Vince Fumo Faces A Big Tax Hike On His Big Mansion

The Inquirer’s Miriam Hill reports that Vince Fumo—once the city’s most powerful politician, now serving five years in federal prison on corruption charges—is yet another Philly property owner likely to be angered by the new property tax system. His 27-room mansion has seen its value rise from $675,000 to $2.7 million under the new assessment system. Hill writes: “The new assessments don’t take effect until 2014, and it’s still not clear what the tax rate will be. But if the city taxes properties in 2014 at 1.32 percent with a $15,000 homestead exemption, as Mayor Nutter has proposed, Fumo’s tax bill would rise from $21,105 to $33,673.” Then again, Fumo’s example may have helped spurt the revisions to the system: The house was assessed at $250,000 in 2008, when Fumo tried to sell it for $7 million.