They don't really. They misreport the value for tax purposes, they own it through some other legal entity that is all negative, they own it through a company that negotiated tax rates to have some other business happen there, they own it in countries that don't to property taxes, etc. etc.
You can be damn sure they're paying at most a tiny fraction if not zero of any tax rate you'd be paying for that asset as they'd much rather pay very good lawyers, accountants, and most importantly, politicians to not have to pay tax.
You don't need progressive taxes. You just need everyone to pay it equally, without loopholes. Fewer less complicated tax rates are harder to work around.
Regular people also commit fraud which can make some differences here. But in general it’s the state who decides what something is worth for tax purposes not the individual.
> they own it through some other legal entity that is all negative
Unpaid property taxes result in forfeiture, so again the state’s getting paid here. It’s financial voodoo around other taxes which causes such structures.
> they own it in countries that don't to property taxes
So do regular people, the important bit is where such property is located not who owns it.
> Regular people also commit fraud which can make some differences here.
Yeah, but it's hard for a regular person to under/overreport a property by, say, 200 million USD, and most people do not have the power to negotiate with or bribe municipalities to get different tax treatment like big companies and the rich people owning them do.
> Unpaid property taxes result in forfeiture
Avoided taxes are not unpaid taxes - we're not speaking of people on the run from debt collectors, but people who cheat their way out of having to pay anything.
> So do regular people
What regular people own properties in foreign countries selected for their tax benefits, for investment or recreational uses?
Most regular people own between zero and one property. Granted, they could move, but it takes extra riches to be able to casually straddle multiple borders.
> What regular people own properties in foreign countries
Expats often chose their location based on such factors.
> people who cheat their way out of having to pay anything.
Good luck finding someone who actually pays zero property tax on US land they own. You’re assuming loopholes exist that don’t.
> it's hard for a regular person to under/overreport a property by, say, 200 million USD
Comparing wealthy taxation is only meaningful based on percentages. There’s definitely people who avoid property taxes by failing to disclose they built a house on undeveloped land thus avoiding 50+% of their tax bill.
> Expats often chose their location based on such factors.
You're not answering the question I wrote. Recreational or investment properties in foreign countries, i.e. not a peron's only property in their home country.
Expats pick a country to live and work in. They don't get to pick different countries for income tax, for property tax, for company tax, etc., like a billionaire being a US citizen with a swiss bank account, luxemburg company, luxury vacation homes in e.g., gated communities in Morocco.
(Also note that this isn't a discussion of just property tax, but billionaires avoiding tax in general.)
> Good luck finding someone who actually pays zero property tax on US land they own
Observe the point above - US citizens owning land in foreign countries.
Also, US citizens paying way less by severely misreporting and paying people to look the other way, like the earlier example.
> Comparing wealthy taxation is only meaningful based on percentages.
All taxes should be fixed, unavoidable percentages yes, that is my original argument. Progressive tax doesn't fix things because it doesn't hit the ultra wealthy like people think, as those evade the flippin' thing anyway. Deal with the corruption and evasion, get some proper (and fixed) rates to apply to their business, and you won't need complex progressive tax systems.
Billionaire wealthy pretty much manage to avoid all taxation, progressive or not, so the comparison is moot. They just trample on everyone else.