Comparing Property Tax Rates for 100 U.S. Cities

"The Lincoln Institute of Land Policy has released the latest edition of its annual report on property tax rates in all 50 U.S. states, with a new analysis of how communities raise revenue to pay for basic public services," according to an article on the At Lincoln House blog.

The Lincoln Institute partnered with the Minnesota Center for Fiscal Excellence on the "50-State Property Tax Comparison Study" to track the effective tax rate for residential, commercial, industrial, and apartment properties in more than 100 U.S. cities. Planetizen also picked up news of the previous reports, released in 2015 and 2014.

The blog post explains the analysis included in this year's report, such as a comparison of tax rates between cities, "exploring factors such as the reliance on property taxes relative other revenues such as the sales tax; the variation in property values; the differential treatment of residential and commercial property; and the level of local government spending."

For those keeping track at home, Bridgeport, Connecticut tops the list again for the highest property tax in the nation, just as it did the previous two years. This year's edition of the report also explains why its property tax rate has reached 3.88 percent of median home value: "high property tax reliance." Compare that to the cause of the second city on the list, Detroit, which has achieved a 3.81 percent property tax rate due to "low property values."