New More Accurate Property Tax Website Launched

The website Daft.ie has now launched its own Local Property Tax calculator (Click HERE to estimate property tax payment due.)

All the functions on this property website allows the user to input much more information with regards to their private property than the site recently provided by the Government’s own, dare I say, useless Revenue.ie property valuation guide.

Users can insert their geographical location, the number of bedrooms contained, bathrooms and property description, thus providing a useful tool for home owners wishing to guesstimate a more accurate market value for their property.

Daft.ie state that house owners will get a more accurate estimate by using this website, but warned that it should still only be used as an indicator.

For answers, by Revenue, to ‘Frequently Asked Questions,’ (FAQs) on this soon to be implemented Property Tax, Click HERE.

What most people are blissfully unaware of is the meaning of the word DEFER.

My understanding of this word is that imagine your estimated gross income from all sources does not exceed €15,000 for a single person or €25,000 for a couple during the relevant year (for this year’s Return the relevant year will be 2013), you can choose to defer your full Local Property Tax (LPT) liability. In other words you can opt to pay nothing, based on hardship and inability to pay. However this deferred tax will remains a charge on your property and you will be charged interest on the deferred amounts at a rate of 4% per year.

Let me make it simpler for you, this present government is about to register your property with the equivalent of what is called a “Judgement Mortgage,” latter normally attributed to those who refuse to pay outstanding debt.

Imagine you are an old aged pensioner aged 70 below the stated income for this year and you go to meet your maker aged 75, your son or daughter, whom you may wish to inherit your property, will now be obliged to pay all your outstanding deferred Property Tax, on the sale of this property, at a rate of 4% per year, over the previous 5 years of your deferral, unless the vendors income also is below the same income threshold as the previous owner.

This new property tax now makes us all just mere tenants in our own homes, latter which could be eventually stolen by the Irish State, depending on your personal financial circumstances.

Is it now time to emigrate or perhaps change our present governing body? Come back England all is forgiven.

Regarding the latter, this St Patrick’s weekend might be the perfect opportunity to stage a bloodless coup. Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Jimmy Deenihan, Joan Burton, Minister of State Alan Kelly (North Tipperary) & Richard Bruton will all be in the USA, Tánaiste Eamon Gilmore will be in Canada, Leo Varadkar, Michael Ring & Dinny McGinley are touring the British Isles.  Michael Noonan is going to France, Pat Rabbitte to Italy, Simon Coveney to the Benelux countries, while Chief Whip Paul Kehoe is going to Germany, and Minister of State John Perry will be heading to Finland and Sweden. Brendan Howlin is going to Singapore, Alan Shatter to Australia and New Zealand, and Minister of State Ciaran Cannon heads for China. Popular Minister Phil Hogan has been asked not to attend official events abroad this St Patrick’s weekend and is therefore expected to return to visit Ireland over this same period.

When the Fine Gael/ Labour led Government took office two years ago, the Ministerial travel for St Patrick’s Day was scaled back to just 8 Ministers and the Taoiseach taking part in March 17th festivities outside the State. This number increased to 16 Ministers and the Taoiseach in 2012. In 2013, 19 Ministers and their Juniors with the Taoiseach will travel overseas to some 21 countries.

My question is, “Who is minding the shop?” Then I suppose it would be different if we were experiencing a recession. Now you understand the meaning of the  proverb “The more things change the more they stay the same.” (Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr, 1908 – 1990)