Seattle Property Tax Breakdown

SEATTLE PROPERTY TAX
Brian Goodnight & Traci Ratzliff, Council Central Staff

Nate Van Duzer, Councilmember Burgess Office
April 1, 2016
SEATTLE PROPERTY TAX COMPONENTS

Three types of property tax levies:
1.
General Purpose Levy

o Not subject to voter approval
o Growth is limited to 1% + new construction
2. Voter-Approved Levies for Specific Purposes

o Known as levy lid lifts because voters authorize taxation above the statutory lid
o Examples: 2009 Housing Levy, Seattle Preschool Program, Move Seattle
3. Levy to Pay Debt Service on Voter-Approved Bonds

o
o
Known as an excess levy because it does not count against the Citys rate limit
Examples: 1998 Libraries for All, 2012 Waterfront Seawall
1
CALCULATING THE PROPERTY TAX

Calculating the tax rate for the City:
Annual Levy Collection Amount

(Total Assessed Value (AV) of All Property / $1,000)
Calculating the tax amount for an individual property:
Tax Rate x (AV / $1,000)
Tax Rate
Annual Property
Tax Amount
2
EXAMPLE CALCULATION 2009 HOUSING LEVY

2016 Tax Amount for Median AV Home ($480,000)
Calculating the tax rate for the City:
$20,714,286
($163,305,559,891 / $1,000)
Calculating the tax amount for an individual property:
$0.127 x ($480,000 / $1,000)
$0.127
$60.88
2016 PROPERTY TAXES

Amount by Jurisdiction for Median AV Home ($480,000)
Total Bill: $4,553
State, $1,041
School District, $1,051
City of Seattle, $1,472
County, $710
Flood District, $62
Port of Seattle, $81
Emergency Management, $136
Source: King County Assessors Office, for Single-Family House
2016 PROPERTY TAXES

City of Seattle Property Tax Breakdown for Median AV Home ($480,000)
Total Bill: $4,553
City General Purpose, $704
City of Seattle, $1,472

Move Seattle, $279
Seattle Parks District, $140

Families/Education, $98
Bond Debt Service, $85
Low-Income Housing, $61
Library Services, $51
Pre-K, $43
Election Campaign Financing, $9
HISTORICAL PROPERTY TAX 2010-2016
$500,000
$5,000
$400,000
$4,000
$300,000
$3,000
$200,000
$2,000
$100,000
$1,000
$-
Property Tax
Assessed Value
Residential Median AV & Total Property Tax Bill
$-
2010
2011
2012
Median Assessed Value
2013
2014
2015
2016
Total Property Tax Bill for Median Assessed Value
IMPACT OF PROPOSED HOUSING LEVY

If the proposed housing levy was in effect in 2016 for a Median AV Home:
Total housing levy tax amount would be $122, an increase of $61 over the 2009 Housing Levy
Total property tax bill would increase 1.3%
$5,000
$4,500
$4,000
$3,500
$4,614
2016 Housing Levy Increase, $61

2009 Housing Levy, $61
City, $1,411
$3,000
$2,500
$2,000
$1,500
Other, $3,081
$1,000
$500
$2016
Source: King County Assessors Office, for Single-Family House, and Seattle City Budget Office
PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS AND DEFERRALS

Washington State offers four property tax exemption or deferral programs for primary residences:
Program
Income Level
Other Eligibility Requirements
Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Exemption
$40,000
- At least 61 years of age, or

- Unable to work because of a disability, or
- Veteran receiving compensation at total disability rating
Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Deferral
$45,000

- Unable to work because of a disability
Owners with Limited Income: Tax Deferral
$57,000
- Owned home for > 5 years, and

- Sufficient equity to secure the interest of the state in the deferral
Widows & Widowers of Veterans: Tax Assistance Grant
$40,000

- Unable to work because of a disability, and
- Not re-married or in registered domestic partnership
The state also offers property tax exemptions for eligible nonprofit organizations. Examples of the types of organizations receiving
a property tax exemption include: schools, churches, hospitals, nursing homes, and museums.
Source: Washington State Department of Revenue, http://dor.wa.gov/Content/FindTaxesAndRates/PropertyTax/IncentivePrograms.aspx
COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

2015 Median Residential Property Values
Mercer Island
Bellevue
Sammamish
Redmond
Issaquah
Kirkland
Seattle
Bothell
Kenmore
Shoreline
Maple Valley
Renton
Kent
Burien
Auburn
Covington
Federal Way
Des Moines
Tukwila
SeaTac
$0
$400,000
Source: King County Assessors Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population.
$800,000
$1,200,000

2016 Property Tax Rates per $1,000 in assessed value
Federal Way
Maple Valley
Des Moines
Auburn
Renton
Burien
Kent
SeaTac
Tukwila
Covington
Shoreline
Kenmore
Sammamish
Bothell
Issaquah
Redmond
Kirkland
Seattle
Bellevue
Mercer Island
$0
$2
$4
$6
$8
$10
Source: King County Assessors Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. Some cities have multiple tax rates due to overlapping taxing
jurisdictions (school districts, fire districts, etc.); this chart takes the most common tax rate from each city.
$12
$14
$16
10

2016 Median Property Tax Bills
Mercer Island
Sammamish
Bellevue
Issaquah
Redmond
Kenmore
Bothell
Kirkland
Seattle
Maple Valley
Shoreline
Renton
Federal Way
Auburn
Kent
Burien
Des Moines
Covington
Tukwila
SeaTac
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
Source: King County Assessors Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population.
$4,000
$5,000
$6,000
$7,000
$8,000
$9,000
11

Property Tax Bills & Home Values
$9,000.00
Mercer Island
$8,000.00
$7,000.00
Sammamish
Median Tax Bill
$6,000.00
$5,000.00
Maple Valley
Renton
$4,000.00
Kenmore
Bothell
Shoreline
Issaquah
Redmond
Kirkland
Seattle
Bellevue
South County cities
$3,000.00
$2,000.00
$1,000.00
$0.00
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
Median Residential Home Value
Source: King County Assessors Office. Includes King County cities with more than 15,000 in population. Some cities have multiple tax rates due to overlapping taxing
jurisdictions (school districts, fire districts, etc.); this chart takes the most common tax rate from each city.
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
12

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SEATTLE PROPERTY TAX

Brian Goodnight & Traci Ratzliff, Council Central Staff

SEATTLE PROPERTY TAX COMPONENTS

General Purpose Levy

2. Voter-Approved Levies for Specific Purposes

3. Levy to Pay Debt Service on Voter-Approved Bonds

CALCULATING THE PROPERTY TAX

Annual Levy Collection Amount

Tax Rate x (AV / $1,000)

EXAMPLE CALCULATION 2009 HOUSING LEVY

Calculating the tax rate for the City:

$0.127 x ($480,000 / $1,000)

2016 PROPERTY TAXES

School District, $1,051

City of Seattle, $1,472

2016 PROPERTY TAXES

City General Purpose, $704

City of Seattle, $1,472

Seattle Parks District, $140

HISTORICAL PROPERTY TAX 2010-2016

Residential Median AV & Total Property Tax Bill

Median Assessed Value

Source: King County Assessors Office, for Single-Family House

Total Property Tax Bill for Median Assessed Value

IMPACT OF PROPOSED HOUSING LEVY

2016 Housing Levy Increase, $61

PROPERTY TAX EXEMPTIONS AND DEFERRALS

Other Eligibility Requirements

Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Exemption

- At least 61 years of age, or

Seniors & Disabled Persons: Tax Deferral

- At least 60 years of age, or

Owners with Limited Income: Tax Deferral

- Owned home for > 5 years, and

Widows & Widowers of Veterans: Tax Assistance Grant

- At least 62 years of age, or

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

COMPARING SEATTLE PROPERTY TAXES

Median Tax Bill

South County cities

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