Fraud Alert from Property Appraiser. By Geniusofdespair

THIS IS THE SCAM LETTER SENT OUT TO PROPERTY OWNERS:

Notice Solis is spelled wrong

Property Appraiser Race Will Be a Slugfest. By Geniusofdespair

Alex Dominguez ($41,000 - except $36,535 is a loan to the account) and Pedro Garcia ($43,255) the former Property Appraiser, are ahead of the group in fundraising. Albert Armada also loaned himself $10,000. This is a non-partisan post but as we know, there is really no such thing in Miami.  Carlos Lopez Cantera was the property appraiser but he left to (barf) become Rick Scott's Hispanic face (Lt. Governor).

Alex Dominguez is on the left.

On the County Committee Agenda March 13. By Geniusofdespair

140307 Resolution Esteban L. Bovo, Jr., Prime Sponsor

RESOLUTION CALLING A COUNTYWIDE SPECIAL ELECTION IN MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA, TO BE HELD IN CONJUNCTION WITH A GENERAL ELECTION ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 4, 2014, FOR THE PURPOSE OF SUBMITTING TO THE ELECTORS OF MIAMI- DADE COUNTY THE QUESTION OF WHETHER TO AMEND THE CHARTER TO PROVIDE THAT THE OFFICE OF THE PROPERTY APPRAISER BE CHANGED FROM AN OFFICE ESTABLISHED AND EXISTING UNDER THE HOME RULE CHARTER AND COUNTY CODE TO AN OFFICE ESTABLISHED PURSUANT TO AND UNDER THE FLORIDA CONSTITUTION, INDEPENDENT FROM COUNTY GOVERNMENT EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT PROVIDED IN THE FLORIDA CONSTITUTION AND STATE LAWS

I think getting the Property Appraiser's Office out of the hands of the County Government is a good thing -- it should be more independent as should the elections department. Carlos Lopez Cantera was trying to do that before he left. He called me the other day to see how I liked the new search program. He really cared about that job. Too bad he left.

Did Carlos Lopez Cantera Make Sophie's Choice? By Geniusofdespair

In the movie "Sophie's Choice" Sophie was given the choice by the Nazis to save her daughter or her son. I was thinking that Property Appraiser Carlos Lopez Cantera was almost left with a similar choice. Give up a cushy, well-paid job where he could be near his family, instead to face the whims and bad choices of Mr. "I pled the 5th 75 times", yes we also know him as Governor Rick Scott. To Lopez-Cantera, Lt. Governor must have sounded good on paper but it might be only for less than one year. It does give him Statewide name recognition but that comes shackled to Scott's star power or lack thereof.   I hope Carlos Lopez Cantera made the right choice for himself in his trade-off for security to give Scott some Hispanic creds.

Carlos Lopez Cantera taking Toxic Job. By Geniusofdespair

I know he is a a Republican but I sincerely like Carlos Lopez Cantera and think he has been a stellar Property Appraiser. But I think his days are numbered with Rick Scott. I do not think Rick has a chance in hell of being reelected and that would leave Carlos out in the cold. Talk about hooking an albatross around your neck, Carlos has one now.

2013 Estimated Taxable Values by Taxing Authority dated June 1, 2013. By Geniusofdespair

Miami Dade County Property Values for 2013 are on line. By Geniusofdespair

Carlos Lopez-Cantera's swearing in ceremony. He is hidden behind all the lobbyists paying homage.

Property Appraiser Carlos Lopez-Cantera has announced an early release of values for the nearly 1 million properties in Miami-Dade County.

As of May 28th, preliminary property values for 2013 are available online. The release of values was planned to coincide with the completion of the Downtown office’s reconfiguration, designed especially for individual assessment reviews. Mr. Lopez-Cantera is providing property owners plenty of time to address any questions or concerns regarding their assessment and an office that is well equipped to serve the public.

I looked myself up and did not see 2013. Maybe I don't know how to look, but I did find 2013 for my friends. You should all know they ARE including foreclosures in the evaluations. The last Property Appraiser did not.

You have to use the NEW SEARCH to get the information. I don't like the "New Search." I use the "Old Search" but it won't work for this.

Property Appraiser Carlos Lopez-Cantera

Why don't I like the new search? I like to draw a square on the map where I want to look, with the old search I can. As I magnify I get all the property lines. Then I can look at all the property owners in my screen box by just hitting inside the property lines to see each property's owner, one after another at light speed, in that area. It is very cumbersome to do that with the new search. You have to return to the home screen each time you hit on a property (Actually, I don't think what I described can be done with the New Search, I never used it again after I tried it once). For me I NEED THIS OPTION TO JUST KEEP HITTING ON PARCELS TO LOOK AT TRENDS, RECENT BUYS, ETC. I know the map so well now I can get an overview of any area in an instant with the Old Search. I hope they never discontinue it.

Except for this New Search (that the Property Appraiser's office just told me was implemented prior to Lopez-Cantera's arrival and they are reworking it to address concerns) I am happy with Carlos Lopez-Cantera. He has been a pleasant surprise. He responds quickly and thoughtfully to everything I ask him. He also follows up on anything he does not know and gets back to you.

March 1st is the Cut-off for Filing Homestead Exemptions. By Geniusofdespair

This is the link to file your Homestead Exemption online.  The deadline for filing is March 1st, so do it today if you moved lately. Questions? Try this link.

If you want to rat out your friends for suspected homestead exemption fraud, call the Property Appraisal Homestead Exemption Investigation Unit at 311.

Seen Yesterday and Today In Miami. By Geniusofdespair

Here is what I saw of note yesterday and today -- yes I did make it out of my house:

Miami Herald's Daily Q Today

Pedestrian in North Miami Beach

Miami Dade County's Property Appraiser Carlos Lopez Cantera at his Swearing-In Ceremony.

Commissioner Francis Suarez - The next Mayor of the City of Miami?

Two shady characters at the Swearing-In of the Property Appraiser.

John Renfrow, Director of Water & Sewer Department (head of the department with the most unfunded infrastructure in the County), caught twiddling his thumbs.

We got a Shout Out from CBS 4. By Geniusofdespair

It appears my graphic of Property Appraiser Pedro Garcia as a baby is a hit. CBS Channel 4 News used it:

"If the word childish comes to mind, the blog Eye on Miami has gone to great length to demonstrate it. The site features a picture of a baby with Garcia’s face, who’s 75, attached to the baby body."

Apparently Pedro Garcia is, oddly, using it as his screen saver.

Let's go to video tape Eye On Miami is near the beginning:

Sour Grapes at Property Appraiser's Office? By Geniusofdespair

Is outgoing Miami Dade County Property Appraiser Pedro Garcia being a big baby?  I have heard rumors that he not helping in the transition to the newly elected appraiser, sort of like the U.S. Presidential staff stealing keys on the computers on the way out the door.

Carlos Lopez Cantera won. He will be the Property Appraiser soon but he is having a hard time trying to get Pedro's cooperation.  Yes, I know Garcia was angry by the close countywide election (only 5,000 separated the two men and Pedro lost only on absentee ballots). He was even considering a lawsuit to throw out the absentee ballots but Pedro gave up on that idea when his attorney (Stephen Cody) bailed on him and Joe Martinez. Now it is time to move on.  Maybe Pedro Garcia has a taste of how Gwen Margolis felt when she won the primary but was forced into a runoff with Garcia and lost. So very close to victory and she too felt it was stolen from her.

Anyway, I think you should help Lopez Cantera for the sake of the people of the County. Buck up Pedro, do the right thing.

The Property Appraiser's Race. By Geniusofdespair

Eye on Miami Photo

I am often surprised by what transpires. I reached out a few times to Property Appraiser Pedro Garcia about a month or two ago. NOT A WORD from him. I wrote him emails I even called his cell phone. I gave up. Last week Carlos Lopez-Cantera reached out to me. I was surprised. I talked to him for about 20 minutes. He likes the job Lori Parrish has done in Broward, I like that as well. We both have been in touch with the same constituent who had a problem with the Property Appraiser and could not get it resolved. He promised he would look into her problem once in office. He already sent a email on her behalf to the Property Appraiser (more than I did).  I actually changed my vote on this race after talking to him. Not that I had any strong preferences to begin with. I am not endorsing. (AFTER READING COMMENTS I CHANGED MY VOTE AGAIN - THANKS FOR THE COMMENTS PEOPLE.... You all will have to make up your own minds on this race. Neither choice is sterling -- one you can't talk to (Pedro) the other has bad ideas - Port, FIU (Carlos).)

I asked Lopez-Cantera to write about why he should be the Property Appraiser.  Here is his answer...

Dear fellow readers of Eye on Miami:

I seek your support in the upcoming August 14th election. Professionally, I am a licensed real estate agent who brings perspective on real world real estate issues through my work in the greater Miami-Dade market during the past 15 years. Also, since 2004, I have had the privilege to be elected and re-elected to serve in the Florida House of Representatives as a voice and advocate for the residents of Miami-Dade County. During this time, I championed key reforms to the property appraisal process in an effort to bring fairness to Florida’s property tax code, empower property owners and reduce property tax bills.

Miami-Dade County’s current Property Appraiser made a conscious decision when elected to maintain the status quo. Consequently, the office budget has ballooned by +10.7% since 2009/2010 while Property Appraisers throughout the rest of Florida have decreased their budgets by a combined -8.3%. Furthermore, the Value Adjustment Board (VAB) has continued to be burdened with a high volume of appeals that are granted value reductions at an alarmingly high rate of 50.5% since 2006. I believe this is in large part due to his decision not include foreclosures in the valuation of our homes, a fact reported on this very website and something I plan to reverse. In 2009 alone, the VAB reduced established values by $8 billion and property taxes by $160 million just for those who appealed. Additionally, homestead exemption fraud has grown out of control, something the current Property Appraiser repeatedly denied until receiving considerable criticism from outside groups. All the while, residents are left without direct access to services and information that they need and deserve in order to make informed decisions that directly impact their day-to-day lives.

Unfortunately, sometimes government forgets whom they are there to serve and this occurs too often in the current Property Appraisers office. Over the past several months of campaigning, I have heard various stories from residents complaining about their experiences with that office. I believe residents deserve the best service and treatment possible and I would make that a cornerstone of the culture in the office of the Property Appraiser. As such, if elected I will:

Miami Herald Get Your Act Together. Guest Blog by EyeonMiamiHerald

I was getting used to the Herald's sloppy habits of late.  There isn't an edition that doesn't have editorial and copy errors ranging from completely wrong words to misspellings (in the era of spell-check I find this especially frustrating).  But what I cannot accept is the Miami Herald staff being so lazy that they cannot be bothered to search their OWN archives for stories on the subject they're editorializing.

Case in point:

In the Herald editorial from this Wednesday: "Appraiser Throws a Curve Ball",  they wrote as though the County Property Appraiser's announcement that tax would be due for the parking garage for the Marlin Stadium was not to be expected by the City of Miami. The paper went so far as to actually call for changing State law to help the City of Miami undo their own bumbling, inept negotiation that put taxpayers on the hook for the $2 million tab for the parking garages.

But anyone who has been paying attention to similar private/public arrangements (or read the Miami Herald in the past) would have known that this move by the Property Appraiser was expected.  That's why the City took the step to transfer the Orange Bowl site to the County in the first place.

Miami Dade County, unlike the City of Miami, is exempt from taxation for profit-making ventures like the Marlins Stadium or the American Airlines Arena.  No doubt, that is why the savvy Marlins' attorney put such language deflecting any tax obligation in their contract in the first place. To call this a "curve ball" caused by the change to an elected Property Appraiser is not only patently false, but ignores recent history and the Herald's OWN news coverage.

The Homestead-Miami Speedway is a prime example of a long-standing dispute over private enterprise on city property having to pay property taxes.  Homestead has complained loudly for years - practically since the track was built in the mid-1990s - that they are paying the County taxes for the racetrack.  A quick look at the Property Appraiser's database shows that their tax bill for 2011 was more than $500,000.

This includes the vacant land around the track owned by the City used for parking.  The other spill-over parking areas are owned by the racetrack, and as a private entity those properties are taxed as well.  This was information that I unearthed in two minutes as a readily available public document.

I recall many stories on the subject in the Miami Herald over the years.  I'm pretty sure the Herald has access to their archives without having to pay themselves for the articles.

It gets better.  With a quick search of the Herald archives I exhumed this recent tidbit from August 29, 2011: "South Miami settles to end IRS investigation".

What was this investigation about you ask?  The Miami Herald reported that the IRS and the SEC were investigating a parking garage built for a commercial project using municipal tax-free bonds.  The City settled with the IRS but the SEC investigation remains open.  Sound familiar?

So the Herald simultaneously calls for changes in State law to get the City of Miami out of a jam of their own making while not knowing the history or potential consequences of such a change. Wouldn't the change proposed by the Herald, in fact, create a precedent that would lose the County much needed revenue not only at the Orange Bowl but from other venues, such as the Homestead-Miami Speedway?

Property Appraiser Election for Miami Dade County is Coming Up. By Geniusofdespair

Ernesto Castellanos is running for Miami Dade County Property Appraiser. He worked for the property appraiser office for 24 years and is now retired (in 2010).

On the phone Ernesto Castellanos was very short with me which was a turnoff. He didn't say he would call me back when he had more time...that was a turnoff too. I wouldn't support him if this is how he treats people: Blowing them off: Rude. Somehow I got the feeling that not being Hispanic was part of the reason for the don't give a shit about you attitude.

Pedro J. Garcia the incumbent has my vote thus far out of the two running. Although I do remember him saying something about one term when he ran the first time. I have a call into Garcia but I think his daughter gave me a non-working number...anxious to hear his phone demeanor. Pedro has collected $35,350. I think someone else entering this race would have a chance against Pedro, he is not a good campaigner, but Ernesto-- it won't happen for you. Don't discount people who take the time to call you, we are the ones voting.

What is wrong with the Property Appraiser's Office? By Geniusofdespair

I looked up a few condos in 3301 NE 183rd Street. The property appraiser put the assessed value for unit 2509 at $135,506 (in 2009 it was appraised at $548,716). Quite a drop. It sold for $790,000 in February so it was never worth $135,506. Unit 1503's assessed value was $137,527 in 2010 ($488,012 in 2009). May 11th it sold for $810,000. Unit 809 sold for $655,000 in September of 2010. It was assessed at $135,506 for 2010. Unit 1509 went for $700,000 in February, it was assessed at $135,506 in 2010 (in 2009 it was assessed at $490,543).

My question, is the property appraiser's office really incompetent on their assessments or are they giving the developers a free ride? Are we losing county property tax funds on undervalued properties? I would say that a property that sold for $810,000 given an assessed value of $137,527 is pretty far off the mark. It is hard for me to accept a tax hike when you see assessments like this. Remember my examples are only a few units in a large building of 223 condos. How are the rest in this building and other buildings under-valued at our expense?

Here is the tax information for one unit:

County's 2010 Estimate of Taxable Value in Third Year of Decline. By Geniusofdespair

And the biggest loser of them all: Drum roll....it is Homestead!

The Miami Dade Property Appraiser reports that the 2010 estimate of County taxable value is $192.484 billion -- a decline of 13.4% when compared to the 2009 figure of $222.14 billion. In 2008 we were at $245.6 billion. The new construction taxable value in the County is estimated at $2,626,000,000--a significant decline when compared to $8,379,000,000 the previous year.

Can the County's belt get any tighter, they lost $53 billion in taxable value in 2 years.

June Bonanza: Miami-Dade's Mega Tax Certificate Sale. By Geniusofdespair

There is over a quarter of a billion dollars in unpaid property taxes in Miami Dade County. I got a copy of the Miami Times, they carry the ads -- that paper has all the good public notices because it is an acceptable vehicle but the paper is hard to find, so what is the point? You would think the Miami Herald would have these adds because it makes more sense with their circulation.

There were 218 pages of properties in the Miami Times totaling about 77,172 homes. I averaged that each one owed about $3,000 (which is low since there were many in the $20,000 to $100,000 range).

On Monday June 1st at 2pm tax certificates will start to be sold on the listed properties to pay the amount due for the delinquent taxes. Is it any wonder the property appraiser is in a black hole?

Property Taxes of the High Rollers. By Geniusofdespair

Don't complain about your property taxes anymore, it could be worse. Wayne here shells out more a year in taxes than some of our homes/condos are worth and probably more than most of us make a year (unless we work for the fire department or the County). Take a look at these 2008 tax bills I found on the property appraiser's website in Miami-Dade and Broward:

Ronald Bergeron $23,439
Robert Traurig $37,501
Sanford Ziff $39,337
Aaron Podhurst $49,871
Richard Fain $52,916
Armando Codina $73,835
Sidney Levy $120,813
Norman Braman $127,765
Dean Ziff $138,857
Juan Carlos Mas $143,774
Shari Arison $166,115
H. Wayne Huizenga $253,439
And the winner on my list for highest taxes paid:

Adrienne Arsht $367,874 and that is even with her widow exemption included!

This list is not scientific -- just rich people I could think of that didn't have common names like George Perez.

Property Appraiser’s Records Are NOT Accurate in Florida and Miami-Dade is Worse. By Geniusofdespair

Eye on Miami reporter Gimleteye calls it "Contaminated Data" and looks at the larger implications. I just find it wacko that the Florida Department of Revenue will not allow counties in Florida to count distressed sales which means the entire State of Florida’s Property Appraisers are not counting half the properties changing ownership in their assessments under the guise of distressed. Worse it is not uniform, in Miami-Dade ALL foreclosures are distressed but in Broward County it is SOME foreclosures. In Broward County they post the distressed sale price and date in their public records, but they put a “D” next to the price signifying it is a distressed sale. Any property that is deemed distressed is not counted but at least Broward’s records are accurate. Miami-Dade County will not post any information related to the sale, except the buyer, creating inaccurate records. Look at the graphic at left and I will explain why, in Miami Dade there is little accuracy.

County Commissioner Natacha Seijas (yes her name is spelled wrong in official records) bought a house in December 2008. How do I know this? Because I looked at her financial disclosure form. As you can see, in the graphic, I would NOT know this from the Property Appraiser records. I would assume she bought it in 2006 and paid $360,000 instead of the accurate information of 2008 for $225,000. If I looked up the records by the identifying numbers, I would get the old sales information, they are not correct either.

As a reporter (okay I am taking liberties here) who values accuracy, I would be reporting wrong information if I base it on County Records. This ties my hands. I cannot go out into the outskirts of our cities seeking property turnover information. I will not know if the property has turned over. I cannot look for trends, to see if developers have had to dump properties. I cannot track anything with accuracy in Miami Dade County but if I reported in Broward County, I could.

Currently, the Seijas property is assessed at $320,822 but she only paid $225,000 so her assessment won’t change as much as it would in Broward County. Broward counts some foreclosures in their assessments, those put on multiple listings and advertised. Miami Dade doesn’t county any. Each County in the State is able to set their own rules so don’t look for any uniform accurate records. Read Gimleteye's post July 24th for the far reaching implications.

P.S. If you want to find Natacha's records at the Property Appraiser, key in Sejaz but to find her records at the Miami Dade County Clerk's office you had better use Millan, Natacha S. Go figure, same deed.

Miami Dade Property Appraiser Reports on Dropping Taxable Values. By Geniusofdespair

I suspect tax increases are in all our futures, especially in Homestead: Wow! almost a 25% downward spiral. You can't make that up with budget cuts. And then the City of Homestead residents also have to deal with the fall of Miami-Dade County revenues and the drop in school revenues (all separate taxing entities). Homestead residents are going to get murdered.

Even the tony towns, like Coral Gables, Indian Creek and Pinecrest lost around 5%. Medley did the best with a .7% drop. Does anyone know where Medley is? I just looked it up, it has 1,500 residents and 1,800 businesses and it is in NW Miami-Dade. Most cities have about a 10% voter turnout. Medley could elect it's Mayor with 150 votes. If I move, I could be a Mayor! I am sure I could get 200 people out with my empty promises. Medley needs a change, the current Mayor has been in office for 16 years. It is like being a County Commissioner, a post for life!

Read it and weep. (Hit on image to enlarge it).