Census-designated place Wells is a census-designated place in Vermont, in Rutland County. A census-designated place is an unincorporated community that the Census Bureau defines for statistics; it has no city government of its own.
The median owner-occupied home in Wells had a real-estate tax bill of $3,250 (± $937) a year, compared with $4,956 in Vermont and $2,969 nationwide. The median home value was $198,400 (± $62,094), compared with $290,500 in Vermont and $303,400 nationwide.
| Measure | Wells | Vermont | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Population | 423 ± 187 | 645,254 | 332,387,540 |
| Median annual property tax bill (homeowners) | $3,250 ± $937rough guide only: the margin of error is 29% of the estimate | $4,956 ± $48 | $2,969 ± $3 |
| Median home value | $198,400 ± $62,094rough guide only: the margin of error is 31% of the estimate | $290,500 ± $2,466 | $303,400 ± $362 |
| Median household income | $73,750 ± $22,359rough guide only: the margin of error is 30% of the estimate | $78,024 ± $1,357 | $78,538 ± $176 |
| Property tax as a share of home value (calculated) | 1.64% ± 0.70 pointsrough guide only: the margin of error is 43% of the estimate | 1.71% ± 0.02 points | 0.98% ± under 0.01 points |
| Homes lived in by their owners | 82.2% ± 4.5 points | 72.8% ± 0.5 points | 65.0% ± 0.3 points |
| Owner households headed by someone 65 or older | 47.8% ± 21.3 pointsrough guide only: the margin of error is 45% of the estimate | 35.2% ± 0.4 points | 32.6% ± 0.2 points |
| Owners spending 30% or more of income on housing costs | Too imprecise to report (estimate 10.9%, margin of error ± 16.9 points) | 24.6% ± 0.7 points | 22.2% ± 0.1 points |
How to read these numbers
- These are estimates from a survey, not a count. The American Community Survey asks a sample of households. The ± figure is the Census Bureau’s margin of error: the true value is very likely within that range of the estimate. Small places have large margins.
- “Too imprecise to report” means the margin of error is at least half of the estimate, so printing the number would suggest accuracy that does not exist. A “rough guide only” note means the margin is a quarter to a half of the estimate.
- Property tax bill and home value are medians for owner-occupied homes. Half of the homes are above the figure and half below. A median bill is not the rate set by a city or town; the bill combines taxes levied by every local government that serves the home, such as the school district and county.
- “Calculated” rows are worked out by Untax the Roof from the Census figures above them. They compare two medians, so they describe the place, not a particular household.
- Missing is not zero. Where the Census Bureau publishes no figure, this page says so.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2019–2023: tables B25103 (real estate taxes), B25077 (home value), B19013 (household income), B01003 (population), B25003 (owners and renters), B25007 (age of householder), B25091 (housing costs as a share of income); see the Census ACS data page.
If property taxes go unpaid in Vermont
How it works. Municipal tax sale to private bidder or municipality, followed by 1-year statutory redemption period and collector deed; municipalities may purchase when adequate private bid is unavailable
Excess sale money. Current statute does not establish one general post-deed private-purchaser equity-return system. Vermont Act 106 working-group report states municipality that is purchaser must return excess eventual-sale proceeds under Bogie/Tyler principles, but group did not reach consensus on a private-investor equity solution. Leave private-purchaser equity treatment as unresolved/current-policy gap
These rules are set by Vermont, not by Wells, so this section is the same for every place in the state. Last verified 2026-09-25. See the full Vermont entry with statute links.