Why site value tax is best option
Sunday December 2 2012
Madam – We the undersigned support the introduction of a property tax based on the unimproved value of all residential sites, and all zoned land, ie the value that has not been created by the landowner. A tax on the unimproved portion of property value is a Site Value Tax (SVT).
SVT is the most equitable, efficient and effective property tax option for the Government. Unlike a conventional property tax that taxes the ‘improved’ portion of the property, ie the buildings and thus penalises construction, SVT is non-distortionary, creates no economic drag and has minimal adverse effects.
By capturing unearned value at an early stage of the property development process, SVT discourages empty buildings, land speculation, hoarding and over-zoning and diverts capital and available credit into productive investment and sustainable jobs.
In the long term, an SVT will moderate violent fluctuations in the property market and general economy.
SVT provides a stable base to fund vital infrastructure and services and offers a transparent link between the private benefits of public investment and the source of the investment.
SVT will reduce the property tax burden on homeowners by one-third by spreading the burden on to development land-owning individuals, firms and banks which were largely responsible for the current crisis.
Peter Antonioni, UCL;
Bill Black, Associate Professor of Economics and Law, University of Kansas;
Dr Micheal Collins, NERI (Nevin Economic Research Institute);
Karl Deeter QFA, (LIAM) dip;
Dr Constantin Gurdgiev, Adjunct Prof at Trinity College Dublin;
Dr Stephen Kinsella, University of Limerick;
Professor Brian Lucey, Trinity College;
Ronan Lyons, Balliol College, Oxford;
Dr Terrence McDonough, Economics, NUI Galway
See also Maireid Sullivan’s piece at
http://www.globalartscollective.org/what-has-happened-to-Irelands-sovereignty.htm
and don’t forget to click on the Ireland v. Norway video there!
