WIS News 10 - Columbia, South Carolina | What caused one viewer's tax bill to increase $1,300?

What caused one viewer's tax bill to increase $1,300?

By Drew Stewart - bio | email

COLUMBIA, SC (WIS) - WIS News 10 viewer Veda Bennett recently opened her 2009 property tax bill for some land she owns in Richland County. Expecting a modest amount, she got the shock of her life.

"It made me sick," said Bennett of the tax bill.

In 2008, the Bennetts paid about $1,000 in taxes, but for 2009, the bill increased to around $2,300.

They planned to use that land to build their dream home, but now that plan is in jeopardy.

So why did her tax burden jump so high? Blame it on act 388. It's a law enacted by the General Assembly after voters passed a referendum on a statewide penny sales tax in exchange for relief on property taxes. But the act has instead been anything but relieving for counties and land owners alike.

John Cloyd is the tax assessor for Richland County. He says the problem lies within the way taxes are levied on properties. Properties sold more recently are taxed on their sale price. Homes that were sold before act 388 took effect are taxed at their most recent assessment value.

"If all of the properties are valued in a neighborhood at $100,000, and those were 2004 values, and someone buys a house for $130,000 in 2009, then they're assessed at $130,000," said Cloyd. "That's not fair and equitable taxation."

So folks like the Bennetts who bought property in the past two years are getting hit with the heaviest increases.

Plus, 2009 is a reassessment year for Richland County. Cloyd says because of the property value cap, more than $1 billion of property is going untaxed

As for Veda Bennett, the increased taxes mean her family's may be deferred.

"We're gonna have to sell it," said Bennett. "We can't afford to keep it. The plan was to sell our home and build a house on that property in Chapin, but we're not going to be able to do that."

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