Where do homeowners pay the most in property taxes?
Soaring price increases in home values naturally mean that tax assessments are also likely to rise. But tax valuations don't correlate exactly with market values for homes.
Depending on the jurisdiction, tax assessments are reviewed annually or biannually and sometimes include discounts. In addition, the amount of tax paid varies according to each jurisdiction's assessment.
The average property tax increase for homeowners over the past five years was 18%, according to research by House Method, a company that researches home service providers. The majority of U.S. counties (93%) had an increase in property tax bills, with 11 counties seeing a property tax bill more than double over the past five years.
Nearly 10% of counties saw an average tax bill go up by $500 or more, and 5% had an increase of 40% or more.
Eight jurisdictions tied as the most expensive with median property tax bills of at least $10,000, which is the highest amount that the Census Bureau tracks, according to House Method.
Most of those counties are in New York (Nassau, Rockland, New York and Westchester counties), or New Jersey (Bergen, Essex and Union counties), with the eighth in the city of Falls Church, Va.
Regions of the country with the highest property tax bills are in the Northeast and in the Bay Area in Northern California. Eighteen of the top 20 most expensive jurisdictions are in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, with Marin County in California and Falls Church, Va., rounding out the list.
Regions with the least expensive property taxes are in the South and Midwest, with Louisiana and Alabama having 13 of the 20 counties with the lowest property tax bills. The five counties with the lowest median property tax bills, at just $199 per year, include Choctaw County, Ala.; Northwest Arctic Borough, Alaska; and three jurisdictions in Louisiana: Avoyelles Parish, East Carroll Parish and Madison Parish.
The median tax bill more than doubled over the past five years in 11 counties, many of them in Texas.
Terrell County, Texas (up 167%)
Grant Parish, La. (125%)
Upton County, Texas (121%)
Borden County, Texas (121%)
Petroleum County, Mont. (115%)
Zavala County, Texas (111%)
Kent County, Texas (110%)
McMullen County, Texas (108%)
Webster County, Ga. (104%)
Garfield County, Mont. (104%)
Stevens County, Kan. (101%)
For the full report, which is searchable by county, visit housemethod.com/blog/property-taxes-by-county.
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