Madison Voters Concerned About Skyrocketing Housing Costs After Approving Property Tax Hike

Madison voters just approved a staggering $629 million in property tax increases, and now they’re worried that housing costs are out of control.

There were three referendums on voters’ ballots this month. Two were from the Madison Metropolitan School District for $607 million, and one was from the city for $22 million. Madison voters approved all of them.

As a consequence of those results, the average homeowner’s property tax bill in Madison will increase by almost $1,600 annually. For context, in the City of Madison last year, the median value of a home was $359,300, with $6,500 in property taxes.

The school district's $607 million referendum will allocate $507 million to debt issuance for building improvements. For an “average” Madison home valued at $457,300, this translates to an extra $27 per month in property taxes.

The remaining $100 million of the school district’s referendum will increase annual operating revenue for the district for the next four years. But this means more property tax increases each year, topping off at $87 per month in 2027.

The city’s $22 million referendum is no better for Madison taxpayers. It will provide additional annual operating revenue, meaning property taxes will increase by $230 annually or $19 a month for an “average” Madison home.

Now, Madison media is reporting that renters are struggling with housing costs. The median rent is $1,465, which eats up more than 30% of the city’s median household income. 

The city is working on a plan to fix this problem, and it's exactly what you would expect from a liberal-controlled government. Madison’s Housing Strategy Committee outlines proposals to alleviate housing costs for homeowners, renters, and student housing. The problem is that many of the committee’s solutions focus on vague objectives like “exploring” rather than concrete action.

Here are some examples:

• “Explore what can be done to encourage “overhoused” homeowners to downsize to free up existing housing stock in the Madison market.”
  
  

• “Explore tools to curb the net loss of units as a result of new single-family home construction/replacements.”
  
  

• “Explore partnerships for manufactured and modular housing to be created in Madison.”

A separate Committee solution even suggests to “consider policies to reduce the risk of pre-development costs for non-profit and BIPOC developers.”

Rather than “exploring” unproven solutions or implementing race-based policies, the city should focus on the actual drivers of Wisconsin’s housing crisis.

As MacIver has previously reported, Wisconsin’s housing crisis is largely attributed to the federal government’s failed monetary policy. Its continual inflation at a targeted rate of 2% per year has devalued the U.S. dollar, meaning residents are poorer and housing is more expensive.

Moreover, the state’s restrictive zoning and lot regulations have decreased housing inventory, leading to soaring housing prices and increased competition.

The city of Madison has made a big mistake by not looking in the right areas to address its housing crisis. But its city voters may have made a bigger mistake by approving a multi-hundred million referendum that only exacerbates their housing costs.