When you look at it LPT is for more injust than the water charges and yet the water charges has got the limelight.
LPT in water terms would be like charging people a tax on water the have already purchased.
I can see future governments using this tax in the future to control the stock of property in this country. Increasing rates on elderly couples to move them out of their homes freeing up their home ( a family home near schools etc ) for the next generation.
When you look at it LPT is for more injust than the water charges and yet the water charges has got the limelight.
LPT in water terms would be like charging people a tax on water the have already purchased.
I can see future governments using this tax in the future to control the stock of property in this country. Increasing rates on elderly couples to move them out of their homes freeing up their home ( a family home near schools etc ) for the next generation.
The modern thinking see's a house as an asset not a HOME.
What is more incredible is the manner on which the LPT is charged, and the unfairness of it, particularly urban dwellers, Dublin in particular (ps I'm not a Dub! Not a City vs Country argument here).
Electricity rate - same unit charge throughout the country.
Gas - same unit charge throughout the country.
Road tax - same unit charge throughout the country.
A new electricity connection in rural Ireland will cost you a lot more than a corresponding connection in an urban area. #justsaying
Oddly enough, I'd support getting rid of road tax per se and surcharging fuel excise instead. Which would obviously entail rural drivers paying (much) more, but more importantly, society as a whole sharing the benefits of the efficiency.Should residents living there pay higher road tax? Of course not.
Because their homes are worth more?So back to my main contention, why charge urban people higher LPT?
Hardly, given that the urban electorate is now more numerous than the rural one. Mayo used have 6 seats in the Dail but will only have 4 in the next Dail.They are more concerned with the rural electorate??
It's quite probable that any policy which set LPT on the basis of age would be unconstitutional. It would also be political suicide for any party since the elderly are more likely to vote then young people.
My big problem with LPT and it supprises me that more wasn't made of it at the time ... We have already or are currently paying for our houses and paying a big big price at that , so how can it be fair for a government to come along and then start taxing us on something we have already paid for ... tax water fair enough (we all need it and we should all contribute to the cost of providing it) ... but property in this case we have provided this ourselves at our own expense no help from government ... ironically the people who are exempt from LPT are the ones the government does have to fund houses for.
a home is an asset
Would your point change if there was a higher rural electricity standing charge???Exactly my point, even though average cost is higher in a rural area, the Govt does not seek to penalise rural dwellers with a higher electricity charge. Same with Gas. Water - in my estate 150 houses, bet the average connection cost is much lower than most rural houses. Again same unit rate, which I agree with. General rule - services and utility costs are the same no matter where one lives.
As for roads, don't tell me that the average cost of the road network in Dublin per person is higher on average than the western seaboard. Should residents living there pay higher road tax? Of course not. There are 'swings and round abouts' on these costs. It is a fact that there is a large transfer of tax monies from Dublin to the regions.
So back to my main contention, why charge urban people higher LPT?
There is no logical reason other than the LPT is seen purely as a tax raising mechanism, and the only way the Govy can raise sufficient funds is to hit urban people harder, on the premise that it should be based on house values only. They are more concerned with the rural electorate??
Correction please -
A home without a loan is an asset.
A home in negative equity is a liability.
LPT makes no distinction for mortgages, negative equity, etc. At least if LPT was payable on the net house value, after mortgages, that would be a little more equitable than the current crude system for charging on gross values.
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