Washington County property taxes, values decline

Washington County can still lay claim to the second-lowest property tax

burden in the Twin Cities metro area, but a slight drop in this year’s

median tax bill still isn’t keeping up with big decreases seen in home

values across the county.

The county mailed out more than 96,000 tax statements last month for a total amount billed of $356.1 million, a .9 percent increase over 2010. It’s also a $1.7 million reduction from the 2011 budget first proposed by county officials before Washington County Board members OK’d an alternate proposal that included a flat property tax rate.

But, while the median value of residential homestead parcels fell more than

8 percent between 2010 and 2011, the average change in the county portion of homeowners’ tax bill is just 1.3 percent this year.

88 percent residential properties in the county saw no increase or a

decrease in value, with just 12 percent increasing in value. The numbers

continue a trend in place since the nation’s housing market began a collapse in 2007.

Nearly 30,000 property owners saw a decrease in taxes due to the county of

between .1 percent and 5 percent; just more than 10,000 taxpayers saw an

increase in taxes due of the same range, according to a report released last week by the Washington County Department of Property Records and Taxpayer Services.

In Cottage Grove, the median change in property taxes owed in 2011 is an $84 decrease; in Woodbury, the median change is a $64 drop. Newport homeowners are also seeing an average drop in property taxes of $58 versus 2010.

In Afton, however, the median change is $90 increase, according to the

report, while St. Paul Park property owners are seeing a median increase of

$24. May Township saw the most drastic change in 2011, with a median increase of $370 in total property taxes owed over the previous year.

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