Border bargains · 2026

Biggest property tax gaps across state lines

Adjacent counties on either side of a US state border, ranked by the size of the effective property tax gap. The actual relocation math for someone considering a move 30 minutes away — and the most consequential fact about state lines that nobody mentions in the relocation listings.

CHEAPER Philadelphia PA

0.95%

↔

PRICIER Camden NJ

3.08%

2.13% gap = roughly $8,520/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER New Castle DE

0.55%

↔

PRICIER Salem NJ

2.65%

2.10% gap = roughly $8,400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Kenosha WI

1.31%

↔

PRICIER Lake (IL) IL

2.43%

1.12% gap = roughly $4,480/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Oxford ME

1.30%

↔

PRICIER Coos NH

2.40%

1.10% gap = roughly $4,400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Monongalia WV

0.55%

↔

PRICIER Fayette PA

1.50%

0.95% gap = roughly $3,800/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Walworth WI

1.31%

↔

PRICIER McHenry (IL) IL

2.25%

0.94% gap = roughly $3,760/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Boone KY

0.85%

↔

PRICIER Hamilton OH

1.65%

0.80% gap = roughly $3,200/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER Norfolk MA

1.07%

↔

PRICIER Providence RI

1.85%

0.78% gap = roughly $3,120/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

CHEAPER St. Louis City MO

1.31%

↔

PRICIER St. Clair IL

2.05%

0.74% gap = roughly $2,960/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#10

CHEAPER Kenton KY

0.95%

↔

PRICIER Hamilton OH

1.65%

0.70% gap = roughly $2,800/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#11

CHEAPER St. Louis MO

1.40%

↔

PRICIER St. Clair IL

2.05%

0.65% gap = roughly $2,600/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#12

CHEAPER Campbell KY

1.00%

↔

PRICIER Hamilton OH

1.65%

0.65% gap = roughly $2,600/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#13

CHEAPER Washington RI

1.30%

↔

PRICIER New London CT

1.95%

0.65% gap = roughly $2,600/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#14

CHEAPER Sussex DE

0.42%

↔

PRICIER Cape May NJ

1.06%

0.64% gap = roughly $2,560/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#15

CHEAPER Sussex DE

0.42%

↔

PRICIER Wicomico MD

1.05%

0.63% gap = roughly $2,520/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#16

CHEAPER Windsor VT

1.75%

↔

PRICIER Sullivan NH

2.35%

0.60% gap = roughly $2,400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#17

CHEAPER New Castle DE

0.85%

↔

PRICIER Chester PA

1.45%

0.60% gap = roughly $2,400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#18

CHEAPER Windsor VT

1.75%

↔

PRICIER Grafton NH

2.30%

0.55% gap = roughly $2,200/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#19

CHEAPER New Castle DE

0.55%

↔

PRICIER Cecil MD

1.05%

0.50% gap = roughly $2,000/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#20

CHEAPER Windham VT

2.00%

↔

PRICIER Cheshire NH

2.50%

0.50% gap = roughly $2,000/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#21

CHEAPER Jefferson WV

0.58%

↔

PRICIER Frederick MD

1.04%

0.46% gap = roughly $1,840/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#22

CHEAPER St. Louis MO

1.40%

↔

PRICIER Madison IL

1.85%

0.45% gap = roughly $1,800/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#23

CHEAPER York ME

1.10%

↔

PRICIER Rockingham NH

1.55%

0.45% gap = roughly $1,800/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#24

CHEAPER Newport RI

1.00%

↔

PRICIER Bristol MA

1.40%

0.40% gap = roughly $1,600/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#25

CHEAPER Jefferson WV

0.58%

↔

PRICIER Loudoun VA

0.95%

0.37% gap = roughly $1,480/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#26

CHEAPER Scott IA

1.84%

↔

PRICIER Rock Island IL

2.21%

0.37% gap = roughly $1,480/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#27

CHEAPER Montgomery MD

0.84%

↔

PRICIER Fairfax VA

1.17%

0.33% gap = roughly $1,320/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#28

CHEAPER Sussex DE

0.34%

↔

PRICIER Worcester MD

0.65%

0.31% gap = roughly $1,240/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#29

CHEAPER Aiken SC

0.50%

↔

PRICIER Columbia GA

0.79%

0.29% gap = roughly $1,160/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#30

CHEAPER Westchester NY

2.20%

↔

PRICIER Bergen NJ

2.43%

0.23% gap = roughly $920/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#31

CHEAPER Latah ID

0.68%

↔

PRICIER Whitman WA

0.91%

0.23% gap = roughly $920/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#32

CHEAPER Jackson MO

1.27%

↔

PRICIER Wyandotte KS

1.50%

0.23% gap = roughly $920/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#33

CHEAPER Windham CT

1.65%

↔

PRICIER Providence RI

1.85%

0.20% gap = roughly $800/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#34

CHEAPER Johnson KS

1.30%

↔

PRICIER Cass MO

1.45%

0.15% gap = roughly $600/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#35

CHEAPER Clark WA

0.99%

↔

PRICIER Multnomah OR

1.10%

0.11% gap = roughly $440/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#36

CHEAPER El Paso CO

0.55%

↔

PRICIER Laramie WY

0.66%

0.11% gap = roughly $440/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#37

CHEAPER Platte MO

1.40%

↔

PRICIER Wyandotte KS

1.50%

0.10% gap = roughly $400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#38

CHEAPER Bristol MA

1.40%

↔

PRICIER Bristol RI

1.50%

0.10% gap = roughly $400/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#39

CHEAPER Windham CT

1.65%

↔

PRICIER Kent RI

1.70%

0.05% gap = roughly $200/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#40

CHEAPER Bucks PA

1.45%

↔

PRICIER Monmouth NJ

1.48%

0.03% gap = roughly $120/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#41

CHEAPER Fairfax VA

1.17%

↔

PRICIER Prince George's MD

1.20%

0.03% gap = roughly $120/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

#42

CHEAPER Jackson MO

1.27%

↔

PRICIER Johnson KS

1.30%

0.03% gap = roughly $120/year on a $400k home, just for crossing the line.

Why border bargains are real

State property tax systems are independent — and often dramatically different. A house on one side of a state line can pay 2-3x what an identical house pays a mile away across the line. The biggest examples in the United States are around the Chicago-Northwest Indiana border and the Indianapolis-Cincinnati-Louisville triangle, where counties from three different states meet.

The catch: school districts, voter-approved bond loads, and special assessments still vary substantially within each county, so the headline rate doesn't capture everything. Mello-Roos (California), MUD/PID (Texas), or special improvement districts can add a percentage point or more to a parcel without changing the county's published rate. Always verify the specific district before signing.

Many of the pairs above don't yet have both counties in our coverage — when only one side is in our database, the other shows without a link. As we add more states and counties, these pages auto-update with the new pairs.