Welcome tax news for owner-occupants

Three cheers for the decision by the Honolulu City Council for its latest compromise. The vote this week was to extend a one-time reprieve for property taxpayers who qualify but did not file for a owner-occupant exemption on high-end homes.

Of course, we don’t know precisely how many cheers there will be. Some in the city administration insist that only about 10 qualified property owners failed to file. Others say there are many more. These would be people whose homes, valued at $1 million-plus, fall into a higher tax bracket but who could claim an exemption because they live in those homes. The problem was that the deadline to file as an owner-occupant had passed before the new tax class, which compounded the incentive to claim that exemption, was enacted.

Anyway, if you were affected, step up. Make your claim via realpropertyhonolulu.com by Sept. 30: We don’t want the Council deciding they compromised for no good purpose.