Virginia · County property tax · ACS 2024
Bedford County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Bedford County pays $1,285 a year, an effective rate of 0.43%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,285
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.43%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -36%
- vs U.S. average
- #130 of 133
- rank in VA
The verdict
Homeowners in Bedford County pay a median $1,285 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.43%, more affordable than 91% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,285
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.43%
- Effective rate on median home
- #292 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -36%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($297,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Virginia. Population: 80,894. Owner-occupied homes: 28,045.
The median annual property tax in Bedford County is $1,285, which is 54% lower than the Virginia state average and 36% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.43% on a median home value of $297,400. Property taxes represent 1.6% of the median household income in this county.
Bedford County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Bedford County's 0.43% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 91% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Bedford County pay a median annual property tax of $1,285, well below the national median and far below the Virginia state median. On a $297,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.43% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among Virginia counties by effective rate
Bedford County ranks #130 of 133 counties in Virginia by effective rate (2% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Bedford County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.6% of the $78,937 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.
A falling rate took the edge off
Bedford County's effective rate fell 13.1% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 40.5%, leaving the median bill 22.1% higher at $1,285. That rate move is larger than the one in 55% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
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 $1,052 to $1,285, a gain of 22%. 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 10,086 of 28,045 owner-occupied homes (36.0%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
The most forgiving PAIRING in the data, top-quartile household income with a bottom-quartile effective rate, puts the median bill at 1.6% of median household income. Home values still drive the dollar figure, which is why the ratio above varies widely among counties that share this position.
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.
What Bedford County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Bedford County homeowners, 10,086 of 28,045 owner-occupied homes (36.0%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 23.4% (6,576)
- $800 to $1,499 36.0% (10,086)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.3% (4,299)
- $2,000 to $2,999 12.8% (3,579)
- $3,000 or more 8.7% (2,452)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,053 homes here (3.8%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Virginia handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Bedford County pay about the same bill, a 6% gap.
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 2% of the 133 counties in Virginia - ranking #130 of 133.
Where Bedford County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.43% Among the most affordable more affordable than 91% 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
Among the lowest-taxed counties in the country
At 0.43%, Bedford County sits in the lowest 9% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. A low rate does not by itself mean a low bill: the median here is $1,285, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Bedford County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Bedford County | Virginia Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Light income burden | 1.6% | - | - |
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 QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Virginia counties.
Bedford County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,285 +1.6% | 0.43% |
| 2023 | $1,265 +3.1% | 0.46% |
| 2022 | $1,227 +11.7% | 0.46% |
| 2021 | $1,098 +4.4% | 0.48% |
| 2020 | $1,052 | 0.50% |
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 takes only 1.6% of income
Counties near Bedford County's effective rate
On effective rate, Bedford County sits nearest Rhea County (TN), Marion County (TN), Knox County (TN).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Oconee County (SC), Valley County (NE), Franklin County (KY).
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 7% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 2,760 of 38,010 returns from Bedford County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,708 - 39% 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 Virginia
Bedford County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Bedford County?
- Bedford County, Virginia scores B+ (75/100) 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 rate relief at A+ (0.43%). 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.
- 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 0.43% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Bedford County, Virginia?
- The median annual property tax in Bedford County is $1,285, an effective rate of 0.43% on a $297,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Bedford County?
- Property taxes in Bedford County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.6% of the $78,937 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Bedford County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Bedford County jumped 22.1% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,052 to $1,285, 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 to do with Bedford County's QUIET rate
Bedford County's $1,285 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 →
Income burden is light here: about 1.6% of Bedford County's $78,937 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Bedford County's QUIET 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: 0.43%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,285/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 (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
DeKalb County, MO
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bedford County at $1,285/yr; rate 0.76% vs Bedford County 0.43%.
Rosebud County, MT
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Bedford County at $1,285/yr; rate 0.70% vs Bedford County 0.43%.
Cleveland County, NC
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,286/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.64% vs Bedford County 0.43%.
Leon County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,283/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.69% vs Bedford County 0.43%.
Virginia county set
State ACS overview for every published Virginia county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Bedford County stamps QUIET · 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 (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.