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Federal and state income taxes, Social Security and Medicare, and AFLAC payments are withheld from my salary. My Hubby is self-employed, so he doesn't get a paycheck. His customers pay him, and then he pays his taxes. Every year we file for our taxes, and usually pay another $6,000 in addition to the federal IIRS) and state (South Carolina) taxes that have already been withheld from my pay, and from what Hubby pays. We never get a "rebate" or refund.
Our local sales tax is 6%, except for the city of Charleston (6.5%). (The city of Charleston also has a "hospitality tax" for hotels and restaurants, which makes the total 10%.) We don't have VAT, so the sales tax is added onto the purchase price. We pay sales tax on everything, including food. (Some other states don't charge sales tax for groceries. Also, some state do not have state income tax.)
Property taxes vary from community to community; there is no one rate. I can only give you the example of our house. Our house value is about $180,000. Our tax for the house is $1,500.
County taxes support the public schools, sheriff's department, library, and road maintenance. City taxes support police department, trash, lawn debris and recycling pick up, fire department, and EMS.
South Carolina also charges "personal property" tax for boats, cars, trucks, motorcycles, and mobile homes. The tax for vehicles is determined by its retail value and age. The older the car, the lower the tax. Hubby pays about $230 per year for his van, and about $250 per year for my car.
Church taxes are illegal in the United States. We voluntarily give our money to our local church. Every week we give at least 10% of our gross income to our church as tithe. We give additional money at church to support missionaries, building fund, special projects, and to help other people with emergencies (such as medical bills, car repairs, moving expenses).
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