, the city might actually collect more property taxes "because people are more willing to pay taxes based on realistic valuations."
FULL STORY: Detroit finalizes fix of city property tax assessments
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