I’ve read it in the papers and heard it from liberal friends – this notion that the recent mortgage meltdown is our fault for borrowing too much. I know better, and if anyone gave just a little thought to where their monthly housing expenses went, they would also.

We all rely on borrowing money to live in our homes. Even if you rent, your landlord borrowed money to buy the unit you live in. We all have to pay interest and we all have to pay taxes. And that’s where the problems begin. Taxes have devalued our real estate.

As an example, I have a primary mortgage where my monthly payment when I bought my house was about $1000. Today (due to tax increases) it’s about $1400. Of that, about $200 is Principle, $400 is Interest and the remaining $800+ per month is Tax (mostly school tax).

Over the years my principle and interest have stayed the same but the taxes have doubled. My house has not really increased in value much in large part because my potential equity has been plundered by taxes.

If I were to sell my house, potential buyers would have to consider how much of their monthly income they can allocate for PIT – Principle, Interest & Taxes. The value of my house is in large part determined by how much buyers are ready, willing and able to pay on a monthly basis. If they can afford to pay $1400 per month and decide to buy my house, they will have reimbursed me for some of the taxes I’ve paid but I will not have earned anything from my investment. The new owner will not only be amortizing the sum total of my $400/month tax increases but will also witness tax increases of their own and the vicious cycle will continue.

This amortization of property taxes is a root cause of the drop in property value that triggered the mortgage meltdown. The problem is massive TAXFLATION and the fault lies with liberal spending elected officials, from our school boards to our lawmakers and public executives at every level. We must elect Conservatives NOW!

DRC