Taxation
Tax Overview
Blue Earth County collects property taxes on over 31,000 parcels each year. The amount of tax each property pays is based on valuation and classification information collected by the county’s licensed appraisers.
Our county’s experienced taxation team uses that information to calculate taxes paid by each property. Tax calculation and payment are two of the final steps of the assessment and property tax process.
Please select a link to the left to learn more about the various activities related to property taxes.
About the Process
The assessment and tax calculation process is multi-year and involves many steps. But it is still even just one small part of the entire property tax process. The following diagram very generally summarizes the entire property tax process.
Calculating Taxes
The calculation of property taxes involves not only the valuation and classification information associated with every property, but it is also impacted by:
- Enrollment in statewide special programs for certain properties
- Any special assessments properties may be paying
- Homestead status of a property
A very important factor that affects how much tax each property pays is the budgeting decisions made by each taxing jurisdiction. The property tax only collects as much money as is necessary to meet the budgets set by the county, towns, cities, and school districts, for example. These budget decisions determine the tax rates.
Changing your Address
It is extremely important to keep your mailing address up to date within our tax system. This will help ensure that you receive notices regarding your property, please use this link to make any updates to your record.
The county’s property tax information system is available online. Searching either by address or parcel number, this site provides current and historical tax information, special assessments, and tax breakdowns by jurisdiction.