Best and Worst States for Property Taxes

In many states, expect to receive a hefty tax bill.

By Jami Farkas Jul 13, 2021 Taxes 101

In some states, prospective homebuyers run into a double dose of sticker shock: the list price of the home, plus the annual cost of property taxes. While a property tax rate of 2% doesn’t sound like a lot, when you do the math, it translates into $6,000 a year on a home valued at $300,000. That’s an extra $500 a month tacked on to your mortgage payment.

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To find the best and worst states for property taxes, GOBankingRates used data from the Tax Foundation and Zillow to find the property tax percentage rate and the average home value in each state, then calculated the average property taxes paid in each location. The results are listed in descending order from most to least expensive tax percentage rate.

With so many Americans having home-based jobs now, they might not be tied to a certain state or geographic region, opening the entire country as a potential destination. If you fit into that category — or if you just want a change of scenery — look through the list to see what you could expect to pay in annual property taxes.

Last updated: July 13, 2021

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1. New Jersey

Average Effective Property Tax: 2.21%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $405,511
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $8,961.79

Find Out: What Homes Will Be Worth in Your State by the End of 2021

2. Illinois

Average Effective Property Tax: 2.05%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $231,775
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,751.39

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3. New Hampshire

Average Effective Property Tax: 2.03%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $365,417
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $7,417.97

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4. Vermont

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.80%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $292,592
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $5,266.66

Discover: 20 Insider Tips To Save Money on Every Part of Your Home

5. Wisconsin

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.73%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $224,756
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,888.28

See: Here’s Exactly How Much Savings You Need To Retire In Your State

6. Connecticut

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.70%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $324,406
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $5,514.90

7. Texas

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.69%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $236,733
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,000.79

8. Nebraska

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.65%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $201,143
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,318.86

9. Ohio

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.62%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $177,338
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,872.88

10. Rhode Island

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.53%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $365,409
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $5,590.76

11. Pennsylvania

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.51%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $225,601
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,406.58

12. Iowa

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.50%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $164,194
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,462.91

13. Michigan

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.44%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $200,350
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,885.04

14. New York

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.40%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $308,611
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,320.55

15. Kansas

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.33%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $173,803
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,311.58

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16. Maine

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.27%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $290,358
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,687.55

17. South Dakota

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.22%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $237,217
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,894.05

18. Massachusetts

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.15%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $510,708
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $5,873.14

19. Minnesota

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.11%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $295,805
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,283.44

20. Maryland

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.04%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $367,790
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,825.02

21. Alaska

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.02%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $312,601
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $3,188.53

22. Missouri

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.01%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $189,275
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,911.68

23. Oregon

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.98%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $428,698
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,201.24

24. North Dakota

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.95%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $249,220
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,367.59

25. Florida

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.94%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $296,666
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,788.66

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26. Georgia

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.92%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $236,492
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,175.73

27. Washington

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.92%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $505,842
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,653.75

28. Oklahoma

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.88%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $146,902
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,292.74

29. Indiana

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.87%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $180,041
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,566.36

30. Virginia

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.86%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $322,407
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,772.70

31. North Carolina

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.85%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $239,534
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,036.04

32. Kentucky

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.82%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $165,711
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,358.83

33. Montana

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.76%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $339,812
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,582.57

34. Idaho

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.75%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $379,764
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,848.23

35. California

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.74%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $667,443
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $4,939.08

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36. Tennessee

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.73%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $217,054
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,584.49

37. New Mexico

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.68%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $240,817
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,637.56

38. Arizona

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.67%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $340,657
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,282.40

39. Nevada

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.66%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $362,862
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,394.89

40. Mississippi

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.65%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $138,071
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $897.46

41. Arkansas

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.64%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $144,955
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $927.71

42. Utah

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.62%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $438,714
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,720.03

43. Delaware

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.58%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $297,808
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,727.29

44. Colorado

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.56%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $479,660
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,686.10

45. South Carolina

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.56%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $219,567
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,229.58

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46. West Virginia

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.55%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $116,603
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $641.32

47. Wyoming

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.55%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $267,928
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $1,473.60

48. Louisiana

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.52%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $183,774
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $955.62

49. Alabama

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.40%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $164,638
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $658.55

50. Hawaii

Average Effective Property Tax: 0.30%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $807,777
Average Annual Property Tax Paid: $2,423.33

United States

Average Effective Property Tax: 1.06%
April 2021 Average Home Value: $281,370
Average Annual Property Tax Paid:$2,978

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Methodology: For this piece, GOBankingRates looked at the Tax Foundation’s “How High Are Property Taxes in Your State?” data to find (1) effective average property tax for each state. Once this was gathered GOBankingRates also found each state’s (2) November 2020 average home value from Zillow and (3) average annual property tax paid. Only factor (1) was considered in the final rankings. All data were collected on and up to date as of June 1, 2021.

About the Author

Jami Farkas

Jami Farkas holds a communications degree from California State University, Fullerton, and has worked as a reporter or editor at daily newspapers in all four corners of the United States. She brings to GOBankingRates experience as a sports editor, business editor, religion editor, digital editor — and more. With a passion for real estate, she passed the real estate licensing exam in her state and is still weighing whether to take the plunge into selling homes — or just writing about selling homes.