Which states have the highest property taxes? What's happening with mortgage rates? And how's the real estate market in California? This week's Realty Times digest of real estate stories has the answers.
Where Do Homeowners Pay the Highest Real Estate Taxes?
Where are American homeowners hit with the heaviest property tax levies? Tapping into Census Bureau survey data, the National Association of Home Builders has come up with two different sets of answers - one list based on the most annual tax dollars actually paid out, and a second list based on the highest tax rates levied. When it comes to sheer dollars paid out, New Jersey is tops by far. If you own property there, you pay the highest median taxes in the U.S. - a whopping $5,352 a year. That's not primarily because your home's market value is so high. After all, California ($477,700 median value), Hawaii ($453,000), the District of Columbia ($384,000) and Massachusetts ($361,500) have more expensive houses than New Jersey's $334,000, yet homeowners in all of them pay less per year than their compatriots in New Jersey. It's mainly because New Jersey funds 35.3 percent of all local and state government activities from the property tax revenues it collects from homeowners - far higher than the 22 percent U.S. median. The rest of the heavy-handed dozen tax states in terms of median dollars per home: Connecticut ($3,865 median), New York ($3,076), Rhode Island ($3,071), Massachusetts ($2,974), Illinois ($2,504), Vermont ($2,835), Wisconsin ($2,777), California ($2,275), Washington ($2,250) and Alaska ($2,241).
Ranking the states by their median tax rates, though, produces a rather different list of heavy and light taxers, and may indeed be the more accurate measure. For example, Texas, which collects a median $1,926 from its home owners in property taxes per year, turns out to be nearly the heaviest taxer among the states in terms of rate-a median $18.17 per $1,000 of value. Only Wisconsin imposes a heavier rate - $18.20 per $1,000. Other states that rank among the highest by rate include Nebraska ($16.69 per $1,000), Vermont ($16.35), New Hampshire ($16.33), New Jersey ($16.03), Illinois ($15.79) and North Dakota ($14.97).
Mortgage Rates Inch Up Again
Freddie Mac's June 1 survey of mortgage rates shows that the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 6.42 percent with an average 0.4 point for the week ending May 31, up from the previous week when it averaged 6.37 percent. Last year at this time, the 30-year FRM averaged 6.67 percent. The 15-year FRM averaged 6.12 percent with an average 0.4 point, up from the previous week when it averaged 6.06 percent. A year ago, the 15-year FRM averaged 6.26 percent. Five-year Treasury-indexed hybrid adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs) averaged 6.19 percent for the week, with an average 0.5 point, up from the previous week when it averaged 6.02 percent. A year ago, the 5-year ARM averaged 6.26 percent.
California Sales Slump, Median Price Rises
California's existing housing sales slumped 27.8 percent in April, compared to a year ago, but the median price rose 6.2 percent, in a market characterized by less action in the more affordable sector. Tighter mortgage underwriting standards for riskier mortgages is cutting into the share of more affordable homes sold, especially in more expensive markets where prime loans remain widely available. The California Association of Realtors reported 373,280 single-family detached home sales statewide in April, down from 516,960 a year ago, as prices rose from a median of $562,820 to $597,640. Condo sales were down less, 19.4 percent as prices rose 1.8 percent to a median of $439,850.
Copyright © 2007 Realty Times. All rights reserved. 6/8/07
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