"property" in questo caso, sta per immobili, non patrimonio. vedi:
http://www.state.nj.us/treasury/taxation/index.html?lpt/loca...

è vero che la property tax può colpire anche altre forme di patrimonio, come suggerisce Oscar, però le property taxes imposte a livello locale gravano generalmente sugli immobili:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Property_tax
In the United States, property tax on real estate is usually assessed by local government, at the municipal or county level. A very important benefit of a tax on property over a tax on income is that the revenue always equals the tax levy, unlike income or sales taxes, which can result in shortfalls producing budget deficits. The property tax always produces the required revenue for municipalities' tax levies.