Colorado Springs, Denver residents pay among lowest property taxes in U.S.

By Elyse Apel
The Center Square

Colorado Springs and Denver rank among the least expensive U.S. cities for property tax burden, while Boulder homeowners pay some of the most expensive in the state.

This is according to a new study from SmartAsset, which examined the 343 largest cities across the nation.

Colorado Springs ranked 331st out of 343 cities, placing it among the cities with the lowest property tax burdens nationwide. Homeowners there pay an average of just 1.5% of their annual income toward property taxes. That comes out to about $1,966 per year, according to the report.

It was the overall least expensive city in Colorado.

Denver also ranked well nationally, coming it at 296th.

“Homeowners in the Mile High City enjoy a property tax burden of less than 2%,” said Toby Nelson, a representative of SmartAsset.

While all 12 of the Colorado cities examined by the study ranked very well, Boulder came in at the most expensive.

Ranking 205th nationally, residents of Boulder spend an average 3.01% of their annual income paid in property taxes. That comes out to about $5,898 per year, or nearly three times the cost in Colorado Springs.

Still, Colorado’s largest cities had some of the cheapest property tax burdens of all of America’s largest cities.

Nationally, cities in New Jersey, Connecticut and California topped the list as the most expensive. Paterson, New Jersey was ranked the most expensive overall, with homeowners there paying an average of 9.8% of their annual income toward property taxes.

On the other hand, Arizona and Alabama cities consistently ranked the least expensive. Homeowners in Montgomery, Alabama spend the smallest percentage of their annual income toward property taxes, coming in at just 1.1%.

Here is a list of Colorado’s 12 largest cities, which all appeared in the study, and their rankings.

• Boulder ranked 205th.

• Centennial ranked 249th.

• Longmont ranked 259th.

• Lakewood ranked 250th.

• Fort Collins ranked 267th.

• Thornton ranked 268th.

• Arvada ranked 277th.

• Aurora ranked 287th.

• Denver ranked 296th.

• Westminster ranked 303rd.

• Greeley ranked 308th.

• Pueblo ranked 321st.

• Colorado Springs ranked 331st.