Just hope that the real estate tax elimination folks don't get their way, because they have proposed increasing income tax by 50% and sales tax by 33% in lieu of real estate taxes. Commercial property owners would be given a gift of free real estate taxes that would be made up for on the backs of residents. In my township, 40% of the real estate collections are from commercial properties, so that's a hell of gift to them and a huge burden for the residents. Not to mention that real estate taxes are a predictable stream of revenue, but income and sales taxes decrease during times of recession, which leads to shortfalls and even more tax increase down the line.