Did Bentzin Cheat On His Own Taxes?

Come back to reality (0.00 / 0)

Ask anyone who has built a home or made additions.  The appraised value has less to do how much you actually spend, and more to do with market demand. 

For example, building a $50,0000 pool can have negligible affect on the appraised value, or even make it harder to sell.  For many people they don't want the hassle of a pool, and those that really want a pool will just build one.

The Texas Democratic Party is unlikely to get much traction with this one anyway.  Hello, this is HD48, where many people are pissed off about paying too much in property taxes.  Bentzin has my sympathy with regards to high property taxes.

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by: marko @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 02:48:02 AM UTC

He doesn't have mine... (3.00 / 1)

I don't get a break on my property taxes because TCAD has it estimated properly. I can blame TCAD and I can definitely blame Bentzin for not properly estimating value.

The law is the law and we all have to pay our fair share. Ben's unwilling to do that, which means someone's gotta make up for him.

Everything I hear, see and read about this guy makes me respect him less and less. Oh wait... I never had much respect for him anyway.

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by: The Trey @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 03:22:02 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Taxes (0.00 / 0)

While it is true that most homes are appraised at less than their actual value, those types of homes at less than 50% shows a bit of an ethical lapse, certainly for someone running for public office.

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by: Karl-Thomas Musselman @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 03:15:01 AM UTC

State Law... (0.00 / 0)

mandates that county value estimates for ad valorum taxes must be (I think) within 5-10% of actual value of the home.

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by: The Trey @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 03:25:07 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

heh (0.00 / 0)

Well, that's certainly not happening in a lot of parts of the state...

Please read the Community Guidelines and How to Rate Comments.

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by: Karl-Thomas Musselman @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 03:27:56 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Example? (0.00 / 0)

Karl, can you back that up?  Please provide an example.

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by: marko @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 05:12:01 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

I was trying to get a valuation using Zillow.com (3.00 / 1)

Just to test it out, but the damn site is too busy. 

Anyway you can do a search at the Travis Central Appraisal District on-line.

www.traviscad.org/search.htm and search for Bentzin.  I found two records for Island Cove addresses for the Bentzins.

4513 ISLAND CV
AUSTIN, TX 78731-5143
Land Value  476,897.00
Assessed Value  476,897.00

4603 ISLAND CV
AUSTIN, TX 78731-5143
Land Value  676,000.00
Improvement Value  1,992,455.00
Assessed Value  2,668,455.00

Seems like that second high dollar mansion is still very undervalued.  The history in that record does show that the initial assessment for that property was $539,000.00 and then it jumped to $1,365,525.00 the following year.  I imagine that's when the house was completed.

Interesting, very interesting.

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by: sonia @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 03:57:25 AM UTC

Quotes from zillow (0.00 / 0)

zillow estimates 4513 at $505,224 and 4603 at $2,744,809, so TCAD is pretty accurate.

Even the numbers quoted by the alleged TDP press release aren't that crazy.  Sounds like much ado about nothing.

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by: marko @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 05:09:30 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

The back taxes don't pertain to the current values (0.00 / 0)

The back taxes are based on the reported undervaluation of the homes when they were built.  I think that he's paying the fair value now, since the TCAD finally caught up with the right property values for that area.  The allegation is about the initial reporting value that would have meant several years of lower taxes, since Bentzin low balled his home's market value considering his costs. 

I hardly think that skirting your responsibility to pay your fair share of taxes is nothing.  And $100,000 of back taxes owed to the school children of Texas is pretty substantial.

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by: sonia @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 06:23:08 AM UTC

[ Parent ]

Unlikely (0.00 / 0)

The Burnt Orange assertion is that Bentzin cheated on his property taxes.  But let's consider how the process normally works.  Whatever land Benztin purchased on City Park Rd in 1996 would already have an appraised value.  The price he paid could be a lot higher (or lower) than the appraised value, so you can't assume the price he paid is the actual appraised value. 

Furthermore, the only way Ben could reduce the appraised value of the land would be to request a hearing in front of the board.  The board would then evaluate his evidence and possible adjust the appraised value up or down.

When you build a house, TCAD has a form you can fill out that provides them additional information (bedrooms, baths, etc), but that form is optional.  TCAD takes responsibility for determining the appraised value, including when improvements are made.

One additional comment about City Park Rd.  Some land in that area is designated warbler habitat.  For example, you might by a 10 acre plot, but warbler restrictions only allow you to develop on 2 acres of it.  This can dramatically lower the appraised value.  Someone may still be willing to pay a lot more, especially in such a scenic area of town.

Based on the information provided by Burnt Orange, it seems unlikely Bentzin did anything to "cheat".

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by: marko @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 15:24:51 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Not a Surprise (0.00 / 0)

Not a big surprise, considering who we're talking about here. It's good to see the Dems bringing this kind of stuff up. During the 2004 cycle I saw a lot of similar material surface regarding other Republican candidates, only to see the Dems sit on it for fear of being accused of "negative campaigning". If the Republicans throw dirt, we need to throw dirt right back. Only our dirt has the virtue of being true, whereas Republican dirt is made up.

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by: Monk of Miletus @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 04:10:45 AM UTC

Case closed (0.00 / 0)

Chief appraiser for TCAD speaks up.

"Chief Appraiser Art Cory at the Travis Central Appraisal District said that the values on permit applications typically are low and that his agency doesn't use them in appraisals. He said if Bentzin's property is undervalued, it's because the real estate market has exploded in the past year and the Legislature has refused to give appraisers access to sales prices — the best data for ensuring accurate appraisals."

source: www.statesman.com

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by: marko @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 15:35:53 PM UTC

OK. (0.00 / 0)

Thanks for the heads up on the article.

Now, a very great man once said that some people rob you with a fountain pen.

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by: Phillip Martin, Progress Texas @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 15:51:29 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

Art's a little wrong... (0.00 / 0)

the market hasn't really 'exploded' in the last year. Unless he's referring to whisper sales, the high end market hasn't been real active since before the dot-bombs started going bye-bye.

TCAD has 2.6Mn assessed on a hard cost of (speculation) over 4Mn. While you may not get dollar for dollar, I'd be willing to bet that the value is substantially higher than 2.6Mn.

Technically, TCAD is the one to blame as they bear the ultimate responsibility for the assessment. However, it's nice to see Ben's commitment to the community . While TCAD doesn't take into account what the owner files, he still could have used something closer to the real value. He filled it out, he filed it. Whether it had an effect on the assessment or not, HE DID IT, ostensibly with the goal of having the assessment set as low as possible.

It's a shame we don't all live in homes that are so difficult for TCAD to value.

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by: The Trey @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 17:42:17 PM UTC

[ Parent ]

The Low Road (3.00 / 1)

This is a pathetic tactic and even if it is true has little to do with public policy and how Ben would vote.

If Ds are successful in defeating Ben and this tactic contributes then we are just lowering the bar for the next campaign.

Donna, who I like and respect, was a nurse. Do we want someone to go through all the records of her career to find questionable decisions?  With the headline "Donna Howard's negligence almost kills four people?"

Ds that prompt this kind of tactic are just as destructive as the Right wingers they resent.

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by: pjsilver @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 16:52:47 PM UTC

and my last comment on here...?? (0.00 / 0)

Interesting how the BORLib chiefs deleted my last comment referring to how a lib on here said only allegations against Republicans are true. Comes to show that libs are blowing smoke when they try to champion diversity...

www.completethewar.com

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by: sfagrad02 @ Fri Feb 10, 2006 at 21:51:14 PM UTC

It wasn't deleted... (0.00 / 0)

It received two "0" votes by fellow readers. That means two folks found your comment unproductive to the point that they felt it deserved to be a "hidden" comment.

Really need to read the rules about the new website. Also, you could join the others dissenters that don't make ridiculous statements (Streisand's blog?) when they dissent...

Now, a very great man once said that some people rob you with a fountain pen.

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by: Phillip Martin, Progress Texas @ Sat Feb 11, 2006 at 00:24:19 AM UTC

[ Parent ]