Louisiana among nation’s friendliest states for real estate taxes, new report finds

(The Center Square) – Louisiana ranks high among states with the lowest rates for real estate property taxes in a new WalletHub report.

The personal finance website divided the median real-estate tax payment by the median home price in each state to determine the effective real-estate tax rates for the study. WalletHub then used those rates to obtain the dollar amount paid as real-estate tax on a house worth $217,500, which was the median value for a home in the U.S. in 2019.

Louisiana’s 0.55% effective real-estate tax rate was the fourth-lowest rate in the U.S, with the annual taxes on a $217,500 home being $1,187. According to WalletHub, the median home value in Louisiana is $163,100, and the taxes paid on a median-priced home is $890.

WalletHub reported the average American household spends $2,471 on property taxes for their homes each year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

“Consideration of property tax is not the most exciting part of the home buying process, but it is incredibly important and should always be considered,” said Natasha N. Varyani, an associate professor of law at New England Law. “Often it is overlooked because it is not included in the list price of real estate, and it is an obligation that will be attached to the property forever.”

Hawaii (0.28%), Alabama (0.41%) and Colorado (0.51%) had lower effective real-estate tax rates than Louisiana. The District of Columbia (0.56%) ranked fifth.

New Jersey (2.49%), Illinois (2.27%), New Hampshire (2.18%), Connecticut (2.14%) and Vermont (1.90%) were the states with the five highest effective real-estate tax rates.

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