What a Big Lake home costs each year
Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.
Suggestions as you type come from Google; the lookup uses free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.
Starts at the typical market value, $330,200; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.
- Property tax$3,994
1.547% of $330,200, less $16,832 homestead market value exclusion and less $500,000 for class 1a residential homestead property, the 1.25% class rate applies only to market value above $500,000
- Electricity and gas$2,344
587.82 kWh a month $1,246 · 71 therms $1,098
- Water and sewer$1,527
7,000 gallons a month on City of Big Lake: water $34, sewer $85, storm water drainage utility fee (properties less than 1 acre) $5, street light utility fee $3 a month
- TrashNot included
The City licenses haulers to haul solid waste and recycling
- Home insurance$1,774
Typical premium $1,774
A Big Lake house at the typical market value ($330,200) costs about $9,600 a year: $3,990 property tax and charges, $1,530 water and sewer, $2,340 electricity and gas, $1,770 home insurance; trash is billed separately. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.
Rates checked Oct 29, 2026. Insurance: what you enter, or a typical premium until you do. Sources are listed at the bottom.
Ways to pay less
Nothing here applies to every house automatically. These are worth checking:
Claim the Minnesota property tax refund
The Minnesota property tax refund filing due date is August 15.
How: You may file up to one year after the due date.
Seniors 65+: defer part of your property tax
With the Senior Citizens Property Tax Deferral, the tax you pay is 3% of household income and the state pays the remainder as a loan.
How: You must be 65 or older (if married, the other at least 62), with household income of $96,000 or less, and have owned, lived in and homesteaded your home for 5 years, with no reverse mortgage, life estate, or state or federal tax liens or judgment liens, and other liens under 75% of market value. Apply by November 1.
Money dates
- May 15First half of real estate taxes due
- Aug 15Minnesota property tax refund due; you may still file up to one year late
- Oct 15Second half of real estate taxes due
Who serves this house
- Water
- City of Big Lake
- Residential water rates, per 1,000 gallons
- Property tax
- 1.55% of value
- 2026 taxes payable, Sherburne County (Big Lake City, ISD 727)
- Garbage
- City-licensed haulers
- The City licenses haulers to haul solid waste and recycling
- Sewer
- City of Big Lake
- Residential sewer rates are in the City of Big Lake 2026 fee schedule
- Electricity
- Xcel Energy
- Xcel lists Big Lake as served with electricity and gas
- Gas
- Xcel Energy
- Xcel lists Big Lake as served with electricity and gas
Other MN cities
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How these numbers are made
- Tax: Sherburne County 2026 actual tax rates for Big Lake City, school district 727 (county 38.917, city 40.080, school 28.783, EDA 1.041, airport 0.245, percent of net tax capacity; market value rate 0.18392%). Tax-capacity rates are converted to a share of market value at the 1.00% class rate, with the 1.25% band above $500,000. The starting value is the Census median (market, not assessed); no assessor median was found.
- Water: 2026 city rates; the monthly fixed fee $6.81 plus the $1.27 State of MN test fee. Sewer volume is billed on the November-April average, which the page approximates with current use. Water and sewer are shown monthly. The utility publishes no typical use.
- Trash is not in the totals: residents hire a licensed hauler and the city publishes no hauler prices. Part of Big Lake is served by Big Lake Township or other fire or school areas; ISD 727 is used. Street light fee and storm fee are the city's flat monthly fees.
- Electricity: Xcel's Minnesota residential average (EIA 2024) with the $6.00 basic charge removed from the per-kWh rate, plus a $6.00 basic service charge and the city's $4.00 franchise fee. Gas: Xcel interim 2026 residential bill points fit to a fixed plus per-therm rate, plus the $4.00 franchise fee; part of Big Lake is served by CenterPoint instead.
- Insurance is the 2022 statewide NAIC average, the newest the source gives; premiums have likely risen.
- Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.
How Big Lake compares
A typical Big Lake house against the 72 Minnesota cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.
| Per year | Big Lake | Median | Where it falls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property tax rate | 1.55% | 1.49% | higher than 41 of the other 68 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Water | $414 | $390 | higher than 40 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Sewer and utility-bill fees | $1,113 | $661 | higher than 71 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Electricity and gas | $2,344 | $2,120 | higher than 66 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Home insurance | $1,774 | $1,774 | in the middle of 70 other Minnesota cities we cover |
| Total | $9,639 | $9,629 | higher than 36 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover |
Cities bill differently (some put trash on the tax bill, some cover more services), so a higher number isn't necessarily worse. The property tax rate is compared instead of dollars because house values differ.
Questions to ask your candidates
Each one starts from a number above. Any candidate can answer them.
1. Sewer and utility-bill fees
The fact: Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here come to about $1,113 a year, higher than 71 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover. Some cities bill sewer on the property tax bill instead, which is not counted here.
Ask: "Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here cost about $1,113 a year, higher than 71 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"
2. Electricity and gas
The fact: Electricity and gas for a typical house here cost about $2,344 a year, higher than 66 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover. Rates are set mostly by the utility and the state.
Ask: "Electricity and gas here cost about $2,344 a year for a typical house, higher than 66 of the other 71 Minnesota cities we cover. Which parts of that can the city influence, and what would you do about them?"
Common questions about Big Lake house costs
What is the property tax rate in Big Lake?
About 1.55% of the value before exemptions a year (2026 taxes payable, Sherburne County (Big Lake City, ISD 727)), plus flat charges on the same bill.
How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Big Lake?
About $6,353 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions with the homestead market value exclusion.
How much is the water bill in Big Lake?
About $127 a month for water and sewer at typical use (7,000 gallons a month) on City of Big Lake.
How much does trash pickup cost in Big Lake?
The City licenses haulers to haul solid waste and recycling
When is property tax due in Big Lake?
Aug 15: Minnesota property tax refund due; you may still file up to one year late
Can seniors lower their property tax or bills in Big Lake?
Yes. Seniors 65+: defer part of your property tax: With the Senior Citizens Property Tax Deferral, the tax you pay is 3% of household income and the state pays the remainder as a loan.
How much does a house in Big Lake cost to run each year?
A Big Lake house at the typical market value ($330,200) costs about $9,600 a year: $3,990 property tax and charges, $1,530 water and sewer, $2,340 electricity and gas, $1,770 home insurance; trash is billed separately. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.