And the IRS sends me money

[bill_schubert]

A check for $123 arrived without explanation.  $3 of it was 'interest' so I'm guessing it is what I overpaid this time last year when I had to file for an extension.  Since I have no idea what my last document is going to be (positive or negative) it is a crap shoot.  The IRS gives me better interest than my bank so if I overpay there at least I get it back with a little extra.  Of course it means next year I have to pay taxes on that $3.  They send me a 1099-int form.   Amazing.

And the local appraisal came out.  Fortunately there is a 10% cap on any homestead.  Otherwise my house would have gone up in appraised value by about 35% and I would have been taxed on that.  

It is the Elon Musk effect.  Just having a Tesla factory on the other side of the county has resulted in housing values that are ridiculous and likely to continue to be so.  Eventually the bubble will pop and if not, it will fund my nursing home.  Meanwhile I get to pay about $65 more a month this year.  Likely about the same increase every year unless/until it crashes.

Comments

[mrdreamjeans]

I drove by the Tesla Plant when I was in Texas in February. It goes on for literally a mile! I wish Travis County and Austin would stop offering so many tax breaks and incentives.

[bill_schubert]

When I owned a business in Georgetown I was a member of the Chamber of Commerce and, in fact on the board, and, for a year, on the executive board. It was a given that growth was good and that the goal is only to manage how that growth occurred.

There is no way to manage the kind of growth that doubles housing values in 18 months. But it is not going to stop. I think we're just now on the 'On' ramp to the superhighway of growth in this area.

We're going to run out of water and places to dump all the trash and room to drive.

But such is life on the prarie.

[mrdreamjeans]

It sounds like entities have let growth spiral out of control. I try not to think back to the early 80's when Pflugerville was population 3000 and Round Rock was 5000 folks. Georgetown was a longish drive away. I'm completely surprised now when a town manages to retain some of its charm. My friends who lived in Georgetown, near Sun City, weren't looking to sell their home; but, received repeated unsolicited offers for it. When the offers reached 300% over what they paid three years ago, they sold and moved to a townhouse. This happened less than a month ago.

Texas is indeed going to run out of water. It makes me sad to see the Edwards Aquifer drained so rapidly ... too many straws ...