Kassel property tax: contradictions and complaints increase!

Kassel property tax: contradictions and complaints increase!

The city of Kassel is currently sending around 60,000 property tax notices, which causes resentment among the owners. They face higher payments through the new property tax regulation, while some can also benefit from relief. In Kassel, in 2025 revenue from property tax of around 38.4 million euros, the amount remains unchanged compared to the previous year. The need for this property tax reform results from a judgment of the Federal Constitutional Court, which the old tax system declared unconstitutional

The effects of the new regulations can be noticeable: Owners of older properties report increases in property tax by 30 to 50 percent - even in extreme cases even of doubles or triples. In contrast, newer buildings tend to experience relief. So far, only 70 contradictions against the 60,000 sent notices have been received, which means a contradiction rate of around 10 percent. The rate for property tax B in Kassel remains constant at 490 percent.

Legal framework for objections

While the contradictions are subject to charges, it is recommended to only insert them if the wrong information has been proven to be proven. Owners also have the option of submitting an application to change the decision to the tax office outside the opposition period. Often, errors in the property tax calculation result from inadequate or incorrect information from the owners themselves. The Haus & Grund Kassel association received 30 to 40 feedback from its 4,000 members, especially those affected with higher tax claims. Landlords can convert the increased taxes to their tenants, which also reinforces the financial burdens for many citizens.

The Hessian property tax model, however, results in a low consideration of the real estate value, and future adjustments to the land standard values will only be effective from 2036. Around 280,000 notices were contested for the measurement amount in the entire state of Hesse, which corresponds to an opposition rate of 10.2 percent. An example of uncertainty among the owners is that the city of Kassel has not extensively checked the new notices for plausibility.

Litigation in the context of the property tax reform

The protest against the new property tax extends across the entire federal territory. The first complaints were submitted in federal states such as Baden-Württemberg at the end of 2022 to clarify the constitutionality of the new regulations. In the meantime, the Baden-Württemberg Finance Court decided on June 11, 2024 that the new state fundamental tax law is constitutional, a judgment against which revision to the Federal Finance Court was approved. Further sample processes are in preparation, especially in Berlin and Rhineland-Palatinate.

A legal opinion by Professor Gregor Kirchhof questions whether the federal model is constitutional. The concerns here are that the land standard values are not comparable and the flat -rate ratios do not meet the individual circumstances of the owners. So far, there have been highly different legal opinions regarding property tax in several federal states, and it remains uncertain whether objections and lawsuits will personally be advantageous for the owners.

The reform and the associated legal disputes will probably shape the property tax situation in Germany until 2025 and lead to the fact that many owners must continue to wait for clarifications and adjustments.