Map found on Reddit
If you live in New England, this map might sting a little.
A 2020 snapshot of property tax burdens across the United States (measured as a percentage of personal income), gathered from data by the U.S. Census Bureau and Bureau of Economic Analysis, shows a very clear pattern: the darker the color, the heavier the load on your wallet, and the Northeast is deep, deep purple.
States like New Jersey, Connecticut, New Hampshire, and Maine are clustered at the top of the scale, approaching or hitting that 5.2% mark. That means residents are handing over more than five cents of every dollar they earn straight to local government via property taxes. Ouch.
Texas: The Lone Star Surprise
Here is something that tends to catch people off guard. Texas, often celebrated as a low-tax haven, shows up as one of the darkest states on the entire map.
How? Texas has no state income tax, so local governments lean heavily on property taxes to fund schools, roads, and public services. The result is a property tax burden that rivals the Northeast, even if your paycheck feels untouched at the state level.
It is a classic trade-off that many homeowners in Texas discover only after they have already signed the papers.
Where Are the Bargains?
The lighter shades (closer to that 1.4% end of the scale) cluster across the South and parts of the West. States like Alabama, Louisiana, and South Carolina give homeowners a much gentler ride. Low property values combined with alternative state revenue streams (like income and sales taxes) help keep the burden down.
Hawaii and parts of the Mountain West also sit on the lighter end, which surprises many people, given the sky-high home prices in those markets.
Why Does This Actually Matter?
Property taxes directly affect your monthly housing costs whether you own or rent. Landlords factor property taxes into rent, so even tenants feel this. For retirees on fixed incomes, a high property tax state can quietly erode financial stability over time.
This map is also a useful reminder that headline tax rates do not tell the whole story. A state with no income tax might be taking just as much, or more, through the property tax door.
The Takeaway
Where you live is essentially a tax decision, whether you think of it that way or not. Before planting roots somewhere, it is worth checking what share of your income will quietly flow to the county tax office every year. This map is a great starting point for that conversation.
Help us out by sharing this map: