Recently, The Fountain Hills Times published a misleading article on the front page. First of all, the article does not mention that the property tax calculation is based on limited property value, not fair market value. I think it is important to distinguish that.
Also, according to the Fountain Hills Property Tax FAQ, the average limited property value in Fountain Hills approximates $300,000. The Times’ example for the upcoming primary property tax election used $500,000 as an average home valuation. Shouldn’t they be using the true average rather than this inflated amount? I plugged $500,000 into the Residential Property Tax Estimator on the town website. The primary property tax for a limited value of $500,000 would be $750.05, not $760 as The Times stated.
The article also does not mention that the $36 environmental fee will end if the primary property tax passes. It also neglects to mention that various bonds will be paid off in 2020, which would reduce the property taxes by another $212.95 for this residence as of 2020. The net is $501.10 for a limited property value of $500,000 as of 2020. The paper is making the tax seem much higher than it will be for the average person in Fountain Hills.
Using the average limited property value of $300,000, the calculation would be $450.03-$36-$127.77 (as of 2020) for a total of $286.26. This averages out to $23.86 per month after the bonds are paid off in 2020.
To me, at less than a dollar a day for the average homeowner, it is worth it to pass this primary property tax. If it doesn’t pass, Town Council will have to make drastic cuts. Consider it an investment in our future and vote yes in the upcoming election.
