The tax authorities themselves say it: it's the trick to lowering your property tax and no one knows it.
It's a tax that exasperates, as it increases considerably year after year. Property tax is the bill that most embitters homeowners. And with good reason. Since 2013, it has increased by 32.9%. For a bill that amounted to 800 euros 12 years ago, it is now 1,063 euros. A spectacular increase that is almost impossible to fight. Only a few tax experts know that there are levers to cushion the blow.
Although unknown to the general public and particularly opaque, the rules governing property tax are nevertheless worth taking a closer look at. Because by reading the fine print, it is possible to find tips to reduce your bill or, at the very least , reduce its increase. The General Directorate of Public Finances (DGFiP) itself acknowledged this to Linternaute .
It was a quote in an article in Le Figaro that first caught our attention. Gwenn Quero Lorek, a former tax inspector and now a local tax expert at Neora, explains that replacing a bathtub with a shower can lower your property tax by 3%. Not a huge savings, but still. It's always worth taking.
When asked, the DGFiP explained that to calculate property tax, "comfort elements" are taken into account, beyond the mere surface area of the house or apartment: running water, gas, electricity, sanitary facilities, sewerage, garbage disposal, and central heating, if applicable. "The amenities or comfort elements are converted into a number of square meters, which corresponds to the theoretical utility attributed to them," explains the local Hérault tax office.
This is where replacing a bathtub with a shower can be beneficial. For a bathtub, the tax authorities add 5 square meters to your living space. For a shower, it only counts as 4 square meters. 1 square meter less isn't exactly a huge investment, but depending on the property, it can save you some money. To do this, you must still report it to the tax authorities.
Other possibilities exist. Jean-Pascal Michaud, a lawyer specializing in tax law, suggests looking at your basement. "These are theoretically habitable rooms, but often, nothing is done with them," explains this partner at the LMD firm. "Removing a water point, removing the heating system, or even the stairs to create a storage space" can be an alternative to lowering property tax "by 3 to 4%."
But beware of being overly greedy. Asking to lower your property tax "is rarely done because when you do work, it's for greater comfort. But then, you're drawing the tax authorities' attention to your property and they don't want to give you any freebies," says Jean-Pascal Michaud. "It only makes sense if you have no doubts and the tax authorities have already recently validated the property's valuation."
L'Internaute
