Indiana · County property tax · ACS 2024
Brown County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Brown County pays $1,177 a year, an effective rate of 0.44%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,177
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.44%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -41%
- vs U.S. average
- #91 of 92
- rank in IN
The verdict
Homeowners in Brown County pay a median $1,177 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.44%, more affordable than 90% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,177
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.44%
- Effective rate on median home
- #318 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -41%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($269,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Indiana. Population: 15,606. Owner-occupied homes: 5,873.
The median annual property tax in Brown County is $1,177, which is 27% lower than the Indiana state average and 41% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.44% on a median home value of $269,100. Property taxes represent 1.5% of the median household income in this county.
Brown County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Brown County's 0.44% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 90% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
High among Indiana counties by effective rate
Brown County ranks #91 of 92 counties in Indiana by effective rate (1% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Brown County pay a median annual property tax of $1,177, well below the national median and well below the Indiana state median. On a $269,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.44% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Brown County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.5% of the $78,528 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Brown 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
Brown County's effective rate fell 15.9% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 30.3%, leaving the median bill 9.6% higher at $1,177. That rate move is larger than the one in 68% 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
Very little moved here between 2020 and 2024: the typical bill went from $1,074 to $1,177, a change of 10%. The comparison describes county-level medians only; individual assessments and bills can differ.
The largest reported group here falls at the bottom of the national range: 1,886 of 5,873 owner-occupied homes (32.1%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
The most forgiving PAIRING in the data, top-quartile household income with a bottom-quartile effective rate, puts the median bill at 1.5% 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 Brown County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Brown County homeowners, 1,886 of 5,873 owner-occupied homes (32.1%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 32.1% (1,886)
- $800 to $1,499 32.1% (1,883)
- $1,500 to $1,999 11.7% (686)
- $2,000 to $2,999 14.1% (830)
- $3,000 or more 8.5% (502)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
86 homes here (1.5%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Indiana handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Brown County pay about the same bill, within a 2% gap either way.
Brown County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Brown County's effective rate is higher than 1% of the 92 counties in Indiana - ranking #91 of 92.
Where Brown County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.44% Among the most affordable more affordable than 90% 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 0.44%, Brown County sits in the lowest 10% 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 $1,177, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Brown County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Brown County | Indiana 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 | 1.5% | - | - |
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.
Brown County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Indiana counties.
Brown County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,177 +3.2% | 0.44% |
| 2023 | $1,141 -1.3% | 0.47% |
| 2022 | $1,156 +11.2% | 0.51% |
| 2021 | $1,040 -3.2% | 0.51% |
| 2020 | $1,074 | 0.52% |
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.
Brown County: tax takes only 1.5% of income
Counties near Brown County's effective rate
On effective rate, Brown County sits nearest Oneida County (ID), Kootenai County (ID), Fremont County (ID).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Lawrence County (SD), Pickens County (AL), Oxford County (ME).
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
Brown County: only 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 400 of 7,940 returns from Brown County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,645 - 38% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in Indiana
Brown County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Brown County?
- Brown County, Indiana scores B+ (79/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at A+ ($-28). 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.
- What is the average property tax in Brown County, Indiana?
- The median annual property tax in Brown County is $1,177, an effective rate of 0.44% on a $269,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Brown County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Brown County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.44% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Brown County?
- Property taxes in Brown County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.5% of the $78,528 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Brown County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Brown County climbed 9.6% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,074 to $1,177, 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 Brown County's QUIET rate
Brown County's $1,177 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 1.5% of Brown County's $78,528 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Brown 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: 0.44%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,177/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Brown County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Brown County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Oscoda County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Brown County at $1,177/yr; rate 0.94% vs Brown County 0.44%.
Saline County, MO
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Brown County at $1,177/yr; rate 0.78% vs Brown County 0.44%.
Upton County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Brown County at $1,177/yr; rate 1.08% vs Brown County 0.44%.
Monroe County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,176/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.82% vs Brown County 0.44%.
Indiana county set
State ACS overview for every published Indiana county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Brown 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 Brown County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.