Property Taxes

Property Taxes
The 2008 property tax rates (payable in 2009) for Rock Island are:
Rock Island Township 9.4350
South Rock Island Township 9.2292

To see Rock Island’s property tax rates click here.

Home Values
Let’s compare 3 bedroom, 1 car garage, single family homes, ranging in price from $50,000 to $200,000 in the Quad Cities. The following evaluates the homes sold from January 1, 2008 to January 12, 2009.

	Rock Island, IL	Moline, IL	Bettendorf, IA	Davenport, IA
Average selling price	$105,441	$111,748	$138,498	$89,910
Average sales price	$75/sq.ft.	$78/sq.ft.	$106/sq.ft.	$76/sq.ft.
Average number of days on market	53	60	44	57
Number of homes sold	153	210	160	302

Information compiled from MLS by Jerry Wolking, RE/MAX River Cities.

Conclusion: You get more house for the money in Rock Island.

Income Tax
Income taxes need to be taken into account as Illinois and Iowa have very different income tax systems.

	$75,000 income	$150,000 income	$250,000 income
Iowa total federal & state tax	$11,460	$32,735	$68,489
Illinois total federal & state tax	$9,747	$28,575	$61,650
Difference	$1,713	$4,160	$6,839

Source: Ruhl & Ruhl, information provided by RSM McGladrey, Inc.

Conclusion: Income taxes are higher for most people in Iowa.

While in depth study may indicate there is no tax incentive to live on one side of the river for most people, most homebuyers don’t get into that level of detail. Payroll deduction of income taxes removes the sticker shock of that annual property tax bill. The tax impact of one state versus another requires a case-by-case analysis by a knowledgeable tax advisor.

Conclusion: Each individual is different. Before you buy a home, take a look at the entire picture to see what is most beneficial for you.