At the beginning of every year, the housing market in Utah experiences an increase in homes being put on the market. The beginning of the year is a great time to start searching for a new home, and part of the reason is because of the influx of houses being put up for sale in the first few months of the year. Even if you weren’t planning on moving your family into a house, it can be a tempting option as you see so many houses becoming available for sale. Whatever your motivation, there are a few different things you should consider before making the move, and buying a house in Utah. One of those things to consider is property tax, as the cost of buying a house isn’t simply encapsulated within the selling price.
Property Tax
Luckily, Utah doesn’t have a relatively high property tax. Property tax rates in Utah range from 1.07% – 1.75%. It’s actually the 11th lowest property tax rate in the United States. The median annual property tax paid by residents in Utah County is $1,361. However, this is still about $700 less than the national average for property tax rates.
How Utah property taxes work
Utah property taxes are generally handled at the county level, which means that even though the State sets certain tax guidelines, the counties are the ones responsible for appraising property and calculating the taxes. Every 5 years, by law, the county is responsible for obtaining an appraisal of your property to determine its market value. They use the number gained during this appraisal to calculate the property tax.
Residential property in Utah is subject to a 45% tax exemption. This means that you’re only taxed for 55% of the value of your home. For example, if the market value of your home was $300,000, you would only be subject to property tax for $165,000. Then you would be taxed according to your specific county.
Although taxation rates vary by county, both Salt Lake County and Utah County have some of the highest property tax rates within Utah. The county with the highest property tax rates is Summit County, which is largely due to the ski resorts and the fact that many of the homes there are not the homeowners main residence. However, even the property tax rates in Summit County are significantly lower than the majority of the United States.