Property taxes aren’t usually the biggest part of a monthly housing bill, but they’ve become a growing strain on household budgets.
Homeowners are paying 27.4% more in property taxes than they did in 2019, CoreLogic data from 2024 shows. That may help explain why 67% of homeowners who budgeted for taxes said their bill came in higher than expected this year, according to a March survey by Ownwell.
Property taxes were also the most-cited underestimated cost among Gen Z homeowners, according to a recent Insurify poll.
Together, this data suggests that climbing property tax bills are making it harder for homeowners to plan ahead.
What homeowners pay in property taxes in your state
The amount households pay varies widely by state, with median annual property tax bills ranging from $9,163 in New Jersey, the highest in the nation, to $786 in Alabama, the lowest, according to the latest available 2023 Tax Foundation data.
Remember, these figures reflect the median property tax bill in each state, not home values or tax rates. What you pay will vary based on factors like housing costs, state tax structures and local policies such as tax exemptions or abatements.
In states without an income tax, property taxes often play a bigger role in funding local services. That’s especially true in Texas and New Hampshire, where median bills are among the highest in the country. Other states without an income tax, like Alaska or Nevada, lean more on oil revenue or tourism instead.
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While California has some of the highest home prices in the country, median property taxes are kept relatively low due to caps on assessments and an exemption for owner-occupied homes. Hawaii also has high home values, but property tax bills stay relatively low because the state relies more on a general excise tax to fund government services.
Homes tend to be more expensive in cities because demand is high and space is limited, which drives up values — and in turn, property tax bills. In 2023, the median bill reached $9,937 in New York City and $9,554 in San Jose, according to a LendingTree study. By comparison, state-level medians reported by the Tax Foundation are generally lower.
How to avoid property tax bill surprises
Since property taxes can be easily underestimated, they often end up as an unexpected expense. Reassessments can push costs even higher, so it’s smart for buyers to get a sense of where taxes are headed.
That means reviewing a home’s past tax bills, checking whether the town’s tax base has been growing or shrinking and knowing when the next reassessment is scheduled, says Leo Pond, a Vermont-based real estate agent.
“Property taxes are often one of the most underestimated costs of homeownership,” he says.
Pond recommends budgeting an extra 5% to 10% of the estimated total of the expected bill to avoid being blindsided by a higher bill, since taxes tend to rise with home values.
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