Property Tax Reform: Has the Odyssey Come to an End? — An Analysis of the Tax Payable

Abstract

Due to the resistance of Hamburg and Bavaria, the last draft legislation for a property tax reform failed, which was launched by the Federal Council of the German states in autumn of 2016. Since the constitutional court is expected to declare the existing tax assessment rules as unconstitutional, the existing property tax might be suspended, if the property tax cannot be revised on time after the federal elections. With this background, the article first analyses feasible reform options. Moreover, for the first time, an exemplary analysis of the tax payable of these alternative models is provided for two different cities, in terms of their spatial economic structures. A proposal for a corresponding reform of the financial equalisation scheme is forwarded also.