North Carolina · County property tax · ACS 2024
Catawba County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Catawba County pays $1,407 a year, an effective rate of 0.58%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,407
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.58%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- -29%
- vs U.S. average
- #72 of 100
- rank in NC
The verdict
Homeowners in Catawba County pay a median $1,407 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.58%, more affordable than 74% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,407
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.58%
- Effective rate on median home
- #816 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -29%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($241,600). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Carolina. Population: 163,573. Owner-occupied homes: 47,794.
The median annual property tax in Catawba County is $1,407, which is 26% lower than the North Carolina state average and 29% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.58% on a median home value of $241,600. Property taxes represent 2.1% of the median household income in this county.
Catawba County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Catawba County's 0.58% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 74%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Catawba County pay a median annual property tax of $1,407, well below the national median and well below the North Carolina state median. On a $241,600 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.58% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of North Carolina counties by effective rate
Catawba County ranks #72 of 100 counties in North Carolina by effective rate (28% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Catawba County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.1% of the $67,864 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Catawba 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.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Catawba County rose 54.7%, from $156,200 to $241,600. The effective rate fell 17.8% over the same span, a steeper move than in 75% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 27.2%, to $1,407. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
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
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 27% from $1,106 to $1,407. These ACS medians describe the reported change; they do not identify whether a levy, assessment, home value, or change in the responding households caused it.
The fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 17,111 of 47,794 owner-occupied homes (35.8%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Incomes run above the national midpoint and the rate is in the lowest quarter, leaving the median bill at 2.1% of median household income. Both figures move in the same direction here, so the ratio above is not pulled in two directions the way it is in most counties.
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 Catawba County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Catawba County homeowners, 17,111 of 47,794 owner-occupied homes (35.8%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 17.3% (8,265)
- $800 to $1,499 35.8% (17,111)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.1% (6,247)
- $2,000 to $2,999 15.7% (7,501)
- $3,000 or more 15.1% (7,239)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,431 homes here (3.0%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Carolina handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Catawba County, mortgaged homeowners pay 14% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Catawba County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Catawba County's effective rate is higher than 28% of the 100 counties in North Carolina - ranking #72 of 100.
Where Catawba County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.58% Among the most affordable more affordable than 74% 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
What changed since 2020
The median bill in Catawba County moved from $1,106 in the 2020 release to $1,407 in 2024, a change of about 27%. These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates compared across releases that share only one sample year, which is why this page never compares consecutive releases: those overlap in four years of the same households and move mostly on sampling.
Catawba County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Catawba County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 2.1% | - | - |
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.
Catawba County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Carolina counties.
Catawba County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,407 +6.7% | 0.58% |
| 2023 | $1,319 +3.3% | 0.60% |
| 2022 | $1,277 +11.2% | 0.66% |
| 2021 | $1,148 +3.8% | 0.70% |
| 2020 | $1,106 | 0.71% |
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.
Catawba County: tax-to-income at 2.1%
Counties near Catawba County's effective rate
On effective rate, Catawba County sits nearest Flathead County (MT), Bollinger County (MO), Pontotoc County (MS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Daviess County (IN), Morrow County (OH), Lane County (OR).
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
Catawba County: only 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 3,960 of 77,420 returns from Catawba County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,232 - 38% of those reporters sat in the $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 North Carolina
Catawba County rate FAQs
- What is the average property tax in Catawba County, North Carolina?
- The median annual property tax in Catawba County is $1,407, an effective rate of 0.58% on a $241,600 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Catawba County?
- Catawba County, North Carolina scores C+ (63/100) 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 B (0.58%). 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 Catawba County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Catawba County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.58% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Catawba County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Catawba County jumped 27.2% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,106 to $1,407, 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 Catawba County?
- Property taxes in Catawba County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.1% of the $67,864 median household income.
What to do with Catawba County's QUIET rate
Catawba County's $1,407 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 →
Catawba County ranks #72 of 100 North Carolina counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. North Carolina overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Catawba 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: 0.58%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,407/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Catawba County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Catawba County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Aitkin County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Catawba County at $1,407/yr; rate 0.55% vs Catawba County 0.58%.
Coffee County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Catawba County at $1,407/yr; rate 0.57% vs Catawba County 0.58%.
Schoolcraft County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Catawba County at $1,407/yr; rate 0.99% vs Catawba County 0.58%.
Crawford County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,406/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.06% vs Catawba County 0.58%.
North Carolina county set
State ACS overview for every published North Carolina county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Catawba 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 Catawba County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.