Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Cerro Gordo County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Cerro Gordo County pays $2,410 a year, an effective rate of 1.45%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,410
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.45%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +21%
- vs U.S. average
- #21 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Cerro Gordo County pay a median $2,410 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.45%, more affordable than 13% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,410
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.45%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2737 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +21%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($166,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 42,632. Owner-occupied homes: 13,745.
The median annual property tax in Cerro Gordo County is $2,410, which is 17% lower than the Iowa state average and 21% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.45% on a median home value of $166,400. Property taxes represent 3.5% of the median household income in this county.
Cerro Gordo County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Cerro Gordo County's 1.45% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 13%).
Decision signal 2
Low among Iowa counties by effective rate
Cerro Gordo County ranks #21 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (79% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill is near the usual comparison points
Homeowners in Cerro Gordo County pay a median annual property tax of $2,410, notably higher than the national median and notably lower than the Iowa state median. On a $166,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.45% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Cerro Gordo County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.5% of the $68,189 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Cerro Gordo 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 held while the market moved
Cerro Gordo County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 1.4% up, against a median home value that rose 27.6%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 29.4%, from $1,863 to $2,410.
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 29% from $1,863 to $2,410. 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 heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 4,855 of 13,745 owner-occupied homes (35.3%) report annual real-estate taxes above $3,000. That band has no upper edge in the source, so the county median understates the burden carried by the plurality rather than describing it.
The rate is in the national top quarter while earnings are only moderately above the midpoint, so the median bill claims 3.5% of median household income. A high rate is affordable only relative to something, and this is what it is relative to here.
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 Cerro Gordo County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Cerro Gordo County homeowners, 4,855 of 13,745 owner-occupied homes (35.3%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 9.1% (1,244)
- $800 to $1,499 14.7% (2,014)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.9% (2,192)
- $2,000 to $2,999 24.0% (3,299)
- $3,000 or more 35.3% (4,855)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
141 homes here (1.0%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Cerro Gordo County pay about the same bill, a 6% gap.
Cerro Gordo County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Cerro Gordo County's effective rate is higher than 79% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #21 of 99.
Where Cerro Gordo County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.45% more affordable than 13% 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 Cerro Gordo County moved from $1,863 in the 2020 release to $2,410 in 2024, a change of about 29%. 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.
Cerro Gordo County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Cerro Gordo County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.5% | - | - |
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.
Cerro Gordo County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Cerro Gordo County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $166,400 median home carries a $2,410 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $241 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Iowa.
Cerro Gordo County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,410 +4.6% | 1.45% |
| 2023 | $2,305 +5.6% | 1.50% |
| 2022 | $2,182 +11.9% | 1.50% |
| 2021 | $1,950 +4.7% | 1.46% |
| 2020 | $1,863 | 1.43% |
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.
Cerro Gordo County: tax-to-income at 3.5%
Counties near Cerro Gordo County's effective rate
On effective rate, Cerro Gordo County sits nearest Fayette County (IL), Edwards County (IL), Edgar County (IL).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Martin County (FL), Douglas County (NE), Logan County (CO).
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
Cerro Gordo County: only 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 1,010 of 20,110 returns from Cerro Gordo County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,115 - 30% 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 Iowa
Cerro Gordo County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Cerro Gordo County?
- Cerro Gordo County, Iowa scores F (33/100) 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 (+$137). 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 Cerro Gordo County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Cerro Gordo County is $2,410, an effective rate of 1.45% on a $166,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Cerro Gordo County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Cerro Gordo County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.45% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Cerro Gordo County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Cerro Gordo County jumped 29.4% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,863 to $2,410, 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 Cerro Gordo County?
- Property taxes in Cerro Gordo County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.5% of the $68,189 median household income.
What to do with Cerro Gordo County's STEEP rate
At Cerro Gordo County's 1.45% effective rate, a $166,400 home implies about $2,410/yr - plug in your own assessed value rather than quoting the county median. Estimate your bill →
Cerro Gordo County ranks #21 of 99 Iowa counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Iowa overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Cerro Gordo County's STEEP 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: 1.45%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,410/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Cerro Gordo County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Cerro Gordo County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Stark County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,411/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.89% vs Cerro Gordo County 1.45%.
Adams County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,407/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.20% vs Cerro Gordo County 1.45%.
Ashland County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,413/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.42% vs Cerro Gordo County 1.45%.
Hamilton County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,407/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.95% vs Cerro Gordo County 1.45%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Cerro Gordo County stamps STEEP · MID - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
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 Cerro Gordo County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.