Taxes have been around for a long time and it is very unlikely they will ever disappear. The reason is that because of them, we get to have free public services and basically community evolution. And as the Nordic Countries have shown, the level of taxation is directly related to the lifestyle quality and standards.

Why are taxes on property needed?

Ok, so taxes are good. But it would appear that we have a huge amount of taxes and pretty much everything is taxed. The main challenge behind taxes was the amount of money to charge each individual. The idea was that this amount would vary depending on each person’s assets. So, anything that has an increased value is usually taxed. For example, someone who owns 4 houses and 5 flats technically speaking would be charged the same as someone who has 1 apartment without this tax. But if the first person wants to sell them, he would make a small fortune. The key element here is value. Value is taxed. And properties often mean value.

Different forms of taxes on property

Property Tax – This is the most common tax on property. Basically any property you own needs to be taxed with the proper authorities. Generally speaking, there are 3 major types of properties: land, buildings and objects. What we know as Real Estate is actually a combination of the first 2. Cars, boats, scoters and other immovable objects usually fall in the 3^rd category. All of these items give value to the person who owns them. So, they are being taxed.
Inheritance Tax – This tax refers to taxes which are being transferred upon someone’s death. For example, a person owns a huge house and dies. His son gets the house along with the taxes it had when his father lived. So when you receive something, you usually inherit its taxes as well.
Expatriation Tax – whenever someone gives up his citizenship, he may have to pay some taxes based on his wealth, depending on the country.
Transfer Tax – historically, any transfer or trade required an official stamp to show its validity. This stamp would usually cost a percentage of the trade or a fix amount. Although the stamp has gone, most trades and transfers today still carry this small fee in order to make the transaction.
Wealth Tax – some countries require declaring your wealth. Then, after removing liabilities and other elements, a percentage of this value is taxed.