District of Columbia · County property tax · ACS 2024
District of Columbia Property Taxes
The median homeowner in District of Columbia pays $4,312 a year, an effective rate of 0.58%, far above the U.S. average.
- $4,312
- Median tax / yr · Highest-decile bill
- 0.58%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- +116%
- vs U.S. average
- #1 of 1
- rank in DC
The verdict
Homeowners in District of Columbia pay a median $4,312 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.58%, more affordable than 74% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $4,312
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.58%
- Effective rate on median home
- #816 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +116%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($737,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for District of Columbia. Population: 681,294. Owner-occupied homes: 134,683.
The median annual property tax in District of Columbia is $4,312, which is 0% higher than the District of Columbia state average and 116% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.58% on a median home value of $737,100. Property taxes represent 3.9% of the median household income in this county.
Why District of Columbia's ACS bill runs high vs the U.S.
Primary signal
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in District of Columbia pay a median annual property tax of $4,312, far above the national median and roughly in line with the District of Columbia state median. On a $737,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.58% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 2
The effective rate sits near the national middle
District of Columbia's 0.58% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 74%).
Decision signal 3
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in District of Columbia run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.9% of the $109,870 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Low among District of Columbia counties by effective rate
District of Columbia ranks #1 of 1 counties in District of Columbia by effective rate (0% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in District of Columbia 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.
The rate held while the market moved
District of Columbia sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 1.8% up, against a median home value that rose 19.3%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 21.4%, from $3,551 to $4,312.
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 $3,551 to $4,312, a gain of 21%. 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: 86,173 of 134,683 owner-occupied homes (64.0%) 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 most forgiving PAIRING in the data, top-quartile household income with a bottom-quartile effective rate, puts the median bill at 3.9% of median household income. Home values still drive the dollar figure, which is why the ratio above varies widely among counties that share this position.
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 District of Columbia Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of District of Columbia homeowners, 86,173 of 134,683 owner-occupied homes (64.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 4.7% (6,340)
- $800 to $1,499 9.1% (12,191)
- $1,500 to $1,999 6.4% (8,576)
- $2,000 to $2,999 12.6% (16,924)
- $3,000 or more 64.0% (86,173)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
4,479 homes here (3.3%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how District of Columbia handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In District of Columbia, mortgaged homeowners pay 15% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
District of Columbia's bill vs state & U.S. medians
Median annual bill bars around District of Columbia's HEAVY ACS 2024 figure.
District of Columbia's median bill is 0% above the District of Columbia median and 116% above the U.S. median.
Close to the District of Columbia median on both measures
Rate and bill both land within 10% of the District of Columbia medians here, which makes District of Columbia a reasonable stand-in for the state when comparing against counties elsewhere. It also means the county-level figure adds little beyond the state figure for this particular comparison; the $4,312 median bill and the state median tell substantially the same story.
District of Columbia vs Benchmarks
| Metric | District of Columbia | District of Columbia Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Highest-decile bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.9% | - | - |
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.
Is District of Columbia's $4,312 median bill appeal-worthy?
At District of Columbia's $4,312 ACS median (HEAVY), a 10% assessment cut is worth about $431/yr before exemptions. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for District of Columbia.
District of Columbia bill trail · HEAVY
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $4,312 +3.2% | 0.58% |
| 2023 | $4,180 +5.6% | 0.58% |
| 2022 | $3,957 +8.7% | 0.56% |
| 2021 | $3,641 +2.5% | 0.57% |
| 2020 | $3,551 | 0.57% |
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.
District of Columbia: tax-to-income at 3.9%
Counties near District of Columbia's median bill
On effective rate, District of Columbia sits nearest Kiowa County (CO), Trinity County (CA), Bay County (FL).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Trimble County (KY), Sullivan County (IN), New Castle County (DE).
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
District of Columbia bill FAQs
- How does District of Columbia property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in District of Columbia run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.58% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in District of Columbia, District of Columbia?
- The median annual property tax in District of Columbia is $4,312, an effective rate of 0.58% on a $737,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for District of Columbia?
- District of Columbia, District of Columbia scores F (31/100) 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 rate relief at B (0.58%). 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 percentage of income goes to property taxes in District of Columbia?
- Property taxes in District of Columbia run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.9% of the $109,870 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in District of Columbia?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for District of Columbia jumped 21.4% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $3,551 to $4,312, 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 to do with District of Columbia's HEAVY bill
District of Columbia's $4,312 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
District of Columbia ranks #1 of 1 District of Columbia counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. District of Columbia overview →
Nationwide peers by median bill (then rate)
Bill-first peers for District of Columbia's HEAVY median, then a disjoint out-of-state rate set, not the same-state geography lattice.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.58%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $4,312/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with District of Columbia
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for District of Columbia (QUIET · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET HEAVY
Skagit County, WA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,308/yr (near-tied bill ABS $4); rate 0.79% vs District of Columbia 0.58%.
Fauquier County, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,320/yr (near-tied bill ABS $8); rate 0.75% vs District of Columbia 0.58%.
Franklin County, VT
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,332/yr (near-tied bill ABS $20); rate 1.41% vs District of Columbia 0.58%.
Clark County, WA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $4,290/yr (near-tied bill ABS $22); rate 0.82% vs District of Columbia 0.58%.
District of Columbia county set
State ACS overview for every published District of Columbia county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
District of Columbia stamps QUIET · HEAVY - 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 District of Columbia (QUIET · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.