Houses built on auctioned land could have property tax to pay for new infrastructure

by Richard Dyer | Daily Independent

The land that will go up for auction is called Superstition Vistas. It’s located between Elliot and Ray roads and from Meridian east about 2 miles.

Property taxes could be required for owners of homes built on state land recently sold at auction as part of community facilities districts to pay for roads, sewer and water systems without burdening all Apache Junction residents. The city presently collects no property tax, but has a 2.4% sales tax.

“Say you are a property owner down there and you just bought a new house; you just spent $500,000 and now you have a new house. And you are comparing with someone who lives up here and you are comparing property tax statements — ‘Say, what is this? Why is this so much higher?’” City Attorney Joel Stern said at a recent council work session. “(I)t comes from a community facilities district that is set up. So the current property owners in AJ would not be burdened with that extra expense. It would be the new property owners,” he said.

City Manager Bryant Powell said homeowners would pay any debt from building and maintaining needed infrastructure.

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