Wisconsin home buying: property tax, WHEDA loans and closing costs

#Wisconsin property tax in the monthly payment

The Census Bureau puts the median Wisconsin homeowner’s property tax at $3,680 a year, or 1.25% of the median home value — the 10th-highest effective rate among the 50 states and DC. On the median home that is $307 a month, $88 a month more than the national ratio of 0.89% would charge on the same price, and 2.6 times the insurance line.

Bills are set by the municipality, county, school district and technical college district where the home sits, so two houses at the same price in neighboring towns can be taxed quite differently. Before you offer, look up the property’s last tax bill and the assessed value it was based on; if the assessment lags the price you’re paying, the bill may rise after the next revaluation.

#The median Wisconsin home with 10% down

The insurance line uses Freddie Mac’s national average premium per $1,000 of value; a Wisconsin quote depends on the roof, heating system and claims history. Change the inputs in the mortgage payment calculator.

#What Wisconsin’s median income supports

The median Wisconsin household earns $77,488. Freddie Mac’s guideline of keeping housing costs under 30% of gross income allows $1,937 a month, which supports a home of about $241,000 with 10% down at today’s average rate and Wisconsin’s tax ratio — $53,700 less than the median value. A household needs roughly $95,000 a year to buy the median home within that guideline. Check your own numbers in the affordability calculator.

#WHEDA Easy Close Advantage: help with a payment attached

WHEDA, the Wisconsin Housing and Economic Development Authority, makes fixed-rate first mortgages through approved lenders; conventional loans need a credit score of at least 620, and FHA loans a higher one. First-time buyers complete homebuyer education.

Its main down payment product, Easy Close Advantage DPA, is not a grant or a deferred loan. It is a fixed-rate second mortgage for up to 6% of the purchase price, at the same rate as the WHEDA first mortgage, repaid in monthly payments over 10 years. Household income limits apply.

WHEDA also offers a deferred Capital Access DPA with lower income limits, but its funding has been limited and allocated first come, first served, so ask a WHEDA lender whether it is open before counting on it. For how assistance and mortgage insurance interact, see PMI.

#Wisconsin’s transfer fee is the seller’s

Wisconsin’s real estate transfer fee is 0.3% of the value — about $884 on the median home — and the statute imposes it on the grantor, so the seller pays. Wisconsin has no state tax on recording the mortgage. Buyers still pay lender, title, recording and prepaid costs; the CFPB’s typical 2%–5% of the price is $5,894–$14,735 here. The closing cost calculator puts the fee on the seller’s side by default.

#Older homes across Wisconsin

The median Wisconsin home was built in 1976, the 14th-oldest housing stock among the 50 states and DC, so inspections matter: look at the basement and foundation for water, the age of the furnace and roof, and any knob-and-tube wiring. Owners live in 68% of the state’s occupied homes. The median renter pays $1,142/mo; the rent vs buy calculator compares that with owning the median home over the years you expect to stay.