dzial67

I think that in the USA when you rent a property, Property Taxes are paid by the landlord and included in the rental fees?

Can someone confirm please, it's not mentioned in the adverts that we're checking to find a place to live.

Thanks

discoviking

Property tax is the responsibility of the property owner. If there is a mortgage on the property, the bank servicing the mortgage will typically collect a monthly amount on top of the regular mortgage payment from the borrower, put this in an escrow account and pay the property tax from this account to ensure all property taxes are payed and their collateral is protected. The same is often done for required property insurance

The property owner may pass some or all of these costs on to you when determining the size of your scheduled rental payment.

Additional insurance to protect your personal items would be your responsibility.

dzial67

Thanks

Rete

When the landlord calculates the rental fee of the apartment, his expenses are part of the calculation and that would include their real estate taxes. After all it is a write off for them when they do their state taxes.

dzial67

Thanks

In the UK it is different - the renter is liable and pays Council Tax (equivalent to Property Tax) separately direct to the local council. At the end of the day it is the same amount if the tax is included in the rent in the US but I didn't want to rent somewhere and discover I had extra costs to pay over and above the rent.

Duncan Roberts

Depending on where you live and work you will likely have to pay "council" tax, known as city tax. Completely different to property taxes and not applicable to all cities but where it is you have to pay it where you live and where you work. That you pay directly to the tax man.

dzial67

Now I'm confused.

Does anyone know if this City Tax is due in St Louis? And how is it calculated?

Or is it an Income Tax - I know my wife (USC) was paying a State Tax as well as a Federal Tax on her earnings - is this what you mean?

Rete

It is an Income Tax. Not a council tax or property tax.

City Tax is usually a percentage of what you pay the state annually in taxes on top of the state tax and it is all filed with your state income tax.

For example, I pay federal tax, state tax for NYS and city tax for the city of Yonkers and county tax for the county of Westchester. But there are only two tax forms. One is for the federal government and one is for the state government which includes the city and county taxes.

Now I'm confused I thought council houses were welfare housing. So are you saying that all people have to pay a council tax so that people who live in those houses can rent cheaper than those that do not live in council houses.

As for your city and state, ask your wife and/or google the state and city online.

Duncan Roberts

No idea about St Louis but just a 30 second google search suggests you may be hit for 1%. It really isn't a council tax but it is based on you rather than your property.

Between me and my wife we will be paying tax to 4 cities this year on top of State and federal. Two are in the same regional tax system so we only pay the system once but the tax is figured for both. The tax for the cities we work in is deducted as a payroll tax but where we live is estimated each year when we do our tax return and then billed quarterly with any shortfall being paid when we do our tax return.

Duncan Roberts

Council tax in the UK is like property tax here and pays for all the services and that kind of junk. I would assume that a portion of it goes to support council housing.

dzial67

Council Houses are welfare houses. Irrespective of that everyone has to pay Council Tax (Used to be called Poll Tax or prior to that Rates) to the local council. Councils are local governing bodies who organise Rubbish (trash) collection, road maintenance etc etc. Some people on low incomes can be exempt.

If you rent your home you pay Council Tax as well as the rent. I'm not sure how this works for Council Housing (which is rented) as the Council Tax is calculated on the the theoretical value of your property.

My wife is from Illinois so she does now how it works in Missouri and St Louis.

I did check out the 'Collector of Revenue' website for St Louis but can't find a simple, you pay this, this and this, explanation in language that I can understand.

dzial67

sorry - should read 'my wife does NOT know what happens in ..

dzial67

I did do a search and did not find something that I could easily understand. Could you post the address where you got the 1% from please?

Also it seems quite onerous that you pay tax to 4 cities. Can you say what this means in real terms, i.e. if you earn £100 what do you pay in tax?

Rete

It is paid on April 15 when you file your state income taxes and it is part and parcel of your state income tax form.

We don't use pounds in the US for Dollars.

So if you owed State Tax of $5,000 and your city tax is 1% then you owe an additional $50. Thus the entire tax billis $5,050.

This is taken out of your wages by your employer.

May I ask why you are concerned about this? Will you guys be living very marginally financially and therefore are concerned about the nickels and dimes?

Rete

Years ago when Manhattan/NYC had a city tax, like Duncan, I had to pay New York City Tax, Yonkers City Tax and New York State Tax in addition to Federal Taxes.

The employer withholds taxes from your pay based on what you earn and the number of dependents you claim on your W-4 which you complete at the start of your employment. You do not have to do any calculations, nor do you have to worry about where to pay. You and your wife will file your State and Federal taxes between January 1 and April 15 for the previous year, i.e. you pay in 2010 for 2009.

Does this help at all?

PS Welfare is funded by the monies you pay in taxes. It is not a separate charge to you.