MoneyWatch

Here's where U.S. homeowners pay the most — and least — in property taxes

Edited By Alain Sherter

April 8, 2024 / 9:58 AM PDT / CBS News

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Rising U.S. real estate prices and higher mortgage rates aren't the only challenges to owning a home these days. Between 2022 and 2023, property taxes shot up as much as 31% in some parts of the country, recent data shows.

Homeowners saw their property taxes increase an average of 4.1% over that period, according to an analysis of more than 89 million single-family homes, by ATTOM Data Solutions, a provider property data. That translates to a typical tax bill last year of $4,062, up from $3,901 in 2022.

ATTOM CEO Rob Barber attributed the tax increases partly to inflation, which pushed up costs for running local governments and schools, including wages for public employees.

Across the U.S., property taxes rose higher than the national average in 118 larger cities, according to ATTOM's figures. The highest annual year-over-year jumps were in Charlotte, North Carolina, at 31.5%; Indianapolis (19%); Kansas City (17%); Denver (16%); and Atlanta (15%).

ATTOM also found that residents of 21 counties with at least 10,000 single-family homes pay more than $10,000 a year in property taxes. Topping that list are:

Essex County, New Jersey ($13,145)
Bergen County, New Jersey ($13,112)
Nassau County, New York ( $13,059)
San Mateo County, New York ($13,001)
Santa Clara County, New York ($12,462)

All told, local governments collected more than $363 billion in property taxes.

Home prices rose 6.5% over the last year, report finds

To be sure, annual property taxes can vary by tens of thousands of dollars depending on where you live. That's because such taxes are based on the local government services and schools available in a given community. Property values, which are determined by a local assessor, also affect the tab.

But even a 1% bump in property taxes can add hundreds of dollars to a homeowner's monthly payment.

Here are the top five states where the typical homeowner paid the most in real estate taxes in 2022, according to ATTOM:

New Jersey ($9,488)
Connecticut ($8,022)
New York ($7,936)
Massachusetts ($7,414)
New Hampshire ($7,172)

Americans paid the lowest average property taxes on average in these five states:

West Virginia ($989)
Alabama ($1,104)
Arkansas ($1,296)
Mississippi ($1,367)
Louisiana ($1,418)

Khristopher J. Brooks

Khristopher J. Brooks is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch. He previously worked as a reporter for the Omaha World-Herald, Newsday and the Florida Times-Union. His reporting primarily focuses on the U.S. housing market, the business of sports and bankruptcy.

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