Many homeowners across Cincinnati and Hamilton County experienced sticker shock after seeing major increases in their property taxes this year — with bills doubling or even tripling for some, despite just a 10.4% average increase in Hamilton County. With concern over a potential wave of foreclosures and evictions, Cincinnati City Council member Mark Jeffreys has formed a task force to help bring some relief.
At a press conference outside a home on Dorsey Avenue in Mt. Auburn, Jeffreys was quick to reiterate the increases in property taxes aren’t just a citywide or countywide issue, but a state one that needs to be addressed by Ohio’s legislature. But that doesn’t mean the city can’t also act.
“The systemic solution to this is not in Cincinnati or even in the county. This is really a state issue, but it is unclear how and when they will solve it,” said Jeffreys. “So we have a choice: We could sit on our hands and do nothing and wait for the state legislatures to act, or we can take matters into our own hands. We do have a short window. This is not something that is going to take years; this is something that is urgent in the next several months.”
Jeffreys said the task force will have up to $50 million to work with. That money was initially set aside to cover potential tax revenue loss from remote workers. However, the Ohio Supreme Court recently ruled that the city does have the ability to tax remote workers not in city limits. And while Jeffreys said that ruling may be further adjudicated, it’s looking promising that that could free up that reserve for other purposes.
The task force is made up of members of organizations like Housing Opportunities Made Equal, Legal Aid, the Greater Cincinnati Realtist Association, the Hamilton County auditor and treasurer and local homeowners, among others. It’ll be in place for about about six months, with members making recommendations to the city on the best use of the funds, as well as looking into crafting short-, medium- and long-term solutions.
Jeffreys said short-term solutions could mean cash infusions for struggling homeowners, but they also want to look at creative solutions to help put more money in homeowners’ pockets.
“For example, helping them with investing in renewables in their house that lowers their energy bills, or accessory dwelling units that help them earn extra cash to help offset some of the property tax increases,” he said.
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Matt Strauss with Community Action Agency (CAA), also represented in the task force, said the need for help is both great and varied. His organization received $500,000 from the Ohio Housing Finance Agency to assist people with COVID-related hardships in paying their property taxes. He said CAA has received applications from almost every ZIP code across Hamilton County.
“We’re really finding different needs. We’re finding some people who owe thousands. One thing we’re finding very interesting is a lot of people, they only owe $200, $400 in back taxes, and you think, ‘Well, that’s not a big deal.’ But to them, it is. These are seniors; they’re on fixed incomes; that’s a big chunk for them. They might have to give up something else, like whether it’s medicine or food or turn down the heat just to pay that bill because they’re terrified of losing their homes, and that’s not a good place to be,” Strauss said at the press conference.
While the burden of increased property taxes is falling harder on specific groups of homeowners like seniors and individuals on fixed incomes, the problem is also bleeding over into renters, especially those who rent from small landlords like Tricia Morris. She owns a rental in Mt. Auburn and says she prides herself on being fair to her tenants, offering rent at around $200 below market value and not increasing it in the last couple years, even as overall rents in the area have gone up.
“But I have been able to do that and have been proud to have been able to do that because I know their utilities have gone up, and all other aspects have gone up, due to inflation. But then, this year, not only did I receive a substantial increase on my home, but then I received an increase of two-and-a-half times of the tax bill for my rental versus the previous cycle,” Morris said.
Morris said even if she increased rent by $300 — which would be a shock to her tenants — she still wouldn’t break even on the new tax bill, and what made matters worse, she says, was she didn’t receive any early notification of the increase.
“I know a lot of other small landlords like myself who are trying to figure out what to do, because it feels like we have no option but to pass these enormous costs on to our renters in some way. So I’m glad for this opportunity to be a voice for other small landlords who are in the same situation,” said Morris. “Because it’s not just the elderly that are dealing with this or low-income families. I’m afraid that we’re also squeezing the mid-tier rental market where even folks in their 20s who are getting established, they’re not going to be able to pay their rent due to these increases.”
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This article appears in Feb 21 – Mar 5, 2024.
