I really doubt such people (i.e. "plenty of retired public servants that live in very valuable properties and pay little or no income tax") exist
That's fine PMU.
I've no way of actually proving that I personally know of plenty of retired couples in precisely these circumstances so if you don't accept my word for it there's not much I can do about it.
However, I would point out that many of these couples bought their (now valuable) houses in the early 1970s (when average second-hand house prices in Dublin were less than €10k - source:
http://www.cso.ie/en/media/csoie/re...ts/statisticalyearbook/2004/ireland&theeu.pdf) and the average pension paid to a retired civil servant last year (€24k) is publcly available information. I assume you are not disputing the exemption from income tax (€36k) for a couple once one reaches 65?
If you have little or no taxable income the imposition of LPT may be so high relative to your income that it is demonstrably unfair.
That's where we fundamentally disagree.
If somebody holds an asset whose value is significantly attributable to or derived from services provided out of the public purse (policing, proximity to schools, etc) then I think it is entirely appropriate that society imposes a levy on that person - regardless of their income.
In any event, LPT can be deferred where a property owner can't discharge the tax out of their income so this is all a bit moot.
Tax on inheritances has nothing to do with local authority services
Exactly. So inheritance taxes have nothing to do with any discussion on the merits or otherwise of property taxes. Any more than corporation tax, income tax, excise duties, etc.
In any event, the reliefs on the taxes on inheritances are so high that most of these property holdings will never be taxed (over and above the LPT regime). Gains arising on the sale of a PPR are obviously totally relieved from CGT.
The 'international comparison' argument is spurious. You can say this about almost anything in any society.
I'm not arguing that we should have meaningful property taxes simply because they have them everywhere else - I happen to think that there are fundamentally justifiable reasons for taxing capital assets whose value largely derives from publicly funded services.
However, where we are an outlier in terms of our approach to any issue then I think it's perfectly valid to question that approach. Don't you?
As for contributing to 'significant misallocation of housing resources' this is also spurious and furthermore dangerous.
Again, I disagree but I think you may have misunderstood the point.
As things stand in Dublin, it is quite commonplace for mature "empty nester" couples to live in large, suburban homes while their offspring are trying to raise families in cramped apartments. There is no incentive for the older cohort to "right size" to accommodation that would be more appropriate to their needs and hence the mis-allocation of resources.
I'm not suggesting for a second that the State should intervene to force the older cohort to "right size" their accommodation needs. However, the under-utilisation of their property clearly represents a cost to society. A meaningful property tax would help to address this problem.