Despite the ongoing chaotic failure of the national government to put in place a property tax, some local governments in Hungary are going ahead with new levies on real estate, though in one case with similarly goofy results. On January 1, Budapest's District XIV (Zugló) introduced a property tax, but apparently without notifying locals. According to ingatlanmagazin.com, the deadline for owners to send in details on properties located in the district was January 31, but the majority of such folks had no idea they needed to do this.

On the other hand, the typically over-complex law - which places a different rate on non-residential property (Ft 1,160/sqm/year) than residential real estate (Ft 600/sqm/year) - also exempts those properties occupied by the owners or their immediate relatives. Though naturally, everyone has to submit a report, even if they aren't liable for the tax, or they've never heard of it. Ugh.