Jehovah’s Witnesses Exempt from Paying Property Tax

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It's a momentous moment for Jehovah's Witnesses, as the religious group was deemed exempt from paying property tax. In line with that, the religious sector was able to save almost $368M since the year 2004. 

According to recent data from BJH Advisors, a consultancy, and the Downtown Brooklyn Partnership, as reported by The Real Deal, "The Jehovah's Witnesses owns dozens of valuable Brooklyn properties, and save quite a bit on taxes, and over the last 12 years, the church has saved at least $368 million in property taxes."

Also, property taxes on the Witnesses' 37 Brooklyn Heights and Dumbo properties were valued at roughly $138.6 million since the year 2006. Furthermore, the church also saved $230 million on transfer and capital gains taxes on the 21 properties it had sold since the year 2004, according to the same report.

However, not everyone was happy with the tax exemptions since some sectors believe that Jehovah's Witness should pay back to the community. According to the Partnership's President, Tucker Reed, "This is the time to do it. Once they leave and head upstate, if anyone goes knocking on their door with a tin cup saying, 'Hey, remember Brooklyn,' it is going to fall on deaf ears."

What stands out is that the religious organization made promises in 2004 to shoulder the improvement of the Dumbo subway station and the asphalt park in exchange for a rezoning that increased the market price of its property at 85 Jay St.

Another report from Crains New York Business showed, "Jehovah's Witnesses have benefited handsomely from Brooklyn's rise in popularity, but have not sufficiently given back to the community."

Even though the group never actually built on the rezoned property, Jehovah's Witnesses have listed the property on the market. Some experts believe the property could fetch $1 billion, at least in part because of the 2004 Rezoning. The promised improvements were never made, according to the same post.

http://news.rexe.com/articles/5737/20160205/jehovah-s-witnesses-exempt-paying-property-tax.htm