Best and Worst States for Property Taxes

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

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

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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

Related: 50 Cities With the Most Overpriced Homes

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.

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