I dunno. I pay $3,600/yr. in property taxes (plus another $1,200/yr. in homeowner's insurance)......and that's in a low-tax state in a fairly modest house.
Clarification--our taxes as a percentage are actually quite high, being that we have no sales or income taxes, and the state and towns have to get the money SOMEWHERE. But even then, this state has been more frugal than most.
I actually paid just over $5100, minus my veteran's credit. If the tax RATE had stayed the same, I would have been looking at over a $1000 reduction, but since they're upping the rate to make up for lost assessed value, the 12-14 percent the tax assessor told me about this morning is most, but not all of that.
However, $5K is a healthy hunk of change for property taxes unless, as Frank stated, you're in a blue state, in which case it's likely much worse. My homeowner's policy is another $600/year. Those two are more than 30 percent of my "total nut" (PITI).
And really, when one retires, their income needs go DOWN, not up. Any decent financial planner will tell you to save to where you're bringing in 70-75 percent of what you made before retirement, due to less wear and tear on vehicles, meals, etc.
