And there's a clear difference here, Buying a home in Washington. And there is a clear difference here. Washington is one of seven states in the country that do not charge income taxes. Oregon, on the other hand, does collect income tax from its residents.
However, Oregon does not charge a sales tax on purchased goods, while Washington has a sales tax of up to 10%. Washington residents, on the other hand, while paying sales taxes, do not pay income taxes and house prices are much lower than their Oregon neighbors. Which means that if you lived and paid taxes in Washington State, but did all your shopping in Oregon, you could save yourself a huge tax break by simply traveling between the two states. Washington and Oregon enjoy property tax rates far below those of many other coastal states.
Oregon has the 30th lowest property tax rate of the 50 states and Washington is ranked 29th lowest. Although these taxes don't directly correlate with housing costs, they have an indirect effect on how much homes will allow you to pay. When Oregonians lose their jobs, they effectively leave the tax system because it is based on an income tax. Several regions of Washington states, including Washington State, have property tax rates lower than the national average.
The county seat, Stevenson, enjoys some of the most beautiful scenery in the Pacific Northwest and the lowest property tax rate in Washington State, at 0.61%. In addition to alcohol, it is also very valuable to travel to places without sales tax and to buy high-value items such as electronics and other goods that tend to be more expensive because you can save a lot of money just by not paying this sales tax. Plus, it's just across the bridge from Oregon's sales duty-free shopping, and Washington doesn't have any state income taxes, so it's really the best of both worlds in the gorge. So, if you could do something about the amount of taxes you'll pay on your home without reducing your quality of life, you would, right? Well, if you've been considering a move to the Pacific Northwest and were hoping that a lower property tax rate might be part of the deal, you're in luck.
However, the biggest winner is Idaho, which is the only state in the Pacific Northwest to impose an income tax and a sales tax simultaneously. Most people think that Portlanders pay some of the highest property taxes in the state, and that's true. If buying a home in Washington State or Oregon is on your agenda this year, you'll need a mortgage to finance this big purchase, and Sammamish Mortgage can help. Just when you think you've saved your down payment and have calculated your budget to buy a home, property taxes and insurance come by themselves, making your dreams seem out of reach.
However, thanks to measures recently enacted by the Washington State Legislature, King County property taxes are expected to increase an average of 17% this year. Income taxes are another consideration when deciding whether to buy a home in Washington or Oregon. These figures reflect the previous fiscal year, the most recent for which the figures were available from the Oregon Department of Revenue.