Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Decatur County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Decatur County pays $1,831 a year, an effective rate of 1.61%, modestly below the U.S. average.
- $1,831
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.61%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- -8%
- vs U.S. average
- #5 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Decatur County pay a median $1,831 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.61%, more affordable than 8% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,831
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.61%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2886 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -8%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($113,900). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 7,759. Owner-occupied homes: 2,130.
The median annual property tax in Decatur County is $1,831, which is 37% lower than the Iowa state average and 8% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.61% on a median home value of $113,900. Property taxes represent 3.1% of the median household income in this county.
Decatur County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
Decatur County's 1.61% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 92% pay more.
Decision signal 2
Low among Iowa counties by effective rate
Decatur County ranks #5 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (95% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Decatur County pay a median annual property tax of $1,831, modestly below the national median and well below the Iowa state median. On a $113,900 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.61% 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 Decatur County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.1% of the $59,044 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Decatur 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.
A falling rate took the edge off
Decatur County's effective rate fell 13.5% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 37.6%, leaving the median bill 19.0% higher at $1,831. That rate move is larger than the one in 57% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
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 $1,539 to $1,831, a gain of 19%. 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: 495 of 2,130 owner-occupied homes (23.2%) 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.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 3.1% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned 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 Decatur County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Decatur County homeowners, 495 of 2,130 owner-occupied homes (23.2%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 16.9% (361)
- $800 to $1,499 17.7% (377)
- $1,500 to $1,999 20.8% (444)
- $2,000 to $2,999 18.1% (386)
- $3,000 or more 23.2% (495)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
67 homes here (3.1%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Decatur 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.
Decatur County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Decatur County's effective rate is higher than 95% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #5 of 99.
Where Decatur County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.61% more affordable than 8% 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
A high rate, a smaller bill
Decatur County taxes property at 1.61%, about 16% above the Iowa average, yet its median bill of $1,831 lands roughly 37% below it. The effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, so a county can only sit on opposite sides of the state average this way when its homes are worth materially less than the state norm. The rate is the policy; the bill is what the housing market does with it.
Decatur County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Decatur County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Highest-decile 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.
Decatur County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Decatur County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $113,900 median home carries a $1,831 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $183 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Iowa.
Decatur County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,831 -1.3% | 1.61% |
| 2023 | $1,856 +1.5% | 1.69% |
| 2022 | $1,828 +7.5% | 1.88% |
| 2021 | $1,700 +10.5% | 1.93% |
| 2020 | $1,539 | 1.86% |
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.
Decatur County: tax-to-income at 3.1%
Counties near Decatur County's effective rate
On effective rate, Decatur County sits nearest Bergen County (NJ), Greene County (OH), York County (PA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Hardin County (KY), Madison County (NY), Wyandot 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
Decatur County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 70 of 3,050 returns from Decatur County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,429 - 57% of those reporters sat in the $50-75k 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
Decatur County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Decatur County?
- Decatur 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 housing pressure at A+ (1.93×). 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 Decatur County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Decatur County is $1,831, an effective rate of 1.61% on a $113,900 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Decatur County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Decatur County run modestly below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.61% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Decatur County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Decatur County climbed 19.0% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,539 to $1,831, 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 Decatur County?
- Property taxes in Decatur County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.1% of the $59,044 median household income.
What to do with Decatur County's STEEP rate
Inside Iowa, Decatur County's $1,831 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Decatur County ranks #5 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 Decatur 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: 1.61%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,831/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Decatur County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Decatur County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Huron County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,829/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.19% vs Decatur County 1.61%.
Auglaize County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,828/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.96% vs Decatur County 1.61%.
Franklin County, NC
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,834/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.65% vs Decatur County 1.61%.
Holt County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,828/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 1.11% vs Decatur County 1.61%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Decatur 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 Decatur County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.