Kansas City, MO – Help is on the way for some home owners on the Kansas side of the KC Metro stateline, as two cities consider giving tax breaks to people struggling to stay in their homes.
The Prairie Village City Council tentatively approved a pilot program with a vote on final approval set for two weeks from now. The city of Shawnee is also considering a similar tax rebate program.
"The program that was tentatively approved should help 20 to 25 households in the city," said Meghan Buum, assistant city administrator for Prairie Village.
"We took the average appraised property taxes. We looked at what those property taxes were, and did a simple math equation to see what could be supported," said Buum.
The average home value in Prairie Village runs around $380,000. A homeowner must also meet low income guidelines established by the housing and urban development department to qualify. That means a single home owner can not make more than $30,100. Two people need to be making less than $34,000. The numbers slowly go up from there when it comes to more people in the household.
Other cities in Johnson County - Roeland Park and Mission - already offer similar plans.