Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Clayton County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Clayton County pays $2,181 a year, an effective rate of 1.29%, modestly above the U.S. average.
- $2,181
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.29%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +9%
- vs U.S. average
- #58 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Clayton County pay a median $2,181 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.29%, more affordable than 19% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,181
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.29%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2533 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +9%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($168,500). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 17,013. Owner-occupied homes: 5,856.
The median annual property tax in Clayton County is $2,181, which is 25% lower than the Iowa state average and 9% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.29% on a median home value of $168,500. Property taxes represent 3.2% of the median household income in this county.
Clayton County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Clayton County's 1.29% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 19%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Clayton County pay a median annual property tax of $2,181, modestly above the national median and well below the Iowa state median. On a $168,500 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.29% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Iowa counties by effective rate
Clayton County ranks #58 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (41% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Clayton County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $67,242 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Clayton 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 7.9% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 68% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 28.0%, the median bill rose 18.0% to $2,181: 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 $1,849 to $2,181, a gain of 18%. 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: 1,597 of 5,856 owner-occupied homes (27.3%) 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 3.2% 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 Clayton County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Clayton County homeowners, 1,597 of 5,856 owner-occupied homes (27.3%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 8.2% (481)
- $800 to $1,499 20.8% (1,220)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.2% (888)
- $2,000 to $2,999 26.6% (1,555)
- $3,000 or more 27.3% (1,597)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
115 homes here (2.0%) 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 Clayton County pay about the same bill, a 6% gap.
Clayton County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Clayton County's effective rate is higher than 41% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #58 of 99.
Where Clayton County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.29% more affordable than 19% 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
Same rate as Iowa, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 7% of the Iowa median, yet the median bill runs 25% below it. When the rate matches and the cheque does not, the difference is in what is being taxed, not how heavily: the same percentage applied to cheaper housing produces $2,181 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Clayton County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Clayton County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 3.2% | - | - |
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.
Clayton County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Iowa counties.
Clayton County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,181 +1.5% | 1.29% |
| 2023 | $2,149 +1.2% | 1.38% |
| 2022 | $2,123 +11.2% | 1.42% |
| 2021 | $1,909 +3.2% | 1.40% |
| 2020 | $1,849 | 1.41% |
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.
Clayton County: tax-to-income at 3.2%
Counties near Clayton County's effective rate
On effective rate, Clayton County sits nearest Miller County (GA), Greeley County (NE), Harlan County (NE).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Osborne County (KS), Parmer County (TX), Jones County (GA).
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
Clayton County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 260 of 8,200 returns from Clayton County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,527 - 27% 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 Iowa
Clayton County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Clayton County?
- Clayton 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 B (+$132). 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 Clayton County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Clayton County is $2,181, an effective rate of 1.29% on a $168,500 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Clayton County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Clayton County run modestly above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.29% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Clayton County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Clayton County climbed 18.0% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,849 to $2,181, 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 Clayton County?
- Property taxes in Clayton County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $67,242 median household income.
What to do with Clayton County's PAR rate
Inside Iowa, Clayton County's $2,181 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Clayton County ranks #58 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 Clayton 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: 1.29%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,181/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Clayton County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Clayton County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Turner County, SD
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Clayton County at $2,181/yr; rate 0.98% vs Clayton County 1.29%.
Clay County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,182/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.27% vs Clayton County 1.29%.
Winona County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,180/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.93% vs Clayton County 1.29%.
Dawes County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,183/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.45% vs Clayton County 1.29%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Clayton 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 Clayton County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.