Cost vs. Benefit

Although the property tax data in the table below provides great information to allow homeowners to compare property tax rates across neighborhoods, the data provides very little information regarding the nature of local government services provided in exchange for the property taxes paid. If local government services were the same across all neighborhoods, then homeowners living in those neighborhoods paying the lowest property taxes would be receiving the most value for money paid out in property taxes. However, because services vary across local governments and across geographic boundaries, identifying those neighborhoods with the lowest property tax rates is not necessarily the best approach to finding the best values in homeownership.

Common differences in services across local governments and municipalities include the following:

• Debt: Some special districts, cities and/or counties have incurred significantly more debt than others.  It is worth noting that newer special districts generally have a higher debt loads than older special districts. For example, the cost of building roads, storm sewers, and utility infrastructure within a district requires a heavy up-front cost that is usually financed through incurring debt.  However, once the debt is paid off over a 30 to 40 year period of time, the property taxes paid to that special district will usually decrease significantly.
 
• Trash service: Some cities provide weekly trash pick-up service and other cities do not.
 
• Street snow plowing services: The extent of snow-plowing services varies across cities.  Some cities will not plow the snow on any streets within neighborhoods, while other cities will plow a few main streets throughout each neighborhood.
 
• Covenant-control services: Some metropolitan districts provide covenant enforcement and architectural design review services, while other metropolitan districts do not.  HOAs in some neighborhoods may have consolidated their services into the metropolitan district (which essentially causes homeowners to no longer pay HOA dues in exchange for paying higher property taxes to their metropolitan district).
 
• School transportation services: Some school districts provide student transportation and bussing services to all residents at no cost while other school districts charge fees to the students using such services.
 
• School funding per student: Some school districts are better funded that other school districts.  See our comparison of funding per student by school district here.
 
• Fire protection services: Some fire districts may be required to service a larger area with the same equipment and staff than other districts.
 
• Public education services: Some school districts do a better job of attracting and retaining talented teachers because such districts can afford to pay higher average salaries than other lower-funded school districts.
 
• Police services: Some municipal police departments are better equipped, staffed and trained than other police departments.  In addition, police staff to population ratios may be higher in some cities and lower in others.