Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Clay County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Clay County pays $2,050 a year, an effective rate of 1.15%, modestly above the U.S. average.
- $2,050
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.15%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +3%
- vs U.S. average
- #82 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Clay County pay a median $2,050 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.15%, more affordable than 26% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,050
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.15%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2327 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +3%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($178,600). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 16,461. Owner-occupied homes: 5,340.
The median annual property tax in Clay County is $2,050, which is 29% lower than the Iowa state average and 3% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.15% on a median home value of $178,600. Property taxes represent 3.1% of the median household income in this county.
Clay County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Clay County's 1.15% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 26%).
Decision signal 2
High among Iowa counties by effective rate
Clay County ranks #82 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (17% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Clay County pay a median annual property tax of $2,050, modestly above the national median and well below the Iowa state median. On a $178,600 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.15% 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 Clay County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.1% of the $65,428 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Clay 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 9.7% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 61% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 37.7%, the median bill rose 24.4% to $2,050: 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 $1,648 to $2,050, a gain of 24%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 1,512 of 5,340 owner-occupied homes (28.3%) 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.
Earnings are below the national midpoint while the rate is above it, and the median bill equals 3.1% of median household income. The gap between those two positions is the whole story on this page.
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 Clay County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Clay County homeowners, 1,512 of 5,340 owner-occupied homes (28.3%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 10.1% (541)
- $800 to $1,499 24.8% (1,322)
- $1,500 to $1,999 12.9% (687)
- $2,000 to $2,999 21.6% (1,154)
- $3,000 or more 28.3% (1,512)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
124 homes here (2.3%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Clay County, mortgaged homeowners pay 11% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Clay County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Clay County's effective rate is higher than 17% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #82 of 99.
Where Clay County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.15% more affordable than 26% 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 Iowa on both measures
Clay County's effective rate runs 17% under the Iowa median and its bill 29% 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 $2,050 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Iowa norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Clay County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Clay County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 3.1% | - | - |
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.
Clay County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Iowa counties.
Clay County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,050 +1.1% | 1.15% |
| 2023 | $2,028 +8.0% | 1.18% |
| 2022 | $1,878 +11.4% | 1.24% |
| 2021 | $1,686 +2.3% | 1.26% |
| 2020 | $1,648 | 1.27% |
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.
Clay County: tax-to-income at 3.1%
Counties near Clay County's effective rate
On effective rate, Clay County sits nearest Gladwin County (MI), Houston County (MN), McLeod County (MN).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Hertford County (NC), Ogemaw County (MI), Ottawa County (KS).
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
Clay County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 350 of 7,980 returns from Clay County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,811 - 31% 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
Clay County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Clay County?
- Clay County, Iowa scores F (38/100) 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 C+ (+$220). 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 Clay County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Clay County is $2,050, an effective rate of 1.15% on a $178,600 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Clay County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Clay County run modestly above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.15% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Clay County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Clay County jumped 24.4% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,648 to $2,050, 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 Clay County?
- Property taxes in Clay County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.1% of the $65,428 median household income.
What to do with Clay County's PAR rate
Inside Iowa, Clay County's $2,050 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Clay County ranks #82 of 99 Iowa counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Iowa overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Clay County's PAR 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: 1.15%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,050/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Clay County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Clay County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Adair County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Clay County at $2,050/yr; rate 1.28% vs Clay County 1.15%.
Bullitt County, KY
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Clay County at $2,050/yr; rate 0.83% vs Clay County 1.15%.
Ouray County, CO
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Clay County at $2,050/yr; rate 0.28% vs Clay County 1.15%.
Coconino County, AZ
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,051/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.46% vs Clay County 1.15%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Clay County stamps PAR · MID - 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 Clay County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.