Tortoise wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 10:26 am
My understanding is that housing prices have been rising for years in places all over the world, not just in Texas or even just the US. I suspect it has something to do with the interest rates across the world having been low for many years now.
Regarding the high property tax in Texas, at least be thankful that you guys have zero state income tax. Has anyone ever compared total state taxes (e.g., income tax plus property tax) in different states for different income brackets?
I wonder if the rise in popularity of remote work will eventually result in states competing with each other on tax rates as remote workers flock to the states with the lowest total taxes. People used to have to move where the jobs were, but with remote work the jobs are now everywhere.
That list is useful, but it's based on broad averages. The total tax bill could potentially look very different for each state depending on a person's income and the size of home/property they choose to own.
I spent a lot of time doing that a couple years ago. You really have to get into the weeds to figure this stuff out, though. For instance, in Michigan you can deduct money for heating your home in the winter. With local taxes especially, it's pretty much impossible to compare vast amounts of places, because local taxes are so different. You might look at one town and think their taxes are high compared to another one, but then find out it's because they include garbage and the other one doesn't. Stuff like that.
Some things surprised me, like how low California's income tax was if you don't make a lot of money. I think Vermont was also not as bad as I assumed it was. Arkansas has incredibly high income tax rates.
The difference between states is probably not relevant to where you want to live unless it's a toss up between NY and TN or whatever.
I'm about to finish up 2 weeks in Des Moines, Iowa. And, really, I have nothing but good things to say about this town.
I wouldn't live here full time, but if you are just checking the boxes...
- trendy
- riverfront
- parks
- cocktail bars and steak houses
- midwest farmer's daughters
- not as cheap as I would hope, but pretty cheap
- good experience at the car dealership
- good experience at the dermatologist. Sweet young thing took cash on the barrelhead and sliced me up with a plain old razor blade. Hell of a good job. I wish more people worked that way.
Mark Leavy wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 7:47 pm
I'm about to finish up 2 weeks in Des Moines, Iowa. And, really, I have nothing but good things to say about this town.
I wouldn't live here full time, but if you are just checking the boxes...
- trendy
- riverfront
- parks
- cocktail bars and steak houses
- midwest farmer's daughters
- not as cheap as I would hope, but pretty cheap
- good experience at the car dealership
- good experience at the dermatologist. Sweet young thing took cash on the barrelhead and sliced me up with a plain old razor blade. Hell of a good job. I wish more people worked that way.
Try it in December and let us know how you like the frigid prairie weather.
I mention this because I went to school not too far from there, in a town that holds the record for the all-time low temperature in Illinois.
Libertarian666 wrote: ↑Tue Jul 14, 2020 9:04 pm
Try it in December and let us know how you like the frigid prairie weather.
I mention this because I went to school not too far from there, in a town that holds the record for the all-time low temperature in Illinois.
Yea, I did ask a few of the locals what winter was like and they were a bit non-committal...
My cousins grew up in Des Moines. We went out to visit them in the winter, and it was awesome. We played all day in the woods with (IIRC) 38ft of snow. Only one fatality.
Kriegsspiel wrote: ↑Wed Jul 15, 2020 5:24 am
My cousins grew up in Des Moines. We went out to visit them in the winter, and it was awesome. We played all day in the woods with (IIRC) 38ft of snow. Only one fatality.
Kriegsspiel wrote: ↑Wed Jul 15, 2020 5:24 am
My cousins grew up in Des Moines. We went out to visit them in the winter, and it was awesome. We played all day in the woods with (IIRC) 38ft of snow. Only one fatality.