Say a Mom’n’Pop corner store of some kind does a nice neighborhood trade and has some internet action, too. They live above the store.
They own the building outright. No mortgage. They’re property owners.
They have a van and a little car. Old. Paid off.
The building is decent and in a decent part of town.
It’s just them, no employees. Well, their kids help sometimes. A little more each year.
How much of the USA used to live this way? How much still does? Millions.
They bring in $500/day. They clear $200. $60k/yr Net.
Less $4k for minimal healthcare and $2K for gas and car repair.
No vacations, no nuttin’.
They like what they do. It’s not too hard. They love their neighborhood, park, library and town.
The Taxmen look at their $54k. After their Standard Deductions they don’t owe much if any Income Tax. They only owe $2k in Federal Biz Tax.
Then the Other Taxes kick in.
The taxes for which there is no relief.
$15k off the top in annual Business and Residential Property Tax (plus the occasional special assessment for sewer repair, etc.), if they live in a fairly typical city. Their Home property tax is “only” $3k for their top floor apartment, but their city makes up for that by taxing business property higher, for $12k on the store fronts of the street level of their building.
Yeah, their building is worth, say, $500k. Property taxes on business property are based on the assessed value of what the building could earn. It’s not necessarily based on what they’re actually doing with the building.
Then there’s Soc. Sec. which takes another 15% of the $54k, or $8k, for a total of $26k in taxes out of their $54.
Daily life sales tax takes, say, 5% of their $20 in incidental non-biz expenses, or $1k.
So what started out as a “Getting by fairly comfortably” small biz income of $54k/year is now a poverty situation where a couple is trying to raise a family on $27k.
Their building needs a couple grand of work on it each year. Everyone needs their teeth cleaned. A bigger medical or dental bill pops up every now and then. The idea of braces for any of the kids is a laugh.
So they’re really at $25k/yr at best.
It’s not dire poverty, just the solid kind.
But they like being free. They like serving their community. They don’t feel like quitting.
They do feel rather shocked each year to see that Property Tax bill. Cash on the barrelhead. Pay it or we take your building.
Every few months they breathe a sigh of relief when they see they’re, say, $5,000 up in their bank account. Wow, we’re doing good! Then they get the $7500 summer tax bill. Dang. Then they’re thrown back on needing a few more good weeks of sales to buy food.
That’s what got the last Depression people. Not the mortgages. The “back taxes.”
Then they’re up $5k again, then, darn, they need $4k in new inventory.
There’s no hope for college for the kids, no hope for financial aid, no hope for relief from any of these taxes. They’re property owners and business people. They don’t even have any debt. They aren’t “looking for work.” They pay no Income Tax.
How can a Stimulus reach them or any of the millions like them?
They can’t use a voucher for a discount on a new car. They’ve never paid more than a few grand for a nice old used car.
Any tax relief for them would mean an equivalent relief for the biggest corporations. Right? Their building is assessed like any skyscraper. No business ever got a better tax rate for being smaller. Otherwise every big business would make sure it was broken up into small pieces!
Well, they push on.
If I’m missing something big that the smart Mom’n’Pops are doing, or if I’ve likely measured all this wrong, please let me know!
