REAL ESTATE TAXES @ Lakeside.....simple issue to PIA

Listed our home last month, realtor measured, came up with 400 m/sq. Agent discovered deed shows 319 m/sq. Since home is fairly new, and construction plans are accurate, contacted Chapala for re measure and correction on property taxes, as taxes are soooo cheap anyway. Expected a few pesos in back taxes.....wrong...they want 17,000 pesos in penalties, back taxes, etc. They claim we added 80 m/sq. to the construction, which is architecturally impossible, since our purchase in March 2006.

A royal pain........simple to PIA. Anyone else have a similar experience? How did you resolve?

Thank You in advance.

Issue is probably if they count your game room as maybe it wasn´t included in living area and now they include it. You would have to pull original building records and show no changes as well as appraisal done when purchased.

We discovered yesterday that although we paid our 2012 taxes for our SMA house online and got a receipt, Little did we realize they never processed our credit card charge ....from a year ago, and now we have a new bill for 2013 which includes the full taxes for 2012 without early pay discount, plus a pile of penalties for 2012. Ouch.

Moral of story: if you pay your taxes online with a credit card, be sure to check your statement to see that they CHARGE it. There's nothing we can do about it now except whine and pay up.

Intercasa wrote:Issue is probably if they count your game room as maybe it wasn´t included in living area and now they include it. You would have to pull original building records and show no changes as well as appraisal done when purchased.

Spencer, we have the Perito, dated and stamped 10-Mar-2006. It only shows 319 m/sq. @ time of purchase. We do have Photo of home, included with deed, which clearly shows the entire home, including fiesta room.

What is best course of action?

Thanks again, Jim W

Come see me with all paperwork and then we can show no changes although we need to see if the appraisal matches what was originally permitted to make sure they did not miss anything in 2006. We will need tax bills for as many years as you have, deed, appraisal and any info you received recently.

Intercasa wrote:Come see me with all paperwork and then we can show no changes although we need to see if the appraisal matches what was originally permitted to make sure they did not miss anything in 2006. We will need tax bills for as many years as you have, deed, appraisal and any info you received recently.

OK...call you later.

Jim

Just finished meeting with "CITY HALL", and found out that my home has grown 319 m/sq to 518 m/sq, as the Notary used at my closing 7 years ago made a mistake. Statute of limitations in Mexico is 5 years, soooo 8000 pesos lighter....didn't even get kissed, problem solved!

Pissed off is to kind!

Look at the the bright side Jim,you now have a much larger house to sell and can raise the asking price commensurately.

Ohhh Yeah.....

Unbelievable!

Jim. If it weren't for bad luck you'd have no luck at all................

I go Monday for the first time to pay my property taxes. I can hardly wait.

SunFasn

SunFan wrote:Unbelievable!

Jim. If it weren't for bad luck you'd have no luck at all................

I go Monday for the first time to pay my property taxes. I can hardly wait.

SunFasn

SunFan, I actually am LUCKY to have listed home with Noe. They caught the discrepancy between deed and tax statement dating back to home completion in 2002. Since I am 2nd owner, the Notario screwed up in 2006, not catching error. The seller @ that time would have had to pay for the correction, not me the buyer, who paid the idiot Notario over 5000 pesos to protect me!

Mexico has a unique way of calculating living space. Room size means nothing, as they calculate outside dimensions. They count area covered by roof eaves as living space, and the pool which is 4m by 9m =36 sq.m.. actual, is figured as 50 sq.m......as they calculate the exterior foundation wall of pool, not the actual usable water....all and all to confusing, and a waste of time to argue.

You can't fight city hall in Mexico, as they imposed penalties anyway. One thing for sure.....penalties would have been larger 2 years from now, as the local municipality searches for more revenue. SOOOO WTF

They can only go back 5 years. FYI

Where does one pay property taxes in Chapala? This is my first time. Also what about water? Is it included in taxes or paid seperately, if so where and is there an early discount? Thanks

It's on Madero, on the right as you walk toward the malecon, water paid there also. When you enter pull a number, when your number is posted go to the window. They take credit cards.

too funny...why do these things follow you! lolol why'd you let the realtor measure and mess it up and not go by the deed to begin with? How awful!

Well, don't feel too bad...all of our IMSS was paid in full on the construction of our home...we've waited patiently for them to do their part...sooo, a couple of years go by, a couple of no shows on their part and while my husband was hand digging my little therapeutic pool, there's a pile of dirt outside the gate so someone from downtown showed up, decided to kill two birds with one stone, since they had never come to measure. The guy says he doesn't need to come back because he measured how big the area of the pool is...No wonder it's worth it to pay someone else for the labor, IMSS doesn't care if YOU do the work yourself, you're charged per construction job. They decide how many man persons a job takes, adds ALL(underground too) the construction, then you get charged for it...like flat fee and very little wiggle room. AND they decide which level category your home belongs in. Utilitarian or luxury. If you have tile floor it's luxury...Believe me, our accountant was doing her best. So, right before Christmas we got to give a nice "donation" to IMSS. :) I'm thinking, ok, taxes are cheap, but the guy who initially builds the home has to pay up front. It wasn't that bad but it was something. They charge more to put in a pool than the entire construction of the house! Anyway, it's all taken care of and still a bargain compared to the good 'ol USofA!

The Notary, hired an appraiser, in 2006 at the time of purchase. The deed and tax statement have been incorrect since the home was completed in 2002. The deed says 319 m/sq. The taxes stated 319 m/sq. The realtor measured last month and came up with 400 m/sq.
I decided to get everything corrected, as taxes are so cheap anyway. Chapala came up with 519 m/sq., including pool.

Finally settled with Chapala, for 8000 pesos, plus 500 pesos legal. Just an FYI, When you buy a home here, and the deed and tax statement don't match up with appraiser measurment, within 105 =/-. you are looking at penalties ++,
We started out @ 17,000 pesos, and negotiated to 8000.

I contacted the Notario, and he took the 5 year statute of limitations position...basically F OFF. Just be aware and not blind like me, excited to have my new home. If there is a large descrepency between deed and advertised measurement.....in my case 175 m/sq.,....insist on a remeasurement, so deed matches home size.

Jim W wrote:Finally settled with Chapala, for 8000 pesos, plus 500 pesos legal. Just an FYI, When you buy a home here, and the deed and tax statement don't match up with appraiser measurment, within 105 =/-. you are looking at penalties ++,
We started out @ 17,000 pesos, and negotiated to 8000.

I contacted the Notario, and he took the 5 year statute of limitations position...basically F OFF. Just be aware and not blind like me, excited to have my new home. If there is a large descrepency between deed and advertised measurement.....in my case 175 m/sq.,....insist on a remeasurement, so deed matches home size.

JimW - A few questions? Who did the 500 pesos gp to and for what?

My Engineer remeasured our house too and it went from 3,405 sq ft to 4,670 sq ft because new Builders register less sq ft for "their" tax purposes PLUS the other reason is: Now they measure UNCOVERED area such as your patio (not your terrace although that's included) AND your swimming pool, so they screw you on that too. In what world do they measure UNCOVERED area, except of course Mexico?

We'll find out how much we are to pay next week. The Engineer estimated 5,000 pesos and we've owned the house for 10 years.

Did you take the Engineers estimate with you?

John, Since my Spanish maybe a few bars above yours, I went to Mark Eager, as he handled my buyers side back in 2005. He set me up with his real estate attorney, ...they handled the negotiations, as Chapala started @ 17,000 pesos. I am ill equipped verbally to negotiate.....The attorney charged me 500 pesos.

joec wrote:

Jim W wrote:Finally settled with Chapala, for 8000 pesos, plus 500 pesos legal. Just an FYI, When you buy a home here, and the deed and tax statement don't match up with appraiser measurment, within 105 =/-. you are looking at penalties ++,
We started out @ 17,000 pesos, and negotiated to 8000.

I contacted the Notario, and he took the 5 year statute of limitations position...basically F OFF. Just be aware and not blind like me, excited to have my new home. If there is a large descrepency between deed and advertised measurement.....in my case 175 m/sq.,....insist on a remeasurement, so deed matches home size.

JimW - A few questions? Who did the 500 pesos gp to and for what?

My Engineer remeasured our house too and it went from 3,405 sq ft to 4,670 sq ft because new Builders register less sq ft for "their" tax purposes PLUS the other reason is: Now they measure UNCOVERED area such as your patio (not your terrace although that's included) AND your swimming pool, so they screw you on that too. In what world do they measure UNCOVERED area, except of course Mexico?

We'll find out how much we are to pay next week. The Engineer estimated 5,000 pesos and we've owned the house for 10 years.

Did you take the Engineers estimate with you?

John, there is so much BS going on, I didn't waste my time on engineer. The pool decking was not included, as it is uncovered. The pool, water area is 4 by 9 m/sq....they measure from exterior wall so 50 m/sq. City hall wins all battles here, so, I accepted the measurements, and paid the negotiated price. I now have binding documents, as far as measurement goes....case closed.