Opinion: Large land owner's vote carry more weight than small land owner?

[tallyho8]

Although I have a home on 20 acres, there are some homes (McMansions) less than a mile from me on 1/2 acre lots that are valued at much more than mine and taxed more.

Politicians in our area do not like large properties like mine and are doing their best to get us to subdivide and sell so people will build expensive homes and pay high taxes so the politicians have more to spend.

Some of the towns have already outlawed owning horses and others have severe restrictions on building barns and owning livestock in their attempt to break up larger properties.

 

[ovrszd]

I'm not sure what you mean by income. Are you talking about before expenses, or after? If the former, than he needs a new accountant. If the latter, that sounds about right for any self employed person. The income tax which we all pay, plus 15+-% Social Security, which is the employer's half as well as what an employee would pay.

Edit: If he's just talking about income taxes, etc as mentioned above then that does seem like a lot. (I'm at about 27%, if I add in employer's contribution to SSI) Add on property taxes, fuel taxes, sales taxes, ... I'm not sure how much it would be.

I'm sure he meant after expenses.

 

[ovrszd]

Although I have a home on 20 acres, there are some homes (McMansions) less than a mile from me on 1/2 acre lots that are valued at much more than mine and taxed more.

Politicians in our area do not like large properties like mine and are doing their best to get us to subdivide and sell so people will build expensive homes and pay high taxes so the politicians have more to spend.

Some of the towns have already outlawed owning horses and others have severe restrictions on building barns and owning livestock in their attempt to break up larger properties.

Isn't that sad.

I am very Blessed to live in a rural area that is not growing at that pace. Here everyone still wants more personal space.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

I live out in farming country, most family's here have been here a LONG time, including mine...

Townies come out here and buy a small piece of property, build a BIG house and pretty soon they start bitchin about the sloooow tractors, combinineing at night ect...especially about spreading manure.

Then they try to change things..... through voting, sometimes trying to ban together to make changes...

There's the OTHER side of the coin, I don't mind one bit when bigger land owners/farmers out vote them!!

SR

 

[farmer2009]

Yes the farmer pays taxes on all the above, but if he doesn't have product he has no money to pay those taxes. Ultimately he gets that money from the consumer by adding his tax cost to his product wholesale cost. The consumer pays the farmer the money he passes on to the government. In case you didn't know, that's how business works.

I am sorry that you don't understand the farm business model. To put it simply. Farmers are the only business that pays retail for everything and then sells it at wholesale.


Someone else said something about 40% taxes. That's about right after expenses. Because we are our own employers we pay significantly more in taxes than the typical employee as a %.

 

[ovrszd]

I live out in farming country, most family's here have been here a LONG time, including mine...

Townies come out here and buy a small piece of property, build a BIG house and pretty soon they start bitchin about the sloooow tractors, combinineing at night ect...especially about spreading manure.

Then they try to change things..... through voting, sometimes trying to ban together to make changes...

There's the OTHER side of the coin, I don't mind one bit when bigger land owners/farmers out vote them!!

SR

I agree Rob. I know a farmer that verbally ahreed to let a city owner drive across the end of his field to access his newly purchased landlocked acreage. Farmer came home one day to see a dozer working in his planted bean field. The guy decided to build a driveway. Had to go to court to get reimbursed for the damages...

 

[2LaneCruzer]

I agree Rob. I know a farmer that verbally ahreed to let a city owner drive across the end of his field to access his newly purchased landlocked acreage. Farmer came home one day to see a dozer working in his planted bean field. The guy decided to build a driveway. Had to go to court to get reimbursed for the damages...

The law says that if you have a landlocked property, you also have a right to access that property...in other words, you have a right, running with the property, to an easement. Now you may have to go to court to decide who will have to provide the easement and you may have to pay for it, but the land itself still belongs to the neighbor. This guy was an idiot.

 

[Jstpssng]

The law says that if you have a landlocked property, you also have a right to access that property...in other words, you have a right, running with the property, to an easement. Now you may have to go to court to decide who will have to provide the easement and you may have to pay for it, but the land itself still belongs to the neighbor. This guy was an idiot.

That depends on laws of the state which the land is in. Here if you own a landlocked piece of property, you depend on the graciousness of the abutters for access.

 

[ovrszd]

The law says that if you have a landlocked property, you also have a right to access that property...in other words, you have a right, running with the property, to an easement. Now you may have to go to court to decide who will have to provide the easement and you may have to pay for it, but the land itself still belongs to the neighbor. This guy was an idiot.

Not in Missouri.

You Oky's on the other hand might have something different.

 

[MossRoad]

The law says that if you have a landlocked property, you also have a right to access that property...in other words, you have a right, running with the property, to an easement. Now you may have to go to court to decide who will have to provide the easement and you may have to pay for it, but the land itself still belongs to the neighbor. This guy was an idiot.

Around here, just because you have an easement doesn't mean you can build on it. There's some pretty strict zoning laws in the county and some pretty harsh right-to-farm laws. Its meant to stave off the loss of farmland to development. However, its pretty easy for a large land owner (read large FARMER) to get a variance to sell or develop land that is not conducive to farming.... which can be anything with hills, sand, stream, pond, soil type, etc.... also, its who you know, not what you know, as to getting zoning changed around here. Again, its geared towards large land owners (read large FARMER), developers, etc... and a little guy with 80 acres can't sell off 1 acre for a house for his mom or kids very easily. Its pretty screwed up.

Lets face facts... housing developments are built on parcels that were owned by farms. Someone sold that land to the developer. It was the farmer. Either he couldn't make ends meet, his kids/family didn't want to farm, he was just plain tired of it, or the offer to never have to work again was too large, etc... we've had massive development in this area for about 20 years. The farmers were getting ridiculous offers. I personally knew one that traded 80 acres along the main shopping corridor for 800 acres in rural Illinois straight up even trade. He then leased the 800 acres to an agribusiness and retired. What would you do?