Letter: Newly gained equity in homes is overrated

Wednesday, Dec. 1, 2004 | 9:11 a.m.

How many residents of Nevada really care about the high appraised value of their property, be it farm, mine, business or residence? Most do not care about the equity and have no intention of selling. In fact, many are now fearful that they may need to sell out to speculators because of new and outrageous taxes.

We read comments from Sun columnist Jon Ralston, and other columnists, about the mentality of those living here who "have done nothing to create the unearned equity but are enjoying the benefits" from the astronomical jump in property values. The governments now expect us to pay taxes based on this virtual money. Ask anyone about their better standard of living due to the latest paper values. How much enjoyment is there for families trying to scrape up enough to pay their inheritance taxes, annual fees, and/or newly skyrocketing property taxes. Tell us about the joys of "growth"!

Many businesses do indeed benefit from growth through increased income. Most people and/or businesses are quite willing to pay their share of normal taxes. The slackers seem to be mostly those who directly profit from various kinds of property development, conversions, speculations and sales. Let them pay for the outrageous costs of this growth through taxes on transfer of real property based on these paper equities.

RICHARD E. LAW