Answer: Each municipality has the same tax or mileage rate as it is sometimes called. The more exclusive a area within that municipality, because of amenities or location, the more expensive will be the homes in that area. The tax rate will be the same for that area since it is in the same municipality.  

The tax rate in a more exclusive area within that municipality will feel like it is more since all the home are more expensive. Individual adustments for homes may be higher if they have a better view, share a coastline, are closer to the ocean and so on. 

An adjoining area belonging to another municipality will have an entirelydifferent tax rate.  The tax rate is determined by the overall spending budgeted for that municipality plus the incremental add on taxes for county and state spendingbudget. 

First, it is necessary for the taxing authority to know the amount of money (the budget) the local government will spend for one year.  The local government provides income for regulatory and service departments, schools, police and fire departments, road maintenance, library, etc.

The total budget is composed of these salaries and expenses along with bonded indebtedness (principal and interest payments on borrowed money that was voted for).  This budget is then divided by the total dollar amount of all the assessed value of real estate in the tax district (provided by the assessor) to determine your tax rate.  That tax rate when multiplied by your property value (assessed value determined by the tax assessor) equals your tax bill.  

To really cut taxes we can privatize public schools and outlaw public government unions that don't mirror private sector standards. Catholic schools and other private non-public schools educate their students at half the costs of public schools and do a better job. These students test better on standardized national tests than their public school counterparts. 

 Public sector entitlement gouging need to be addressed. The 20-year and retire at 75% pay public service utopia needs emergency overhaul. It's bleeding the country dry. Local trade and labor unions use "The Rue of 85" before a pension is granted. That is, your age and the years worked must equal 85 or more years before you collect a dime. 

Perks like paid sick days and vacation days are not normal in public trade unions. If you work you get paid. Private secter union workers must have to provide for it seperately if they want that type of protection. In the real world unions it's simple. If you're sick or on vacation you don't get paid.

If that's reality for normal private sector unions it should be good enough for the local, state and federal government unions!  Government union employees are treated as royalty in much of the US. 

Many public workers retire after only 20-25 years of service ( compensated at 75% pay using their 3 highest earning years average as the base multiplier) with additional medical benefit packages fit for king and queens.

Meanwhile the average American has to work 45-years before he or she gets to retire.  1 out of 5 people work for the government I'm told. Although not everyone retires in 20 years, that kind of math suggests that if half the government work force retiring early and getting replaced, 2.5 workers have to support 1 government worker.

A lot of policemen, firemen, county and state employees take early retirement and then get another state job. It's not unusual to hear of someone collecting 2 government pensions. 

As far as perk ripoffs of, check this example. "Parsippany police chief Michael Filippello gets $469,000 sick payout." Retiring official given cash in lieu of time off for unused sick and vacation days in Parsippany, NJ. He also gets a yeary 95,000 pension.

Teachers in NJ get to retire at 60-years of age with a retirement package based on: years of service divided by 55 x final average salary = retirement compensation.  So if you've been teaching for 40-years/ 55 x $75,000 = $54,545 year retirement package plus medical benefits. Teachers are eligible to retire early at 25- years service using the same pay out percentage (plus a 3% penalty per year under 55). With two and half months paid vacation (summers off) with holidays, snow days, convention days, ... . Not bad working conditions!

Compare this to nurses, coal miners, fishermen, trade unions, labor unions, professional workers ... all who have to work until they reach 65 years of age. 

My wish is that stressed private sector workers in the U.S. enjoy a paid summer off or an equivalent 2 1/2 month vacation. Worker productivity will not get rewarded with H-1B replacement for high paid tech workers and illegal immigrants competing for jobs. Coupled with carrying the larceny of public worker entitlements, the middle class working taxpayer has a bleak future.

Couple all this with over 45 million people who receive Social Security payments. 

We have an overhead tsunami on taxpayers who are supporting these outlandish entitlements.

Back to the original question, in our area we have a wealthy municipality where almost all the kids are sent to private school. There is private garbage pickup. Crime is almost non-existent. Although the homes are more expensive than surrounding communities, their tax rate are among the lowest in the state.

Then there is an example of a modest home on an acre of land out from town where suddenly subdivision goes in on both sides, with $400,000 to $800,000 homes. The property is then valued at the level of the new subdivisions and the homeowner can no longer afford to pay the taxes on his acre.

There is another example where in North Carolina, Brunswick County Commissioners hire 58 new employees because of a surplus in buget because of a recent revaluation. Instead of cutting taxes these 58 new hires eat the progress.

 

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