Apple Argued That Buildings at Its Headquarters Were Worth $200, Not $1B, To Reduce Its Tax Bill: Report (sfchronicle.com)

Apple argued that buildings it owned around Cupertino, where it is headquartered, were only worth $200 instead of the $1 billion tax assessors deemed in 2015, according to appeals reviewed by the San Francisco Chronicle. From a report: The report characterized the dispute as part of an aggressive strategy by Apple to lower its tax bills. According to the Chronicle, Apple has 489 open appeals in tax disputes over property assessed at $8.5 billion in Santa Clara County, Calif., dating back to 2004. Those appeals include the $1 billion building assessed by tax officials, as well as another $384 million property that Apple also claims is worth $200. Apple is now valued at $1 trillion. It is also the county's biggest taxpayer, paying $56 million in the 2017-2018 tax year.

Comments

tax frauds

[fluffernutter]

I know a guy who got a dog and called it a company mascot and had his company pay for all the pet supplies. People will try anything, it doesn't make it right.

They don't want to pay taxes

[mark_reh]

and then they'll complain that the schools aren't producing the highly educated people they need to fill jobs, so they need more H1B visas. This same crap has been going on in Silicon Valley for decades.

Re:They don't want to pay taxes

[fluffernutter]

This is also why public transit systems are crumbling.

Re:They don't want to pay taxes

[Ranbot]

If anyone finds information on how Apple calculated that $200 valuation please share. I searched but found nothing. An AppleInsider article did say this though: "It is unclear if the $200 valuations are for hundreds of dollars or are in fact for $200 million." ( https://appleinsider.com/artic... )

Re:They don't want to pay taxes

[Talderas]

I read this and I thought that $200 has to be a misunderstanding. I read the article and it repeats $200. I still think there's an error in reporting here and that Apple is valuing the property and building at $200M. That at least seems within the realm of sensibility because there's no way accountants or assessors at Apple would value the campus at $200.

There's a simple solution to this crap...

[frank_adrian314159]

Let people set their own valuations, but the valuation is also a public tender for sale at that price.

#clickbait

[Aero77]

Arguing that your property is worth less than what the government is estimating, for the purpose of trying to lower your property taxes, is standard procedure everywhere. Apple doing it doesn't make this tech news.

My house asssessed for 50% more than it sold for

[raymorris]

Two months ago I bought my house, at the price the market determined was fair. A few months later I received the tax assessment at over 50% more than what it actually sold for on the open market, and over $100,000 more than I would have paid for it. That shows you how accurate tax assessments are.

I appealed, exactly as Apple is doing, and got the value set correctly. Each of the last two years, the government has assessed it as increasing in value 10% every year, the maximum amount they legally can. Home values in my area are not increasing 10% per year. They just want to tax me as much as possible.

The assessment was that far off on an ordinary house, that is basically just like all the neighboring houses, though larger than most. It should be an easy assessment since my house and others in the neighborhood have sold recently. The Apple buildings aren't just like all of the other buildings around them, so there isn't that easy comparison. Determining the value it might sell for is difficult and subjective. Maybe it would only sell for $200 million for the building (vs the land). Maybe it would sell for a billion. I don't know, but I sure don't assume that the county's first try is right and fair.

Re:Building Contents?

[Greyfox]

I'd eminent domain that shit for $200 and build a homeless shelter there.