Comment by pengstrom
3 hours ago
Isn't all money "after tax" though? It all goes around. The exception would maybe be the treasury minting loans.
Everything is unfair. The housing crisis is unfair. Young families struggling to afford a family home is unfair. Having to pay into a pension system you'll never get to use is unfair. Land and housing is different from personal property. There's only so much to go around and we'll have to share. A property tax is one tool to incentivize efficient allocation, and to drive prices down.
The idea is to tax on income..income gets spent. You earn more and get taxed on "new income".
The concept of taxing what's already taxed has some perverse effects.
I concede though that property tax in the U.S is just a way for local authorities to be able to fund schools, and other municipal infrastructure. It remains odd though that most countries do have local taxes, but summing to a fraction of what a ~1% tax every year may represent. As it's a small percentage but on the most valuable and critical asset one may have sacrificed during his life, to own a roof as primary residence.