Time for Liepāja residents to discover their homes are more valuable than they thought

Liepāja residents will receive their property tax notifications this month, which may cause some mild heart palpitations. It turns out that cadastral values have been updated, and that means only one thing — time to pay more.

"My house in Karosta has suddenly become a golden goose," says Jānis from Klaipēdas Street, full of indignation. "Last year I paid 200 euros, this year it's already 350. Have those folks from the State Land Service been in my basement and discovered an oil deposit?"

While in Riga such amounts can only buy you a square meter of living space, in Liepāja they're enough to pay tax on entire houses. Of course, provided they haven't been assessed according to the latest cadastral values.

Liepāja municipality encourages residents to switch to electronic notifications to "reduce natural resource consumption." Somehow it seems like they're thinking more about reducing their office budget, but fine — at least the trees will be happy. The tax can be paid in four installments, which is a great opportunity to spread the pain throughout the year.

If anyone has questions about cadastral value calculations, they can call the State Land Service. Just be prepared for them to explain that everything is correct and complies with regulatory requirements. Just like tram ticket inspectors — they're always right.