新房产税的公平性——基于购房款的代际赠与视角

A Study on Engel Effect and Fairness of Forthcoming Property Tax from the Perspective of Inter Vivo Gifts for Housing Purchase

调节财富分配、促进公平是新房产税最基本的职能之一。但是,随着房屋购买中父母赠与购房款逐渐形成一种社会趋势,新房产税发生了纳税人和负税人的代际分离。本文的理论分析认为,当代际赠与存在恩格尔效应时,房产税的累进性将被抵消,甚至可能会造成负税人的累退性特征,即总资产越少的父母实际负担的房产税税款份额越高。基于CHARLS数据的实证分析发现,购房款代际赠与额的恩格尔效应在中国显著存在。因此,为了保证房产税税负的公平性,未来房产税的设定仍然要注意将中低收入阶层尽量排除在征税范围之外。

It is one of the most basic functions of property tax to adjust wealth distribution and promote fairness. However, with the inter vivo gifts for housing purchase gradually being the social trend, intergenerational separation of taxpayers and tax bearers goes for the property tax. With a theoretical analysis this paper finds that progressive property tax will be partly offset and even may result in regressive tax burden for tax bearers when there is an Engel effect in international gifts. In other words, parents with fewer assets will take heavier burden of property tax. An empirical anal- ysis based on CHARLS data demonstrates the existence of Engel effect in intergenerational gifts in China. Therefore, in order to ensure the fairness of property tax, the government still should pay attention to spare the low-and-middle-income class from the property tax in the future.