NEWARK, NJ – If you’re counting pennies during the Biden inflation boom, you might not want to be living in North Jersey, where residents are paying the highest property taxes in America.
But are they getting a good bang for their buck? As many are leaving the state, probably not. Unfortunately, many are handcuffed to good paying jobs and can’t make trip across the Delaware or to the deep south.
Property taxes are a crucial source of revenue for state and local governments, accounting for 32.2% of all state and local tax collections in fiscal year 2020. This funding supports essential community services like education, public safety, and infrastructure. But the burden of property taxes varies significantly across the United States, from state to state and even within states.
The areas with the least burden of property taxes in the country are mostly located in Alaska, Louisiana, and Alabama. Seven counties or equivalents report median property taxes less than $200 annually.
In stark contrast, 11 counties in the United States have median property tax bills exceeding $10,000 and five of those counties are right here in New Jersey.
- New Jersey: Bergen, Essex, Hunterdon, Morris, Passaic, and Union Counties
- New York: Nassau, New York, Rockland, and Westchester Counties
- Virginia: Falls Church
Most of these counties are in close proximity to New York City. Suffolk County, New York, and Putnam County, New York, are next on the list with median property tax bills of $9,911 and $9,855, respectively.
Because property taxes are levied locally, drawing state-level comparisons is a complicated task. But from a county perspective, the disparities in property tax bills reveal significant differences in how local governments fund their operations. Whether these taxes are fair or burdensome is subjective and depends on the services and quality of life provided in each area.
As the discussion around property taxes continues, this data can serve as a resource for policymakers, citizens, and researchers alike, illuminating the varying financial pressures homeowners face across the nation.