Would you pay more for a house if...

1. It had lower property taxes than its neighbors? let's say lower by $3k
2. If the lot size was double the size of the neighboring property?

If so, how much more would you pay?

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Yes, especially lot size, in my area bigger lot sizes mean a lot more $$ but this is bc bigger lot sizes are very rare. Can't say how much more without knowing the area and what comparables go for.

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

if it had a bigger lot size and less taxes then yes i would pay more... but like pp said not knowing what the houses go for in the area you are looking in, i couldn't say for sure how much more.

Would you pay more for a house if...

Double lot size means double yard work. So I am not sure I would. The lower property tax may not compensate for the increased maintenance. It would really depend on the property and the home.

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Yes

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

First, I would definitely verify the taxes on the house -- if it has a much bigger lot size, not sure why the taxes would be so much lower than otherwise comparable homes. So I would check (which you would always do anyway).

I think when looking at affordability, you are obviously looking at monthly payment, and lower property taxes will make a house more affordable for buyers. And therefore, may make it more desirable than a similar home with higher taxes. Lower taxes for the area will mean you can go up a bit in price. If you are preapproved for $400K assuming $10K in property taxes, you can maybe go to $420K, for example, if the taxes are $7500. So you may be able to get a slightly larger or better condition home if the taxes are more reasonable. There's no additional "value" to the home from a real estate appraisal standpoint, but lower taxes are no doubt a desirable selling feature (and would be for me, personally).

As far as lot size, that definitely factors into market value and appraised value a great deal. And it's something -- unlike cosmetic condition -- that you can never change. So bigger lot = more value. And if I wanted a big yard (for entertaining, for possible house expansion), then yes, I would expect to pay more for it.

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

I'm not sure I'm understanding why the taxes would be taht much lower on comparable houses when one has a significantly larger lot -

I'd confirm the taxes

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

The owners may have senior citizen or vet discount, make sure you confirm the taxes. I would pay more for a bigger lot

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Thanks for the responses. We're not looking to buy a house. This is the house that we are living in now and I was trying to get an idea if my house would sell for what's it's going for in the neighborhood.

Our property taxes are very low. I think mainly because we are the 3rd owners on the house since it was built in the 1930's but also because we do not have a basement or garage. When we bought the house back in 2005 our taxes were $1500. We did a 2 story addition to the house 2 years ago and our taxes doubled. It is now $3k but still half of what my neighbors pay. (We're still fighting the town on this but that's another topic. We didn't double the sf of the house no reason to double my taxes.)
I'm just trying to get an idea of what we would get for the house if we sell because we want to move out of state. Zillow has our house appraised at $40k less than our neighbors but I'm pretty sure that number does not reflect the addition we did. I guess it really depends on what buyers are looking for. Do they want low taxes and big lot or do they want a basement and garage for storage?

Would you pay more for a house if...

For storage we have 2 sheds. I think in the Town of Huntington you don't have to file for a shed if it's under 100sf. So we two 8x12 sheds both are 98sf and not taxed.

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

3K in taxes? i am very surprised that you can get something like that on LI! I pay 4x that! I am sure you could raise the price because of that fact... i would get a realtor in to do a market evaluation. good luck!!

Would you pay more for a house if...

Thanks! I don't want to go to a realtor yet because we don't plan on selling for at least 2 more years. We still have unfinished projects on the house. That's one of the reasons why we bought the house because of the property tax.

Would you pay more for a house if...

But if the other houses have a basement and/or garage, I think that would factor in to any decision. I don't think I would pay more for a house that had a bigger lot and lower taxes, but didn'thave a basement and garage, (if that's what the other homes have). I would think they would pretty much cancel each other out.

Would you pay more for a house if...

Thanks! I hope that is the case. I'm not asking for any more than what the neighborhood is worth. I just hope that because of the fact we have low taxes and large property it will sell for as much as the neighboring houses. In terms of living spaces I think we are comparable to the neighbors but after having 2 kids I really wish I have a basement because going out to the shed during the winter sucks. During the summer is great because the kids have the large yard. We have a 6 car driveway and they can ride their bikes but without a basement we lack storage. :(
I have no idea what our house is worth because it's so different than what our neighbors have. Everyone had a push mower and my husband has ride on.

Message edited 6/27/2013 4:02:11 PM.

Would you pay more for a house if...

Bigger lot size, yes.

Lower taxes, NO.

Taxes from what I reckon do not factor in to a house appraisal, so I am not going to pay a premium for this. Things like square footage and lot size factor in. Taxes can change anytime so I don't base my decisions on this. Your location and the size of your house doesn't.

ETA: If the house is a corner, then you can negate the bigger lot size advantage IMO as most corners naturally come with larger lots (to factor in other disadvantages of having a corner).

Message edited 6/27/2013 7:04:24 PM.

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

Re: Would you pay more for a house if...

I wouldn't. Taxes are not a constant. Just because you're under-assessed now doesn't mean that if I buy your house, it will stay under-assessed.

Would you pay more for a house if...

I would not. I can't live in my yard, and I would value space and storage more. Not everyone would even have the money to "add" more storage if they needed. We crossed any house without a basement off our list immediately - that was non negotiable.

Would you pay more for a house if...

Yes. I want a bigger lot sooo bad. That is going to be a must have with our next house.

Would you pay more for a house if...

Without a basement and garage the house may appraise for less than other homes in the area. Keep in mind most buyers are not going to pay more for the house than it appraises for-I know when we were house hunting last summer we took the property as a whole into consideration. We went with slightly less square footage, comparable taxes and more property. The trade off was a more basic kitchen. Your best bet is to have a realtor come in and give you an estimate. They will also know what people looking in your neighborhood are looking for in a home.