Housing System

Core Principle

Property tax rates determined by three factors:

• Function: What does the property provide? (Essential production, housing, commercial, speculative)
• Occupancy: How many people benefit? (More people = lower tax)
• Accumulation: How many properties does one entity own? (More properties = higher rate on all)

Higher social benefit = lower tax. More people housed = lower tax. More hoarding = higher tax.

Tax Rate Structure by Function

Essential Production (Lowest Rates)

Agricultural and Food Production:

• Working farms, ranches, orchards producing food
• Base rate: 0.1-0.3%
• Essential to society's survival
• Protects family farms from being taxed out of existence

Residential Housing (Occupancy-Based)

Owner-Occupied Primary Residence:

• Base rate: 0.5-0.75%
• Reduced by occupancy:
  • 1 person: Base rate
  • 2 people: -10%
  • 3-4 people: -20%
  • 5 people: -30%
  • 6+ people: -40% (maximum)

Rental Housing (Occupied):

• Base rate: 1.5%
• Reduced for: more occupants, affordable rents, quality standards, long-term tenants
• Rewards landlords who efficiently house people and provide value

Vacant/Speculative Housing:

• Base rate: 5%
• Increases with vacancy duration:
  • 6-12 months: 7%
  • 1-2 years: 10%
  • 2+ years: 15%
• Makes speculation expensive, encourages use or sale

Commercial and Industrial (Variable by Value)

• Small business/retail: 1% (provides jobs, serves community)
• Manufacturing (essential goods): 0.75% (produces needed goods)
• Warehousing/logistics: 1.25% (distribution infrastructure)
• Data centers: 3% (low job creation, high energy use, less social benefit)
• Luxury/entertainment: 2-3% (golf courses, private clubs—luxury, not essential)

Extractive/Low Social Value (Highest Rates)

• Pure speculation: 4% (land banking, undeveloped holdings)
• Cryptocurrency mining: 5% (high energy use, minimal employment)

Accumulation Multiplier

Applied to base rate after function and occupancy adjustments. The more properties one entity owns, the higher the rate on ALL of them.

Portfolio size multiplier:

• 1 property: 1x (no multiplier)
• 2 properties: 1.2x
• 3-5 properties: 1.5x
• 6-10 properties: 2x
• 11-20 properties: 3x
• 21+ properties: 4x

Result: Small operators protected. Large-scale accumulation discouraged regardless of property type.

Grace Period

When property acquisition pushes entity into higher bracket:

• 2-year grace period at previous rate
• After 2 years, new rate applies to all properties
• Prevents market panic and allows rational planning

Cannot be gamed:

• Grace period is one-time per bracket crossing
• Cannot reset by selling and rebuying
• Tracked by owner/entity, not by property

Family growth (occupancy increase):

• Rate reduction applies immediately (rewards growth)
• No waiting period

Family reduction (occupancy decrease):

• 2-year grace period before rate increases
• Compassion for loss (death, children leaving home)

Why This Works

Incentivizes

• Family formation: More people in home = lower taxes
• Multi-generational living: Grandparents moving in reduces tax burden
• Efficient housing use: Fill rooms, don't waste space
• Essential production: Farming and food production protected
• Owner-occupied housing: Lowest rates for people living in their homes
• Good landlords: Those housing people efficiently pay less than speculators

Disincentivizes

• Vacant speculation: Empty properties face punitive rates
• Corporate hoarding: Accumulation multiplier makes mega-portfolios expensive
• Inefficient use: Large homes with few occupants pay more
• Low-value commercial: Data centers and extractive uses pay appropriate share

Market Effects

• More properties enter market (divestment from high rates)
• Lower prices (increased supply)
• More owner-occupied housing (favored by tax structure)
• Less speculation (vacancy penalties)
• Better use of existing housing stock (occupancy incentives)

Revenue Allocation

Tax revenue used according to source:

• From agricultural tax: Rural infrastructure, farmer support programs
• From residential tax: Affordable housing development, first-time buyer assistance
• From commercial tax: Infrastructure, green energy transition
• From vacancy penalties: Homeless services, emergency housing

Revenue addresses problems created by each property type.

Implementation Details

Policy experts and economists determine:

• Exact rate thresholds and multiplier formula
• Property classification criteria and verification methods
• Occupancy verification procedures (protecting privacy while confirming count)
• Exemptions for non-profit housing, co-operatives, community land trusts
• Regional adjustments for cost-of-living differences
• Appeals and dispute resolution processes
• Transition timeline and rollout schedule

Guiding Principles

For specialists implementing this framework:

• Simplicity in practice: Property owners should easily understand their rate
• Fairness: Similar social utility = similar treatment
• Transparency: Clear formulas, public calculations, explainable results
• Flexibility: Adjust rates based on housing market conditions
• Privacy protection: Verify occupancy without invasive surveillance