Connecticut Conveyance Tax Back Again

In 2008 we warned you that by not fighting hard against the renewal of the Connecticut conveyance tax on real estate it would end up being a perpetual tax on homeowners.

Politicians argued that the tax was a short term one to fill a budget hole. It would go away soon they promised.

Well now the Connecticut Senate is in special session to pass a renewal of the real estate conveyance tax because they could not get it done in the regular session. Passage of the tax is that important.

Never ever trust a politician who says that a tax is just short term fix. One of the reasons the state senate is in special session is that local governments were “counting on the tax for revenue.”

That does not sound like a short term fix, does it?

Let me bet $10 that the Connecticut legislators come back next year making this a permanent tax on home sellers to save the people the cost of special legislative sessions.

Politicians are so predictable.

The state legislature is expected to vote Monday on an extension of the state’s real estate transfer tax that generates as much as $25 million per year for cities and towns.

Without an extension, the municipal portion of the conveyance tax would expire as of July 1. The issue has prompted a long-running battle between real estate agents and the Connecticut Conference of Municipalities, which represents most cities and towns.

The Realtors, however, have decreased their lobbying efforts at the Capitol after multiple legislators said they did not believe that the increased tax – which amounts to an additional $420 on a $300,000 home – had hurt real estate sales. Lawmakers are also working to eliminate the tax on the sale of foreclosed homes. via The Courant

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