Cross comparing taxes by state (states, raise, best, calculator)

[jhlcomp]

This is more for information purposes only as opposed to an actual post.

I was seeking a cross comparison by state on taxes and here it is:

http://www.retirementliving.com/RLtaxes.html

I hope this is helpful.

[killer2021]

It is good but not in-dept. It only lists the best and worst states for certain taxes. What we need is a compete table that shows the tax rates for all states. Some states don't have certain taxes but make up for it by having higher taxes in other areas.

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by killer2021

It is good but not in-dept. It only lists the best and worst states for certain taxes. What we need is a compete table that shows the tax rates for all states. Some states don't have certain taxes but make up for it by having higher taxes in other areas.

It does need to be more detailed but it is difficult to do by state as it can vary by county. For example, Texas has very high property taxes that vary from about 2.4% to 3.5% of appraised property value. It is the primary tax source in the state and a range is not even given.

For Washington it notes that property taxes are the primary tax source but there the range is substantially lower.

A table form would be good but taxes are so different it might have to show a range or median rate in some categories. A tax calculator is the only thing that would be close to accurate, taking into consideration individual information and the exact location.

[joee]

http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/topic/9.html (broken link)

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by joee

http://www.taxfoundation.org/research/topic/9.html (broken link)

Yeah, and per capita property taxes are quoted which is substantially different than tax rate on appraised value. I find this study very misleading.

Demographics vary so widely from state to state that per capita numbers are meaningless to individuals.

I would not steer anyone looking for details to the generalizations in that report.

[joee]

Who is looking for what here, prop taxes, general state taxes, i'm a little confused on this one.

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by joee

Who is looking for what here, prop taxes, general state taxes, i'm a little confused on this one.

I assume it is total tax burden. It varies so much depending upon how you get your income, how you spend it, what kind of home you own if you do, etc. that anything short of a personal analysis can be very misleading.

Consider that the number one source of tax income in some states is property taxes and these sites say "Local taxes are excluded, such as property taxes and local sales taxes."

It is just wise to do a calculation rather than count on gross rankings.

[jhlcomp]

I was trying to determine total tax burden and then break out income tax by state, state taxes, property taxes, and other taxes to see where differences are being made up vis a vis no state tax states.

I appreciate all of your help. Thank you.

[cdelena]

Originally Posted by jhlcomp

I was trying to determine total tax burden and then break out income tax by state, state taxes, property taxes, and other taxes to see where differences are being made up vis a vis no state tax states.

I appreciate all of your help. Thank you.

That is a huge challenge as many taxes are local and vary across a state. It is much easier to detail taxes in individual target areas. I started by identifying the states I was interested in, looked at income and other state wide taxes, and then compared selected individual areas.