Property-tax defaults should help a buyer budget—not pretend to be a tax bill.

49-state baseline

The baseline uses the 2026 statewide effective real-estate property-tax rates published by WalletHub from U.S. Census Bureau data. These rates divide the median real-estate tax payment by the median home value in each state.

California adjustment

California is not left at the historical effective-rate figure. Proposition 13 can make that statewide number look too low for a new buyer because long-time owners may have taxable values far below current market value. The California Legislative Analyst’s Office states that the typical property-tax rate is about 1.1%, and that when a new owner takes over a property its taxable value typically resets to the purchase price. MortgageDadOf3 therefore uses 1.10% as the California purchase-planning default.

What these numbers are not

They are not quotes, guarantees or substitutes for the county assessor/tax collector. Local levies, bond measures, special districts, exemptions, assessment caps and purchase-triggered reassessments can materially change the actual amount.

Best practice

Use the state default for early affordability planning. Once you have a specific property, replace it with property-specific or jurisdiction-specific tax information.

Last reviewed: September 11, 2026.