That seems odd to me. If you already have a Florida registration on another vehicle, then transferring it to a new vehicle is only $4.60. If the vehicle has never been registered in Florida before and the owner is not transferring an old registration, then the fee is $100. Our annual tag fee is between $27.60 and $45.60, depending on weight. I don’t really think that it’s all that outrageous.
The only income tax we have is on corporate income – all of the other revenue for the state comes from a 6% sales tax. On a county-by-county basis, the tax can have up to an extra 1% tacked on to it, the funds from which go back to the county. The county (and city, if you live in one) also collects a property tax. In my case, it’s about 2.2% of the value of my land and house.
I think this is a relic of feudal days, when property tended to be in large parcels that were working agricultural enterprises. Landowners could derive income from their serfs’ labor, so were taxed.
These days I think there is some justification for property tax, because the owner derives more benefit and value from his/her land due to the services which the taxes are supposed to buy. Well funded street maintenance and schools increase the value of the local property. IMO the owner is assumed to have a greater stake in this, and derive more benefit from it, than a renter would.
At the same time I don’t think owner occupants should be forced out of their homes, just because a whitehot real estate market has pushed the value of their houses to way, way, way more than they could have ever afforded to buy. There have to be some protections for those situations, like Prop. 13 in California.
You may be responsible for income tax on the gains you get from a RE sale. In the past, you were (as I hear it) eligible for a one time exemption. Today, you can exclude $250K ($500K jointly) for the sale of your main residence. Any other real estate you sell, you pay tax on all the gains.
Let’s clear up a few other misconceptions about Florida and taxes, shall we?
Yes, we have fucking sales tax. It’s not significantly higher than anywhere else just because we don’t pay income tax.
License and tag renewals are, as Bambi said, from about $27 to $50 or so. Not really outrageous. The reason this state has a bad reputation: many years ago, there was a fee in the neighborhood of $500 for bringing a car into Florida from out of state. If you were transferring registration from a snowbird state to here, BAM. The State declared that fee unconstitutional and the state had to refund everyone who had ever paid the fee. They tracked my ass down in South Carolina and sent me a phat check. They don’t do that anymore so, Asterion’s friend or whatever is just wasting time with the out of state registration. Completely pointless. Even if that person lives in a county that requires emissions testing prior to tag renewal. That was only $10 last time I lived in one of those counties.
Property tax is not bad at all here. In my case, it’s ridiculously cheap, but I think my house’s value increased, so my taxes will too.
Sales tax is 6% at the state level, but each individual county can add to that for their own benefit. Leon County, where I live, adds 1.5% sales tax to build schools and fix roads here. So I pay 7.5% whereas Miami pays only 6.5%. Each county is different. Bambi already covered this.
If you’re really old in Florida, it’s the inheritance tax that will kill you – pun totallly not intended. Because so many people retire here, the State taxes the most likely source of income…
Yes we pay fees on driver’s licenses and tags. We pay property taxes. Our sales tax is relatively low. We do NOT pay state income taxes. The reason why? Tourism. All of you who come down here once a year or less and stay in hotels, rent cars, fly into or out of the state… there are room taxes, airport taxes, car rental “road” taxes, and more. It’s the visitors and snowbirds who pay for our roads, our schools, and our other public services.
If there are pet licensing fees, I’m not aware of them. I don’t pay any.
Booze, gas and tobacco? You bet your ass. Florida loves to tax those things because they are also products that the tourists use a lot.
That said, the OP is correct, taxes suck. But, IMHO, a necessary evil. But don’t come down here if you want to get away from taxes.