What a Buffalo house pays
Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.
Sent only to free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.
Starts at $336,300 of value before exemptions. Typical use.
- Property tax$4,023
1.523% of $336,300, less $16,283 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$2,150
730.4 kWh a month $1,314 · 61.79 therms $836
- Water and sewer$1,246
7,000 gallons a month on City of Buffalo Municipal Utilities: water $69, sewer $30, storm sewer $5 a month
- Trash$243
65 gallon, $20 a month
- Home insurance$1,774
Typical premium $1,774
A typical Buffalo house pays about $9,400 a year: $4,020 property tax and charges, $1,250 water and sewer, $240 trash, $2,150 electricity and gas, $1,770 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.
Rates checked Oct 22, 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:
Switch to the 35 gallon cartUp to $78 a year
Your cart costs $20 a month; the smallest costs $14. Worth it if you rarely fill it.
How: To set up new service or change out existing garbage or recycling carts, email Utility Billing or call 763-682-1001
Apply for homestead by December 31
If you move into a home and apply by December 31, you may qualify for homestead classification for the next year's taxes. The homestead market value exclusion is 40% of value for homesteads valued at $95,000 or less (a maximum of $38,000), is reduced as values rise, and phases out at $517,200 or more.
How: Apply with the Wright County Assessor; once homestead is granted, there is no need to apply again as long as the property is owned by the same party.
Claim the Minnesota property tax refund
Minnesota homeowners may get a Property Tax Refund based on income and property taxes.
How: File with the Minnesota Department of Revenue by August 15 (you may file up to one year late).
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 rest as a loan, repaid with interest when you sell or cancel.
How: You must be 65 or older (if married, the other spouse at least 62) with household income of $96,000 or less; apply by November 1.
Veterans with a 70%+ disability rating: market value exclusionUp to $150,000 or $300,000 off market value
Up to $150,000 of market value is excluded for honorably discharged veterans with a 70% or higher service-connected disability rating, and up to $300,000 for a 100% permanent and total rating.
How: Own and occupy the homestead by December 31 and submit an initial application to your county assessor's office by December 31.
Irrigation tune-up: $50 utility bill rebate$50 bill rebate
City of Buffalo utility customers can qualify for a $50.00 utility bill rebate on existing irrigation systems for a tune-up from an irrigation contractor.
How: Rebate form is on the City's Water Rebates page.
Tree planting: up to $35 utility rebateUp to $35 bill rebate
City of Buffalo utilities customers are eligible for up to a $35.00 utility rebate for planting a new tree at their residence.
How: Must be submitted within 15 days of tree purchase and planting; funds are first come, first served.
LIHEAP households: CenterPoint Gas Affordability Program
Residential customers who receive LIHEAP energy assistance and agree to a levelized payment plan and a payment schedule can get an affordability credit and arrearage forgiveness.
How: The program is available to residential customers qualified for and receiving LIHEAP assistance.
Money dates
- Nov 1in 9 daysApply for the Senior Citizens Property Tax Deferral to defer next year's taxes
- Dec 31in 69 daysIf you move into a home and apply for homestead by Dec 31, you may qualify for homestead classification for taxes payable next year
- Dec 31in 69 daysApply for the disabled veterans' market value exclusion with the county assessor
- May 15First half of Wright County real estate taxes due (postmarked by the 15th)
Who serves this house
- Water
- City of Buffalo Municipal Utilities
- City of Buffalo 2026 residential water rates, billed monthly: a $19.85 flat facilities charge, then $6.10 per 1,000 gallons for the first 4,000 gallons, $9.00 for 4,000-11,999 and $12.00 above 12,000
- Property tax
- 1.52% of value
- 2026 taxes payable, Wright County (Buffalo tax district 301, ISD 877)
- Garbage
- Republic Services
- The City contracts with Republic Services for sanitation and recycling
- Sewer
- City of Buffalo Water Reclamation
- The City operates the sanitary sewer utility and its collection system
- Electricity
- Buffalo Municipal Utilities
- City-owned electric utility; wholesale power bought through MMPA
- Gas
- CenterPoint Energy
- CenterPoint lists Buffalo among the Minnesota communities it serves
- Schools
- ISD 877
- School district 877 levy rates apply in the City of Buffalo tax district
Your water
- Source
- Five wells supplied from the Quaternary Glacial Drift Aquifer
- Customers
- The City's water page says it serves 5717 residential and 423 commercial customers
Other MN cities
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How these numbers are made
- Water: City of Buffalo 2026 residential water rates: $19.85 a month, then $6.10 per 1,000 gallons to 4,000 gallons, $9.00 to 12,000 and $12.00 above. The City publishes no typical household use, so the page starts at 9 CCF (about 6,700 gallons) a month. Sewer: the 2026 fee schedule lists a $11.00 flat facilities charge and a $30.00 minimum for a standard residential account but no per-gallon rate and does not say how the two combine, so the calculator uses the $30.00 minimum and a household that uses more water may pay more. Storm sewer $5.00 a month.
- Garbage: Republic Services under City contract, billed monthly on the City utility bill at the 2026 fee-schedule price for the cart plus $4.25 a month for recycling.
- Property tax: Wright County's 2026 final rates for Buffalo tax district 301 (ISD 877): 109.574106% of tax capacity (county 35.187452%, city 51.820843%, ISD 877 20.839597%, Buffalo HRA 1.726214%) plus 0.153455% of market value for ISD 877 referendums. The homestead market value exclusion comes off the tax-capacity parts; a further 0.25% x 109.574106% is added on value above $500,000. Parcels in district 302 (Pulaski LID) pay 114.802662%. The starting value is the median estimated market value of Buffalo's 4,500 homesteaded single-unit parcels in the state's compilation of Wright County parcel data ($336,300; labeled tax year 2027 there, so it may run slightly above the value behind 2026 bills). Some homes also pay assessments for street or utility projects on the tax bill; those are not included.
- Electricity: Buffalo Municipal Utilities serves the city; the page uses the 2026 residential $17.00 flat facilities charge and $0.1266 per kWh. The fee schedule adds a Power Cost Adjustment (PCA) that the City does not publish in a figure we could source, so it is not included and bills will likely run higher than the page shows. Typical use is the 2024 residential average of Elk River Municipal Utilities (EIA), a nearby Minnesota municipal, about 730 kWh a month, because EIA does not list Buffalo. Buffalo's electric utility is city-owned, so no separate franchise fee is shown.
- Gas: CenterPoint Energy's $9.50 basic charge, and per therm the delivery charge, cost of gas, revenue decoupling and Natural Gas Innovation Act charges ($0.97366); the cost of gas changes monthly. CenterPoint's franchise-fee rider list does not show Buffalo, so none is added. Typical gas use is Minnesota's 2024 residential average (EIA), about 62 therms a month. Insurance: the 2022 NAIC statewide average premium for Minnesota (HO-3) until you enter your own. Sales tax is not included.
- Remarks: the schedule gives no explanation of how the $11 charge and $30 minimum combine; no PCA figure found in the City's sources.
- Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.
- City of Buffalo: Garbage & Recycling
- City of Buffalo: Water
- www.ci.buffalo.mn.us: Water-Reclamation
- City of Buffalo: Electric
- CenterPoint Energy Minnesota tariff book 2026
- Wright County 2026 final tax rates
- City of Buffalo 2026 Master Fee Schedule
- www.revenue.state.mn.us: module-3-classification-property_0.pdf
- www.revenue.state.mn.us: homestead
- State of Minnesota parcel data (Wright County, City of Buffalo)
- www.arcgis.com: metadata.xml?format=def
- EIA 2024 residential sales by utility
- www.eia.gov: ng_cons_sum_dcu_SMN_a.htm
- www.eia.gov: ng_cons_num_dcu_SMN_a.htm
- www.iii.org: facts-statistics-homeowners-and-renters-
- www.wrightcountymn.gov: Applying-for-Homestead-or-Relative-Homes
- www.revenue.state.mn.us: property-tax-refund
- www.revenue.state.mn.us: filing-property-tax-refund
- www.revenue.state.mn.us: property-tax-deferral-senior-citizens
- www.wrightcountymn.gov: DVHE-Fact-Sheet-edit
- City of Buffalo: Water rebates
- www.wrightcountymn.gov: Due-Dates
- www.wrightcountymn.gov: Penalties
How Buffalo compares
A typical Buffalo house against the 35 Minnesota cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.
| Per year | Buffalo | Median | Where it falls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property tax rate | 1.52% | 1.49% | higher than 22 of the other 33 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Water | $826 | $339 | higher than 32 of the other 34 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Sewer and utility-bill fees | $420 | $621 | lower than 31 of the other 34 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Trash | $243 | $326 | lower than 8 of the other 8 Minnesota cities we cover |
| Electricity and gas | $2,150 | $2,150 | in the middle of 34 other Minnesota cities we cover |
| Home insurance | $1,774 | $1,774 | in the middle of 34 other Minnesota cities we cover |
| Total | $9,435 | $9,536 | lower than 21 of the other 34 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. Water
The fact: Water here costs about $826 a year at typical use, higher than 32 of the other 34 Minnesota cities we cover.
Ask: "Water here costs about $826 a year at typical use, higher than 32 of the other 34 Minnesota cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"
2. Sewer and utility-bill fees
The fact: Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here come to about $420 a year, lower than 31 of the other 34 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 $420 a year, lower than 31 of the other 34 Minnesota cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"
3. Trash
The fact: Trash pickup here costs about $243 a year for the standard cart, lower than 8 of the other 8 Minnesota cities we cover. Where trash is billed through the tax bill or a separate hauler, it is not counted here.
Ask: "Trash pickup here costs about $243 a year for the standard cart, lower than 8 of the other 8 Minnesota cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything about the service or the price?"
Common questions about Buffalo house costs
What is the property tax rate in Buffalo?
About 1.52% of the value before exemptions a year (2026 taxes payable, Wright County (Buffalo tax district 301, ISD 877)), plus flat charges on the same bill.
How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Buffalo?
About $6,229 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions with the homestead market value exclusion.
How much is the water bill in Buffalo?
About $104 a month for water and sewer at typical use (7,000 gallons a month) on City of Buffalo Municipal Utilities.
How much does trash pickup cost in Buffalo?
$14 to $29 a month, depending on the trash cart size (35 gallon, 65 gallon, 95 gallon).
When is property tax due in Buffalo?
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 Buffalo?
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 rest as a loan, repaid with interest when you sell or cancel.
Where can I get help paying utility bills in Buffalo?
LIHEAP households: CenterPoint Gas Affordability Program: Residential customers who receive LIHEAP energy assistance and agree to a levelized payment plan and a payment schedule can get an affordability credit and arrearage forgiveness. The program is available to residential customers qualified for and receiving LIHEAP assistance.
How much does a house in Buffalo cost to run each year?
A typical Buffalo house pays about $9,400 a year: $4,020 property tax and charges, $1,250 water and sewer, $240 trash, $2,150 electricity and gas, $1,770 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.