I have lived in my Madison house since 1987 and paid off the mortgage in 2021. Last year I made several changes in my 2,000-square-foot ranch house to accommodate aging in place, which included electrical and plumbing upgrades to meet code changes since 1987.
These “adaptive living” accommodations cost about $35,000, but were seen by the city assessor’s office as “improvements,” adding $65,000 to my property assessment. My property taxes have been going up by the hundreds for the past several years.
I write to make the Madison area aware of what the recent hikes in property assessments, and subsequent increases in homeowner’s insurance, will do to many of its older residents who live on a modest or fixed income. We are being taxed out of our homes.
Perhaps assessments could include the age or income of the occupant? I remind you what our senior citizens add to the quality of life of our families and communities.
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Madison K-12 Tax & Spending increase data over the decades.