Minnesota · County property tax · ACS 2024
Waseca County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Waseca County pays $2,603 a year, an effective rate of 1.18%, well above the U.S. average.
- $2,603
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.18%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +31%
- vs U.S. average
- #4 of 87
- rank in MN
The verdict
Homeowners in Waseca County pay a median $2,603 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.18%, more affordable than 24% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,603
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.18%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2381 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +31%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($220,800). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Minnesota. Population: 18,885. Owner-occupied homes: 6,037.
The median annual property tax in Waseca County is $2,603, which is 22% lower than the Minnesota state average and 31% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.18% on a median home value of $220,800. Property taxes represent 3.4% of the median household income in this county.
Waseca County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Waseca County's 1.18% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 24%).
Decision signal 2
Low among Minnesota counties by effective rate
Waseca County ranks #4 of 87 counties in Minnesota by effective rate (95% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Waseca County pay a median annual property tax of $2,603, well above the national median and notably lower than the Minnesota state median. On a $220,800 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.18% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Waseca County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.4% of the $76,261 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Waseca County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
The rate held while the market moved
Waseca County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 0.4% up, against a median home value that rose 36.3%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 36.9%, from $1,902 to $2,603.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 37% from $1,902 to $2,603. These ACS medians describe the reported change; they do not identify whether a levy, assessment, home value, or change in the responding households caused it.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 2,344 of 6,037 owner-occupied homes (38.8%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
Both figures are in the national top quarter, and the median bill still equals only 3.4% of median household income. A high rate on high earnings produces a large dollar figure, and only the dollar figure tends to get quoted; the ratio above is the other half.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
What Waseca County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Waseca County homeowners, 2,344 of 6,037 owner-occupied homes (38.8%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 5.4% (323)
- $800 to $1,499 14.3% (866)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.6% (821)
- $2,000 to $2,999 27.0% (1,627)
- $3,000 or more 38.8% (2,344)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Waseca County pay about the same bill, within a 1% gap either way.
Waseca County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Waseca County's effective rate is higher than 95% of the 87 counties in Minnesota - ranking #4 of 87.
Where Waseca County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.18% more affordable than 24% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
A high rate, a smaller bill
Waseca County taxes property at 1.18%, about 16% above the Minnesota average, yet its median bill of $2,603 lands roughly 22% below it. The effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, so a county can only sit on opposite sides of the state average this way when its homes are worth materially less than the state norm. The rate is the policy; the bill is what the housing market does with it.
Waseca County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Waseca County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.4% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Waseca County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Minnesota counties.
Waseca County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,603 +2.6% | 1.18% |
| 2023 | $2,537 +8.0% | 1.19% |
| 2022 | $2,350 +16.9% | 1.23% |
| 2021 | $2,011 +5.7% | 1.22% |
| 2020 | $1,902 | 1.17% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Waseca County: tax-to-income at 3.4%
Counties near Waseca County's effective rate
On effective rate, Waseca County sits nearest Muskegon County (MI), Van Buren County (IA), Hancock County (IA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Pueblo County (CO), Plumas County (CA), Pawnee County (KS).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Waseca County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 290 of 9,250 returns from Waseca County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,459 - 31% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Minnesota
Waseca County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Waseca County?
- Waseca County, Minnesota scores F (37/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at A+ ($-26). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- What is the average property tax in Waseca County, Minnesota?
- The median annual property tax in Waseca County is $2,603, an effective rate of 1.18% on a $220,800 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Waseca County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Waseca County run well above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.18% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Waseca County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Waseca County jumped 36.9% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,902 to $2,603, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Waseca County?
- Property taxes in Waseca County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.4% of the $76,261 median household income.
What to do with Waseca County's PAR rate
Waseca County's $2,603 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Waseca County ranks #4 of 87 Minnesota counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Minnesota overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Waseca County's PAR effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 1.18%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,603/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Waseca County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Waseca County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Lynn County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,604/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.77% vs Waseca County 1.18%.
Wayne County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,602/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.17% vs Waseca County 1.18%.
Blue Earth County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,601/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.98% vs Waseca County 1.18%.
Juneau County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,605/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.47% vs Waseca County 1.18%.
Minnesota county set
State ACS overview for every published Minnesota county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Waseca County stamps PAR · MID - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Waseca County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.