Minnesota · County property tax · ACS 2024
Cottonwood County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Cottonwood County pays $1,781 a year, an effective rate of 1.05%, notably lower than the U.S. average.
- $1,781
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.05%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- -11%
- vs U.S. average
- #23 of 87
- rank in MN
The verdict
Homeowners in Cottonwood County pay a median $1,781 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.05%, more affordable than 32% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,781
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.05%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2145 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -11%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($169,300). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Minnesota. Population: 11,458. Owner-occupied homes: 3,446.
The median annual property tax in Cottonwood County is $1,781, which is 47% lower than the Minnesota state average and 11% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.05% on a median home value of $169,300. Property taxes represent 2.4% of the median household income in this county.
Cottonwood County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Cottonwood County's 1.05% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 32%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Minnesota median
Homeowners in Cottonwood County pay a median annual property tax of $1,781, notably lower than the national median and well below the Minnesota state median. On a $169,300 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.05% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Minnesota counties by effective rate
Cottonwood County ranks #23 of 87 counties in Minnesota by effective rate (74% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Cottonwood County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.4% of the $72,941 median household income.
Decision signal 5
The latest release moved the bill up
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has ticked up 2.5%, from $1,737 to $1,781. 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 Cottonwood 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 $1,330 to $1,781. 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: 894 of 3,446 owner-occupied homes (25.9%) 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.
Both the income and the rate here sit in the third quarter nationally, and the median bill is 2.4% of median household income. Two above-average figures pulling in opposite directions is why the rate on its own is a poor guide.
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 Cottonwood County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Cottonwood County homeowners, 894 of 3,446 owner-occupied homes (25.9%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 15.4% (532)
- $800 to $1,499 24.8% (855)
- $1,500 to $1,999 14.8% (509)
- $2,000 to $2,999 16.2% (557)
- $3,000 or more 25.9% (894)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
99 homes here (2.9%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Minnesota handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Cottonwood County pay about the same bill, a 7% gap.
Cottonwood County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Cottonwood County's effective rate is higher than 74% of the 87 counties in Minnesota - ranking #23 of 87.
Where Cottonwood County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.05% more affordable than 32% 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 Cottonwood County moved from $1,330 in the 2020 release to $1,781 in 2024, a change of about 34%. 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.
Cottonwood County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Cottonwood County | Minnesota Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 2.4% | - | - |
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.
Cottonwood County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Minnesota counties.
Cottonwood County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,781 +2.5% | 1.05% |
| 2023 | $1,737 +9.5% | 1.13% |
| 2022 | $1,586 +13.3% | 1.12% |
| 2021 | $1,400 +5.3% | 1.20% |
| 2020 | $1,330 | 1.24% |
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.
Cottonwood County: tax-to-income at 2.4%
Counties near Cottonwood County's effective rate
On effective rate, Cottonwood County sits nearest Barry County (MI), Kearny County (KS), Wilkes County (GA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Clallam County (WA), Denver County (CO), Switzerland County (IN).
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
Cottonwood County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 160 of 5,800 returns from Cottonwood County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,244 - 31% 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 Minnesota
Cottonwood County rate FAQs
- How does Cottonwood County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Cottonwood County run notably lower than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.05% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Cottonwood County, Minnesota?
- The median annual property tax in Cottonwood County is $1,781, an effective rate of 1.05% on a $169,300 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Cottonwood County?
- Cottonwood County, Minnesota scores C- (51/100) 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 housing pressure at B+ (2.32×). 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.
- Are property taxes increasing in Cottonwood County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Cottonwood County is recorded at $1,781 in the 2024 5-year release against $1,330 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 3,446 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 Cottonwood County?
- Property taxes in Cottonwood County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.4% of the $72,941 median household income.
What to do with Cottonwood County's PAR rate
Inside Minnesota, Cottonwood County's $1,781 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Minnesota overview →
Cottonwood County ranks #23 of 87 Minnesota counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Minnesota overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Cottonwood 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: 1.05%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,781/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Cottonwood County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Cottonwood County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Boone County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Cottonwood County at $1,781/yr; rate 1.03% vs Cottonwood County 1.05%.
Dougherty County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Cottonwood County at $1,781/yr; rate 1.33% vs Cottonwood County 1.05%.
Winnebago County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Cottonwood County at $1,781/yr; rate 1.32% vs Cottonwood County 1.05%.
Fayette County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,782/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.30% vs Cottonwood County 1.05%.
Minnesota county set
State ACS overview for every published Minnesota county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Cottonwood 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 Cottonwood County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.