Pennsylvania · County property tax · ACS 2024
Bedford County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Bedford County pays $1,444 a year, an effective rate of 0.81%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,444
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.81%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- -28%
- vs U.S. average
- #67 of 67
- rank in PA
The verdict
Homeowners in Bedford County pay a median $1,444 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.81%, more affordable than 49% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,444
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.81%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1591 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -28%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($179,000). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Pennsylvania. Population: 47,513. Owner-occupied homes: 15,315.
The median annual property tax in Bedford County is $1,444, which is 56% lower than the Pennsylvania state average and 28% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.81% on a median home value of $179,000. Property taxes represent 2.4% of the median household income in this county.
Bedford County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Bedford County's 0.81% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 49%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Bedford County pay a median annual property tax of $1,444, well below the national median and far below the Pennsylvania state median. On a $179,000 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.81% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among Pennsylvania counties by effective rate
Bedford County ranks #67 of 67 counties in Pennsylvania by effective rate (0% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Bedford County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.4% of the $59,992 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Bedford County as reported to the Census Bureau; your parcel can differ. Not tax, legal, or financial advice: check the county assessor or a qualified professional before decisions that depend on these numbers.
Most of the market's rise reached the bill
The effective rate here moved 7.5% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 70% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 26.3%, the median bill rose 16.8% to $1,444: the rate did comparatively little to offset the market.
Effective rate is the published median bill divided by the published median home value, so the two multiply back to the bill exactly; the rate's movement here is derived from those two figures rather than read from the rounded published rate. Both are ACS 5-year survey estimates for the median owner-occupied household, compared across non-overlapping releases. They describe what the Census published, not a local policy, assessment, or exemption change.
How to read this county's bill
Bills rose across 2020-2024, from $1,236 to $1,444, a gain of 17%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 4,904 of 15,315 owner-occupied homes (32.0%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Both figures cluster near the middle of the national range, and the median bill comes to 2.4% of median household income. Counties like this are the reason a national average exists at all, and also the reason it explains so little.
The share above is the median annual bill divided by median household income, a ratio of two county-level medians rather than a household-by-household figure.
Bedford County is an outlier inside Pennsylvania
Across the 67 Pennsylvania counties with a published rate, the average effective rate is 1.26%. Bedford County is at 0.81%, which sits 2.1 standard deviations below that average. Fewer than one county in twenty nationally is this far from its own state's centre, so a state-level average is a poor guide to what is owed here.
Standard deviations are computed across every county in the state with a published effective rate for 2024; states with fewer than five such counties are not assessed.
What Bedford County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Bedford County homeowners, 4,904 of 15,315 owner-occupied homes (32.0%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 18.8% (2,884)
- $800 to $1,499 32.0% (4,904)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.6% (2,392)
- $2,000 to $2,999 16.7% (2,552)
- $3,000 or more 13.2% (2,027)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
556 homes here (3.6%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Pennsylvania handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Bedford County, mortgaged homeowners pay 12% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Bedford County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Bedford County's effective rate is higher than 0% of the 67 counties in Pennsylvania - ranking #67 of 67.
Where Bedford County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.81% more affordable than 49% of 3,135 U.S. counties
Show national distribution
Each bar is a band; taller bars hold more U.S. counties. The dashed line + filled bar mark this entry. Hover or tap any bar for its full count, share, and where it sits relative to this entry.
Source U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024
Below Pennsylvania on both measures
Bedford County's effective rate runs 38% under the Pennsylvania median and its bill 56% under. Both sitting on the same side means the gap is not a valuation artefact: a county can post a low rate purely because its homes are expensive, but then the bill rises to meet the state. Here it does not, so the $1,444 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Pennsylvania norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Bedford County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Bedford County | Pennsylvania Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 2.4% | - | - |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates. Tax-burden differences across rows reflect millage decisions, assessment-ratio practices, and the residential-vs-commercial mix of each tax base.
Bedford County is UNDER · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Pennsylvania counties.
Bedford County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,444 +2.9% | 0.81% |
| 2023 | $1,403 +2.2% | 0.81% |
| 2022 | $1,373 +7.5% | 0.83% |
| 2021 | $1,277 +3.3% | 0.87% |
| 2020 | $1,236 | 0.87% |
Each row is a separate ACS 5-year release, and consecutive releases share four of their five survey years. The percentage beside each bill is therefore movement in the published estimate against the previous release, not a single year's tax change. The two releases largely describe the same households. For change over time, compare releases that do not overlap.
Bedford County: tax-to-income at 2.4%
Counties near Bedford County's effective rate
On effective rate, Bedford County sits nearest Morrow County (OR), Lincoln County (OR), Tyrrell County (NC).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Marshall County (WV), Paulding County (OH), Oneida County (ID).
How peers are chosen
These are the nearest cross-state matches in the published Census data, not neighboring counties or recommendations. Peers are rebuilt with each data release; see the calculation method.
Similar effective rates
Similar published median-tax changes, 2020–2024
Bedford County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 400 of 23,180 returns from Bedford County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,708 - 40% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Pennsylvania
Bedford County rate FAQs
- How does Bedford County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Bedford County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.81% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Bedford County, Pennsylvania?
- The median annual property tax in Bedford County is $1,444, an effective rate of 0.81% on a $179,000 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Bedford County?
- Bedford County, Pennsylvania scores C- (54/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at B- (+$171). The score compares published county medians to U.S. percentiles, it is not a personal bill and not advice to buy, sell, appeal, or relocate.
- Are property taxes increasing in Bedford County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Bedford County climbed 16.8% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,236 to $1,444, a 4-year span. These are survey estimates covering five years each, so this compares the two releases furthest apart rather than consecutive ones, which overlap and would mostly measure the same households twice.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Bedford County?
- Property taxes in Bedford County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.4% of the $59,992 median household income.
What to do with Bedford County's UNDER rate
Bedford County's $1,444 median bill sits well below the U.S. median - still size a parcel estimate; local millage and exemptions move the real bill. Estimate your bill →
Bedford County ranks #67 of 67 Pennsylvania counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Pennsylvania overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Bedford County's UNDER effective rate, then a disjoint out-of-state bill set so the two neighborhoods stay distinct.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.81%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,444/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Bedford County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Bedford County (UNDER · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER LIGHT
White County, IL
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bedford County at $1,444/yr; rate 1.34% vs Bedford County 0.81%.
Benewah County, ID
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,443/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.49% vs Bedford County 0.81%.
Bossier Parish, LA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,445/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.64% vs Bedford County 0.81%.
Clearwater County, ID
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,443/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.54% vs Bedford County 0.81%.
Pennsylvania county set
State ACS overview for every published Pennsylvania county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Bedford County stamps UNDER · LIGHT - how assessed value and millage become the ACS median bill.
Data vintage and method
Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates.
Property tax data reflects median amounts paid by homeowners. Effective rates are calculated as median tax divided by median home value.
Source: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, county median real-estate taxes · 2024 Bedford County (UNDER · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.