Over payment of Property tax in Northern Maine (real estate, assessors)

[northho]

I have a question for the lawyers and backseat lawyers.

My parents purchased 80 acres in 1971 in the County, They paid taxes for a couple of years, then they checked with the town, and they were paying on 86 acres, they went in and supposedly it was taken care of in 1973, but Mom called the town office this year, 2008, and they have been paying on 86 acres for the last 37 years, Does anyone know the legality of what their rights are? They have paid a significant sum o the town for nothing.

[Maine Writer]

Talk to the tax collector and selectman/board.

[SteveMartin]

Chances are the town's tax maps are highly inaccurate. Has a survey been done on the property?

[Northern Maine Land Man]

Old deeds said 80 acres "more or less". They could well own 86 acres. I have seen it happen. One of our members is about to gain a few acres due to a recent boundary survey. Old stone walls had a way of meandering.

[flycessna]

I would consider the value of the land more appropiate and whether or not 86 vs 80 acres supports that much of a higher valuation. You might be getting worked up over nothing. Just look at it in the big picture.

with that said though that's a huge mistake. Does your mother have any old letters or evidence of having already dealt with this...that could go a long way.

I got in tiff with one of our assessors because they were giving the same value for all of the 1/2 acre lots in my folks neighborhood. After trying to explain to him the these are supposed to be real values and not all 1/2 acre lots are created equall he said that basically that they would only consider a few factors when changing someone's value. My folks home has a sewage pipe running through their back yard, I had argued that it should lower the value of the lot considering they would never be able to...." lets say put a pool in" ect....highest and best usage....right. well I guess not Good luck

[AliceT]

Originally Posted by Northern Maine Land Man

Old deeds said 80 acres "more or less". They could well own 86 acres. I have seen it happen. One of our members is about to gain a few acres due to a recent boundary survey. Old stone walls had a way of meandering.

I am that member and he is referring to my property in Maine and it applies to the back of said tract of land. There is almost slim to no chance that I will ever see the back side of my property. A few more or a few less makes no difference in the scheme of things. I still will pay $199 for 50 or 54 or 58 or possibly 63 acres in Maine while I am paying that for a little house on city water and sewer but surrounded by woods in WV and am paying $3,500 in taxes for the 5 acre horse farm in FL. Don't look to me to be getting upset about the taxes in Maine when I have to deal with property taxes in FL. Thank the good Lord I didn't buy a little house on the water in FL. My cousins did and they were paying $9,500 in property taxes alone for their single story house that backed up to the Banana river.

Nah taxes in Maine don't scare me. Go ahead, add some acres to my land up there. But trust me, I would fight a wicked battle if that were the case in FL! Not even in the same league.

[SteveMartin]

Unfortunately, Florida is not worse than Maine. Maine and NH are tied for #1 in the nation at 4.9% in terms of the percentage of incomes that go just to pay real estate taxes. Unless, you live in Amity, Maine, where, for my family, it's 6.8%.

[NJ2ME]

Originally Posted by SteveMartin

Unfortunately, Florida is not worse than Maine. Maine and NH are tied for #1 in the nation at 4.9% in terms of the percentage of incomes that go just to pay real estate taxes. Unless, you live in Amity, Maine, where, for my family, it's 6.8%.

Your saying "Maine and NH are tied for #1 in the nation at 4.9% in terms of the percentage of incomes that go just to pay real estate taxes." So another words.... PERCENTAGE of people's incomes that pay their property taxes?

Thats all based on averages correct? So, say you have plenty of people in FL that have incomes of 35,000, BUT pay property taxes of 5,000 on a small property..... but in Maine that person making 35,000 pays property tax of 700. But there are a TON of millionairs in FL making those averages go WAY UP for % of income. Stuff like that effects the #'s majorly for the whole....

but for the normal person like me who can start making 35,000 for my college degree at a job here in NJ but I am paying 5,200 property taxes on my SMALL townhouse (that are going for 170,000) with NO YARD at all, driving 30 min normal drive time but it takes 1 hour plus because of mass traffic here, car innsurance in NJ is about highest in nation
OR...
live in Maine with a mortgage of say for example 100,000 with taxes of 1,000, with beautiful land and peace and quiet and not living on top of my neighbors, (we like rural too) My degree is needed up there and the average starting salary is 32,000 (only a few less per year then here),

You can say all you want that Maine is the worst or 2nd for property taxes but I still choose to pay that over what I am paying here in NJ. What it comes down too.... its different for each and every person, but Maine being so rural and such a high % of lower income wage earners, and then states that are much richer population wise, its going to effect those percentages a lot. It still falls person to person how it is going to effect them. For me and my family, Maine is what we choose.

[AustinB]

Originally Posted by SteveMartin

Unfortunately, Florida is not worse than Maine. Maine and NH are tied for #1 in the nation at 4.9% in terms of the percentage of incomes that go just to pay real estate taxes. Unless, you live in Amity, Maine, where, for my family, it's 6.8%.

Just goes to show that you should be earning more.

[northho]

Well, now if I took my GPS and did readings at all 4 corners, that would calculate out to what they should have for acreage? Right? 1 Neighbor cut over on them and split the cost to run the line for a section, it is the point of paying extra on an accounting mistake, The town said they could give a credit for 1 year taxes on the 6 acres, That is an insult. My opinion is give me the 6 acres (town has a large tract of land to cut trees on, so would make a nice addition to Mom and Dads property also it is not connected to their current lot), or the refund with interest (calculated daily) for 35 years. I want to say they are paying $2700 or so for the 86 acres.

One of the selectmen went with dad in 1973 to the town office, see how well that worked.... Mom is talking to a lawyer and I say go to take care of it and if the town gives them a hard time, serve papers then. I will be attending the town meeting and speading the word. another resident was being charged for 42 while only owning 40 still waiting on the info on what he did to take care of it.