The Volunteer State ranks 12th in the nation for the lowest property tax, with an effective tax rate of 0.75 percent. And with median home values hovering around $150,000, it's not unusual for property taxes to be as low as $100 per month.
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Utah, 11th on our list, has an effective property tax rate of only 0.67 percent. But that's not the only thing this beautiful state has going for it. With five national parks, major ski resorts, and the cultural hub of Salt Lake City, this state might very well make your short list of relocation destinations.
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Arkansas makes it into our top 10, with an effective property tax rate of 0.63 percent. The average cost of a home in Arkansas is low, too; the median home value comes in at just under $115,000. At that rate, property taxes on a median-priced home amount to about $721 annually, making Arkansas’s cost of living one of the more attractive in the country.
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With property taxes running just over $1,200 a year on the average $200,000 house, real estate is relatively reasonable in the Equality State. That's good, too, because if you end up living in Wyoming, you'll find that the outdoors and adventure are so integral to the state's culture that you might not spend that much time in your house anyway.
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West Virginia's low effective property tax rate coupled with its modest home prices make housing really affordable. You would spend between $600 and $650 a year in property tax on a house worth $107,000—the median home value in the state.
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It's a tie! Colorado and South Carolina both have an effective property tax rate of 0.57 percent. The median home value in Colorado is higher than that of South Carolina, though, by almost $100,000, which gives South Carolina the edge in terms of cost of living. That said, if you're trying to determine the overall value of living in either of these states, you'll have to take into consideration whether it's worth more to you to live close to the beach or the mountains.
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Washington, D.C., isn’t an official state, but it has its own property tax, which is surprisingly low, at 0.56 percent. That low tax rate, however, goes only so far in shaving dollars off your real estate expenses, as housing costs are quite high, with the median home value in the ballpark of a half-million dollars. Ouch!
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The tiny state of Delaware has the fourth-lowest effective property tax rate in the country, at 0.55 percent. That’s one of the reasons why the state has seen an influx of new residents moving in from neighboring states with higher taxes like New Jersey, which has the highest property taxes in the United States, Maryland (21st most expensive), and Pennsylvania (13th most expensive).
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Louisiana's home prices are low, the weather is warm, the food is delicious, and the effective property tax rate is 0.51 percent. No wonder Louisiana residents are so happy and relaxed!
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With an effective real estate tax rate of 0.43 percent and a median home value of $128,000, Alabama has the lowest overall housing costs in the United States. Pretty amazing!
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As if there weren’t enough reasons to want to move to Hawaii, its 0.27 percent effective property tax rate—the lowest in the United States—is as beautiful as its beaches. But before you trade in your business loafers for flip-flops, realize that the median price of a home in Hawaii is the highest in the country—a whopping $538,400. This would result in an annual property tax bill of $1,459, which is less than the U.S. average, but certainly not chump change. Even paradise has its problems.
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