SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXBrian Goodnight & Traci Ratzliff, Council Central StaffNate Van Duzer, Councilmember Burgess’ OfficeApril 1, 2016

SEATTLE PROPERTY TAX COMPONENTS

Three types of property tax levies:

1. General Purpose Levyo Not subject to voter approval

o Growth is limited to 1% + new construction

2. Voter-Approved Levies for Specific Purposeso Known as levy “lid lifts” because voters authorize taxation above the statutory lid

o Examples: 2009 Housing Levy, Seattle Preschool Program, Move Seattle

3. Levy to Pay Debt Service on Voter-Approved Bondso Known as an “excess” levy because it does not count against the City’s rate limit

o Examples: 1998 Libraries for All, 2012 Waterfront Seawall

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CALCULATING THE PROPERTY TAX

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Calculating the tax rate for the City:

Annual Levy Collection Amount

(Total Assessed Value (AV) of All Property / $1,000)= Tax Rate

Tax Rate x (AV / $1,000) = Annual Property

Tax Amount

Calculating the tax amount for an individual property:

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$20,714,286

($163,305,559,891 / $1,000)= $0.127

$0.127 x ($480,000 / $1,000) = $60.88

2016 Tax Amount for Median AV Home ($480,000)

EXAMPLE CALCULATION – 2009 HOUSING LEVY

Calculating the tax rate for the City:

Calculating the tax amount for an individual property:

2016 PROPERTY TAXES

Amount by Jurisdiction for Median AV Home ($480,000)

Source: King County Assessor’s Office, for Single-Family House

Total Bill: $4,553

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County, $710

Emergency Management, $136

Port of Seattle, $81

Flood District, $62

School District, $1,051

State, $1,041

City of Seattle, $1,472

City General Purpose, $704

Move Seattle, $279

Seattle Parks District, $140

Families/Education, $98

Bond Debt Service, $85

Low-Income Housing, $61Library Services, $51

Pre-K, $43Election Campaign Financing, $9

City of Seattle, $1,472

2016 PROPERTY TAXES

City of Seattle Property Tax Breakdown for Median AV Home ($480,000)

Source: King County Assessor’s Office, for Single-Family House

Total Bill: $4,553

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HISTORICAL PROPERTY TAX 2010-2016

Residential Median AV & Total Property Tax Bill

Source: King County Assessor’s Office, for Single-Family House 6

$-

$1,000

$2,000

$3,000

$4,000

$5,000

$-

$100,000

$200,000

$300,000

$400,000

$500,000

2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016

Prop

erty

Tax

Asse

ssed

Val

ue

Median Assessed Value Total Property Tax Bill for Median Assessed Value

IMPACT OF PROPOSED HOUSING LEVY

If the proposed housing levy was in effect in 2016 for a Median AV Home:

Source: King County Assessor’s Office, for Single-Family House, and Seattle City Budget Office 7

Other, $3,081

City, $1,411

2009 Housing Levy, $61

2016 Housing Levy Increase, $61

$-

$500

$1,000

$1,500

$2,000

$2,500

$3,000

$3,500

$4,000

$4,500

$5,000

2016

$4,614

• Total housing levy tax amount would be $122, an increase of $61 over the 2009 Housing Levy

• Total property tax bill would increase 1.3%

PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS AND DEFERRALS

Washington State offers four property tax exemption or deferral programs for primary residences:

Source: Washington State Department of Revenue, http://dor.wa.gov/Content/FindTaxesAndRates/PropertyTax/IncentivePrograms.aspx 8

Program Income Level Other Eligibility Requirements

Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Exemption ≤ $40,000 - At least 61 years of age, or

- Unable to work because of a disability, or

- Veteran receiving compensation at total disability rating

Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Deferral ≤ $45,000 - At least 60 years of age, or

- Unable to work because of a disability

Owners with Limited Income: Tax Deferral ≤ $57,000 - Owned home for > 5 years, and

- Sufficient equity to secure the interest of the state in the deferral

Widows & Widowers of Veterans: Tax Assistance Grant ≤ $40,000 - At least 62 years of age, or

- Unable to work because of a disability, and

- Not re-married or in registered domestic partnership

The state also offers property tax exemptions for eligible nonprofit organizations. Examples of the types of organizations receiving

a property tax exemption include: schools, churches, hospitals, nursing homes, and museums.

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

2015 Median Residential Property Values

Source: King County Assessor’s Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. 9

$0 $400,000 $800,000 $1,200,000

SeaTacTukwila

Des MoinesFederal Way

CovingtonAuburnBurien

KentRenton

Maple ValleyShorelineKenmore

BothellSeattle

KirklandIssaquahRedmond

SammamishBellevue

Mercer Island

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

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$0 $2 $4 $6 $8 $10 $12 $14 $16

Mercer IslandBellevue

SeattleKirkland

RedmondIssaquah

BothellSammamish

KenmoreShorelineCovington

TukwilaSeaTac

KentBurienRentonAuburn

Des MoinesMaple ValleyFederal Way

2016 Property Tax Rates per $1,000 in assessed value

Source: King County Assessor’s Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. Some cities have multiple tax rates due to overlapping taxing

jurisdictions (school districts, fire districts, etc.); this chart takes the most common tax rate from each city.

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

2016 Median Property Tax Bills

Source: King County Assessor’s Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. 11

$0 $1,000 $2,000 $3,000 $4,000 $5,000 $6,000 $7,000 $8,000 $9,000

SeaTac

Tukwila

Covington

Des Moines

Burien

Kent

Auburn

Federal Way

Renton

Shoreline

Maple Valley

Seattle

Kirkland

Bothell

Kenmore

Redmond

Issaquah

Bellevue

Sammamish

Mercer Island

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

Property Tax Bills & Home Values

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South County cities

RentonMaple Valley

Shoreline

Kenmore

BothellSeattleKirkland

IssaquahRedmond

Sammamish

Bellevue

Mercer Island

$0.00

$1,000.00

$2,000.00

$3,000.00

$4,000.00

$5,000.00

$6,000.00

$7,000.00

$8,000.00

$9,000.00

$0 $200,000 $400,000 $600,000 $800,000 $1,000,000 $1,200,000

Med

ian

Tax

Bill

Median Residential Home Value

Source: King County Assessor’s Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. Some cities have multiple tax rates due to overlapping taxing

jurisdictions (school districts, fire districts, etc.); this chart takes the most common tax rate from each city.