Learn About Property And Other Taxes In Various U. S. States

The district of Columbia, and all other states, levy property taxes. Generally, property taxes are collected locally, at the level of county, municipality, or city. Several Americans pay their property taxes at county as well as city levels. Each state has it own methods of levying property taxes, due to which the rates of property taxes are quite different.

The value of a resident's house determines the amount he or she has to pay as property tax in almost all states. In some states, residents pay property taxes on property other than land or house.

The largest amount of money is paid as property tax in New Jersey. An average residence in New Jersey is valued at around $334,000, and its owner pays around $5,300 annually as property tax. In New Jersey, houses are taxed at 100 percent of its fair market value, an unusual practise indeed. In most of the other states, residences are taxed at 40 percent of their fair market value. This accounts for high rate of property tax in New Jersey.

Louisiana collects the lowest amount as property tax every year. In Louisiana, the owner of an average residence pays just $175 as property tax annually for a house that has a value of $101,000.

Property taxes are paid at local levels in most U. S. states. The resulting funds are used in local programs. The money that comes in as property tax is used to fund roads, schools, fire support, local government budgets, and police support. Some states contribute part of the property taxes paid by their residents to the state government budget too.

State income tax is not charged in seven U. S. states--Florida, Nevada, South Dakota, Wyoming, Alaska, Texas, and Washington. In Tennessee and New Hampshire, you pay taxes only on income generated through dividends and interest, not on your salary or wage. Instead, higher property and sales tax is levied in these states to make up for the deficiency in state revenue.

The highest amount of money is collected as income tax in Maine, a state that taxes its residents around 13.5 percent of their incomes. Colorado collects 2.9 percent of a resident's income as tax while California collects 7.25 percent. The tax rates in the rest of the American states hover between these two extremes.

Alsaka, Montana, Oregon, Delaware, and New Hampshire don't levy sales tax. Some states levy gasoline tax, in addition to special taxes on tobacco products. More and more tobacco products are being used these days, and as a result, the taxes have soared. The tobacco tax varies state by state. While some states charge only seven cents for a pack of cigarettes, other go as high as 2.58 cents.