The PA Counties Getting Most Value For Property Taxes: New Study

PENNSYLVANIA — Pennsylvania homeowners pay higher property taxes than the national average, but which counties are using taxpayer dollars most wisely?

A study from SmartAsset, a financial technology company, sought to find the counties in Pennsylvania and around the country “where property tax dollars are being spent most effectively.”

The national effective property tax rate sits at an average of 0.99 percent, SmartAsset said. Average effective property tax rates in Pennsylvania counties range from 0.87 percent to 2.45 percent, with a 1.36 percent average effective property tax rate.

SmartAsset analyzed county-by-county data showing the average effective property tax rate, school quality (based on proficiency scores), and the change in property values throughout a five-year period.

Counties were assigned a score between 1 and 10, with 10 being the best, based on average math and reading/language arts proficiencies for every district.

Counties with the highest scores were deemed to be spending their tax dollars most wisely.

Here are Pennsylvania’s top 10 counties according to the SmartAsset ranking:

1. Clarion County, with an overall index of 57.62
   • Property tax rate of 1.13 percent, a school rating of 7, home value growth of 67.24 percent.
2. Jefferson County, with an overall index of 52.97
   • Property tax rate of 1.27 percent, a school rating of 6, home value growth of 66.06 percent.
3. Elk County, with an overall index of 51.04
   • Property tax rate of 1.45 percent, a school rating of 8, home value growth of 81.21 percent.
4. Forest County, with an overall index of 47.05
   • Property tax rate of 1.09 percent, a school rating of 3, home value growth of 1.09 percent.
5. Potter County, with an overall index of 45.98
   • Property tax rate of 1.49 percent, a school rating of 5, home value growth of 71.90 percent.
6. Blair County, with an overall index of 44.58
   • Property tax rate of 1.21 percent, a school rating of 6, home value growth of 49.49 percent.
7. Fulton County, with an overall index of 44.58
   • Property tax rate of 1.19 percent, a school rating of 8, home value growth of 54.88 percent.
8. Susquehanna County, with an overall index of 44.36
   • Property tax rate of 1.26 percent, a school rating of 6, home value growth of 91.68 percent.
9. McKean County, with an overall index of 43.95
   • Property tax rate of 1.77 percent, a school rating of 5, home value growth of 63.18 percent.
10. Columbia County , with an overall index of 43.45
    1. Property tax rate of 1.22 percent, a school rating of 9, home value growth of 45.84 percent.

Data sources include Zillow, the U.S. Department of Education, the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2020 American Community Survey, and the National Association of Realtors, said SmartAsset.