North Carolina · County property tax · ACS 2024
Forsyth County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Forsyth County pays $1,984 a year, an effective rate of 0.79%, roughly in line with the U.S. average.
- $1,984
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.79%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- +0%
- vs U.S. average
- #22 of 100
- rank in NC
The verdict
Homeowners in Forsyth County pay a median $1,984 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.79%, more affordable than 51% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,984
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.79%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1538 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +0%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($250,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Carolina. Population: 389,977. Owner-occupied homes: 101,645.
The median annual property tax in Forsyth County is $1,984, which is 5% higher than the North Carolina state average and 0% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.79% on a median home value of $250,400. Property taxes represent 3.0% of the median household income in this county.
Forsyth County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Forsyth County's 0.79% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 51%).
Decision signal 2
Low among North Carolina counties by effective rate
Forsyth County ranks #22 of 100 counties in North Carolina by effective rate (78% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill is near the usual comparison points
Homeowners in Forsyth County pay a median annual property tax of $1,984, roughly in line with the national median and modestly above the North Carolina state median. On a $250,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.79% 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 Forsyth County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.0% of the $67,165 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Forsyth 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.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Forsyth County rose 52.9%, from $163,800 to $250,400. The effective rate fell 18.5% over the same span, a steeper move than in 77% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 24.6%, to $1,984. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
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 $1,592 to $1,984, a gain of 25%. 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: 24,598 of 101,645 owner-occupied homes (24.2%) 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.
Above-median earnings meet a slightly-below-median rate, and the median bill amounts to 3.0% of median household income. That is the comfortable middle of this dataset, and comfortable middles are easy to overlook when only rankings get published.
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 Forsyth County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Forsyth County homeowners, 24,598 of 101,645 owner-occupied homes (24.2%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 10.6% (10,747)
- $800 to $1,499 21.9% (22,216)
- $1,500 to $1,999 16.9% (17,206)
- $2,000 to $2,999 24.1% (24,464)
- $3,000 or more 24.2% (24,598)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
2,414 homes here (2.4%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Carolina handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Forsyth 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.
Forsyth County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Forsyth County's effective rate is higher than 78% of the 100 counties in North Carolina - ranking #22 of 100.
Where Forsyth County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.79% more affordable than 51% 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 Forsyth County moved from $1,592 in the 2020 release to $1,984 in 2024, a change of about 25%. 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.
Forsyth County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Forsyth County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 3.0% | - | - |
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.
Forsyth County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Carolina counties.
Forsyth County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,984 +2.6% | 0.79% |
| 2023 | $1,934 +5.1% | 0.85% |
| 2022 | $1,841 +9.2% | 0.89% |
| 2021 | $1,686 +5.9% | 0.98% |
| 2020 | $1,592 | 0.97% |
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.
Forsyth County: tax-to-income at 3.0%
Counties near Forsyth County's effective rate
On effective rate, Forsyth County sits nearest Wheeler County (NE), Lewis and Clark County (MT), Scotland County (MO).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Wayne County (OH), Jackson County (OK), Bond County (IL).
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
Forsyth County: only 6% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 11,420 of 179,730 returns from Forsyth County reported real estate taxes, averaging $5,117 - 35% of those reporters sat in the $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
Forsyth County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Forsyth County?
- Forsyth County, North Carolina scores D (44/100) 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 C+ (+$200). 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 Forsyth County, North Carolina?
- The median annual property tax in Forsyth County is $1,984, an effective rate of 0.79% on a $250,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Forsyth County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Forsyth County jumped 24.6% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,592 to $1,984, 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.
- How does Forsyth County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Forsyth County run roughly in line with the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.79% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Forsyth County?
- Property taxes in Forsyth County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.0% of the $67,165 median household income.
What to do with Forsyth County's UNDER rate
At Forsyth County's 0.79% effective rate, a $250,400 home implies about $1,984/yr - plug in your own assessed value rather than quoting the county median. Estimate your bill →
Forsyth County ranks #22 of 100 North Carolina counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. North Carolina overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Forsyth County's UNDER 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: 0.79%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,984/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Forsyth County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Forsyth County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Maricopa County, AZ
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,983/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.44% vs Forsyth County 0.79%.
Moore County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,985/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.30% vs Forsyth County 0.79%.
Gaston County, NC
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,982/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.75% vs Forsyth County 0.79%.
Todd County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,982/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.95% vs Forsyth County 0.79%.
North Carolina county set
State ACS overview for every published North Carolina county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Forsyth County stamps UNDER · 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 Forsyth County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.