Feb 1st Deadline for Sr Citizen STAR Tax Exemption.

If you are a senior citizen, aged 65 or older and own and occupy a house in the city of Rochester, you may qualify for a reduction in your school taxes.  This year, the senior tax exemptions will range from a 50 percent reduction for those with 2010 incomes of $29,000 or less, to a 5 percent reduction for those who didn’t earn more than $37,400. Applications must be in the City Assessor's

Lobbyist For a Day

I spent the day in Albany yesterday with approximately 50 other Realtors from both Rochester and Buffalo to meet with several of our state legislators to discuss upcoming legislation that affects local homeowners and the real estate market.The most important item on our agenda was the need for property tax relief. New Yorkers pay an exorbitant amount of property taxes and Western New Yorkers pay

New York State Property Taxes

This should come as no surprise. New York homeowners pay highest property taxes in nationAccording to a recent report by the Washington-based Tax Foundation, New Yorkers are saddled with the highest property tax burden in the nation. The counties paying the highest actual property taxes in the nation are Westchester and Nassau with average burdens nearing $8,000 per year. Monroe County ranks

Mayor Duffy Wants to Know What I Think!

No I didn't get a phone call! Or a personal letter! But I did get a survey stuck into our storm door.It's number crunching time at Rochester's City Hall and Mayor Bob Duffy has asked for neighborhood feedback regarding fees, taxes and services."What are the most important services to you and your neighborhood?", the survey asks. To me, that's pretty easy. Police protection and fighting crime are

Buying Based on Property Taxes

"The biggest disparity between New York and the rest of the country is the property tax."That's what the front page of today's Democrat and Chronicle reported! No sh#%t!!! I talk to people all the time that are considering relocating to New York and once they get a peak at the property taxes, well, I need to bring out the smelling salts! Case in point, last week I got a call from Costa Rico

Reassessment in the City of Rochester

We got the letters in the mail several weeks ago announcing a reassessment of all residential and commercial property in the city of Rochester during the next four months. There was a neighborhood meeting last night with good information about the assessment process.The city announced that on average, property assessments will go up 10 percent in order to have assessed values closer to market

Property Tax Rebate Checks

When you weed through all your junk mail during the next few weeks, be on the lookout for a letter and application from the State of New York for a property tax rebate. Applications are scheduled to be mailed to western New York in mid to late July.You might recall that last year, New York State property owners simply received a rebate check. This year, our state legislature, in its infinite