North Carolina · County property tax · ACS 2024
Clay County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Clay County pays $1,186 a year, an effective rate of 0.43%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,186
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.43%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -40%
- vs U.S. average
- #96 of 100
- rank in NC
The verdict
Homeowners in Clay County pay a median $1,186 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.43%, more affordable than 91% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,186
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.43%
- Effective rate on median home
- #292 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -40%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($278,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Carolina. Population: 11,610. Owner-occupied homes: 4,125.
The median annual property tax in Clay County is $1,186, which is 37% lower than the North Carolina state average and 40% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.43% on a median home value of $278,400. Property taxes represent 2.1% of the median household income in this county.
Clay County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Clay County's 0.43% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 91% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
High among North Carolina counties by effective rate
Clay County ranks #96 of 100 counties in North Carolina by effective rate (4% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Clay County pay a median annual property tax of $1,186, well below the national median and well below the North Carolina state median. On a $278,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.43% 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 2.1% of the $56,971 median household income.
Decision signal 5
The latest release held the bill roughly steady
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has held roughly steady, down 0.2%, from $1,188 to $1,186. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
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.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 34% from $883 to $1,186. 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 1,619 of 4,125 owner-occupied homes (39.2%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Household income sits in the second quarter nationally and the effective rate in the lowest, so the median bill takes 2.1% of median household income. Both figures point the same way, which is unusual enough that the ratio above is worth reading rather than assumed.
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, 1,619 of 4,125 owner-occupied homes (39.2%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 26.3% (1,086)
- $800 to $1,499 39.2% (1,619)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.5% (435)
- $2,000 to $2,999 14.5% (597)
- $3,000 or more 6.9% (283)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
105 homes here (2.5%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Carolina handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Clay County, mortgaged homeowners actually pay 17% less than those without a mortgage, a mild inversion from the national norm worth cross-checking against the historical table above.
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 4% of the 100 counties in North Carolina - ranking #96 of 100.
Where Clay 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%, Clay 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 $1,186, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Clay County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Clay County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low 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.
Clay County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Carolina counties.
Clay County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,186 -0.2% | 0.43% |
| 2023 | $1,188 +7.6% | 0.45% |
| 2022 | $1,104 +16.6% | 0.44% |
| 2021 | $947 +7.2% | 0.45% |
| 2020 | $883 | 0.45% |
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 2.1%
Counties near Clay County's effective rate
On effective rate, Clay County sits nearest Shannon County (MO), Claiborne Parish (LA), Lincoln County (ID).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are San Jacinto County (TX), Moody County (SD), Logan County (OH).
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 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 250 of 5,280 returns from Clay County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,552 - 36% of those reporters sat in the $100-200k AGI band.
What this IRS county file does not say
Amounts are reported before the SALT cap, not deducted; the share is of filers, not homeowners. Source: IRS SOI county data, tax year 2022.
Other Counties in North Carolina
Clay County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Clay County?
- Clay County, North Carolina scores B (73/100) on PlainPropertyTax's tax affordability composite across 5 Census ACS dimensions (effective rate, bill size, income share, mortgage gap, and home-value/income). Its strongest scored dimension here is mortgage premium at A+ ($-215). 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, North Carolina?
- The median annual property tax in Clay County is $1,186, an effective rate of 0.43% on a $278,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Clay County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Clay County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.43% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Clay County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Clay County is recorded at $1,186 in the 2024 5-year release against $883 in 2020. That is a large swing, and it should be read as movement in a survey estimate rather than as a tax change: the median here rests on about 4,125 owner-occupied homes, and swings above 50% are roughly twelve times more common in the smallest counties than in the largest. Treat the two figures as imprecise and check the county assessor for actual rate changes.
- 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 2.1% of the $56,971 median household income.
What to do with Clay County's QUIET rate
Clay County's $1,186 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 →
Clay County ranks #96 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 Clay 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: $1,186/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 (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Bradley County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,187/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.45% vs Clay County 0.43%.
Brantley County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,185/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.19% vs Clay County 0.43%.
Kit Carson County, CO
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,185/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.49% vs Clay County 0.43%.
LaMoure County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,187/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.01% vs Clay County 0.43%.
North Carolina county set
State ACS overview for every published North Carolina county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Clay 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 Clay County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.