Berlin seizes 18 properties for back taxes

[KBCraig]

It's worth noting that Berlin chose which properties to seize based on potential liability to the city as "owner".

If you're not paying the full property tax assessment, it sure wouldn't hurt if dioxins or mercury were found on your property.

City takes 18 properties by tax deed

Barbara Tetreault

BERLIN? The city last Thursday took ownership of 18 properties whose owners owed property taxes back to 2004.

The list of tax deeded properties includes three downtown properties including one housing four businesses.

The owners will be offered an opportunity to repurchase their properties by paying all back taxes and interest plus an assessment fee equal to 15 percent of the property?s equalized property valuation.

Tax Collector Blandine Shallow said written notices of the repurchase offer will go out next week. Owners will have 30 days to respond to the offer. If the property owner decides to accept the offer, he or she will have another 15 days to come up with the full amount due.

In the meantime, Housing Coordinator and Welfare Director Angela Martin Giroux will meet with tenants in the buildings to advise them how the city will manage the properties in the immediate future and where to send rental payments.

The city started out last week with 34 properties scheduled to go to tax deed for unpaid 2004 taxes. The city waivered tax deeding four properties because of hazardous waste concerns and two because the properties are in bankruptcy court.

[LiveFree]

It'd be really interesting to see the comparison between how much is "owed", how much the property is worth, and how much the city is trying to extort the owners via the "resale" price.

Can you really even OWN property when petty tyrants such as a town can just declare that they own it based on not paying a few years worth of taxes?

And yes, this sends a clear message that if you don't pay up, just contaminate the hell out of your land and they'll steer clear.  GREAT message to be sending people there, Berlin.

[cathleeninnh]

Kevin, you aren't looking to buy stolen property, are you?

Cathleen

[David]

This is why the property rights battle must be fought soon.  It won't stop untill there is a negative consequence, or it becomes unprofitable to steal the property.  My understanding of the goal of Lauren Canario was to reduce the profitability for the new london development corp. thieves.  The threat of taking property is the number one inducement the gov't uses to extort taxes from their victims.  Prison and other forms of violence only occurs when someone is determined to hold onto what is rightfully theirs.  Getting the gov't to throw us a bone by reducing the tax half of one percent will not even be meaningful.  Taxation is theft, and as long as the thieves can steal with impunity, there will be no fundamental change.  No matter how many bones they occasionally throw our way. 

[KBCraig]

Kevin, you aren't looking to buy stolen property, are you?

Cathleen!

This was just the front page article in today's Berlin Daily Sun. I'm angry that any of the properties were seized, and doubly angry that the city can be "selective" in which properties they seize.

The "back taxes and interest", and especially the "15% penalty" for owners to be able to keep title to their property, really pisses me off!

Kevin

[KBCraig]

I have to add, that at the rate it's burning down, there won't be any of downtown Berlin left to buy.

[cathleeninnh]

You might be able to pick something up that is pretty reasonable if people think it is jinxed.

Cathleen

[Dave Ridley]

from the city's mafia website:
http://www.berlinnh.gov/Pages/BerlinNH_Collector/liens


<< For more information regarding these properties, please call Andre Caron at 603-752-1630


CITY OF BERLIN - TAX DEED LIST       
DATE OF NOTICE = MARCH 19, 2007       
DATE OF DEED = APRIL 19, 2007       
OWNER
   MAP/LOT    PROPERTY LOCATION
Abaire, Michael R    129-0014.000    17 Ottawa Street
Bedard, Ramona M.    120-0375.000    339 Portland Street
Bellavance, Paul O. & Madore, Donald    129-0011.000    390 School Street
Bellevance, Paul & Madore, Donald d/b/a Four Seasons Realty Vac.    128-0188.000    412 School Street
Bergeron, Ernest Jr.    120-0150.000    511 Willard Street
Burgess, Ruth A. & White, Lester    111-0062.000    517 Second Avenue
Clayton Micklejohn Inc.    119-0035.000    122 Pleasant Street
Clifford, Mark S. & Louise M.    128-0005.000    53 Spring Street
Desrosiers, Arthur J.    119-0396.000    739 Second Avenue
Halliday, John A & Barbara A    128-0003.000    8 Perkins Place
Holt, Mildred P. c/o Ormond E. Holt    111-0107.000    Russian Street (Land Only)
Koxarakis, Kostantinos & Sandy    118-0053.000    23 Gerrish Street
Lynch, Keith    119-0164.000    122 Hillside Avenue
Mattingly, Sarah L.    120-0330.000    390 Church Street
Melo, Deborah A.    131-0064.000    288 Burgess Street
Poulin, Richard L.    119-0042.000    55-71 Main Street
Poulin, Richard L.    119-0056.000    171 Main Street
Watson, Edmund W Jr. c/o John Halliday    128-0157.000    28 Spring Street >>





Assessors
Printer-Friendly Version
Contact:
   Susan Warren
Assessor Office Supervisor
Avitar - Dave Woodward
Assessor
Address:
   168 Main Street
Berlin, NH 03570
Phone:
   603-752-5245
Fax:
   603-752-1654
Hours:
   8:30 a.m. - Noon & 1:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.

[Dave Ridley]

i'm thinking Blandine Shallow is another good citygov  contact on this

[tracysaboe]

Is their anything that can be done to help the owners?

Tracy

[Dave Ridley]

Is their anything that can be done to help the owners?

Tracy

you can do the same thing i'm about to do:  call the numbers above and express your displeasure.