Maine · County property tax · ACS 2024
Franklin County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Franklin County pays $2,027 a year, an effective rate of 1.04%, roughly in line with the U.S. average.
- $2,027
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.04%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +2%
- vs U.S. average
- #11 of 16
- rank in ME
The verdict
Homeowners in Franklin County pay a median $2,027 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.04%, more affordable than 32% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,027
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.04%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2125 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +2%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($194,700). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Maine. Population: 30,413. Owner-occupied homes: 9,666.
The median annual property tax in Franklin County is $2,027, which is 33% lower than the Maine state average and 2% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.04% on a median home value of $194,700. Property taxes represent 3.5% of the median household income in this county.
Franklin County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Franklin County's 1.04% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 32%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Maine median
Homeowners in Franklin County pay a median annual property tax of $2,027, roughly in line with the national median and well below the Maine state median. On a $194,700 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.04% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Maine counties by effective rate
Franklin County ranks #11 of 16 counties in Maine by effective rate (31% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Franklin County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.5% of the $58,675 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Franklin 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
Franklin County's effective rate fell 16.7% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 32.5%, leaving the median bill 10.5% higher at $2,027. That rate move is larger than the one in 71% 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 $1,835 to $2,027, a gain of 10%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The plurality of owner-occupied homes here falls in the $2,000 to $2,999 band, at 2,449 of 9,666 (25.3%). This shows the reported distribution around the county median, while individual assessments can vary.
Earnings are below the national midpoint while the rate is above it, and the median bill equals 3.5% of median household income. The gap between those two positions is the whole story on this page.
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 Franklin County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Franklin County homeowners, 2,449 of 9,666 owner-occupied homes (25.3%), pays $2,000 to $2,999 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 12.7% (1,229)
- $800 to $1,499 20.2% (1,953)
- $1,500 to $1,999 14.7% (1,420)
- $2,000 to $2,999 25.3% (2,449)
- $3,000 or more 23.6% (2,283)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
332 homes here (3.4%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Maine handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Franklin 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.
Franklin County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Franklin County's effective rate is higher than 31% of the 16 counties in Maine - ranking #11 of 16.
Where Franklin County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.04% 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
Same rate as Maine, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 2% of the Maine median, yet the median bill runs 33% 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 $2,027 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Franklin County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Franklin County | Maine Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.5% | - | - |
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.
Franklin County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Maine counties.
Franklin County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,027 +6.9% | 1.04% |
| 2023 | $1,897 -2.6% | 1.07% |
| 2022 | $1,948 +5.3% | 1.14% |
| 2021 | $1,850 +0.8% | 1.21% |
| 2020 | $1,835 | 1.25% |
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.
Franklin County: tax-to-income at 3.5%
Counties near Franklin County's effective rate
On effective rate, Franklin County sits nearest Terrell County (GA), Montgomery County (GA), Liberty County (GA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Weakley County (TN), Doniphan County (KS), Gregory County (SD).
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
Franklin County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 350 of 14,330 returns from Franklin County reported real estate taxes, averaging $5,140 - 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 Maine
Franklin County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Franklin County?
- Franklin County, Maine scores F (37/100) 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+ (+$218). 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 Franklin County, Maine?
- The median annual property tax in Franklin County is $2,027, an effective rate of 1.04% on a $194,700 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Franklin County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Franklin County run roughly in line with the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.04% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Franklin County?
- Property taxes in Franklin County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.5% of the $58,675 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Franklin County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Franklin County climbed 10.5% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,835 to $2,027, 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 Franklin County's PAR rate
Inside Maine, Franklin County's $2,027 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Maine overview →
Franklin County ranks #11 of 16 Maine counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Maine overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Franklin 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: 1.04%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,027/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Franklin County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Franklin County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Marion County, IN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,028/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.91% vs Franklin County 1.04%.
St. Tammany Parish, LA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,028/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.71% vs Franklin County 1.04%.
Bartow County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,024/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.70% vs Franklin County 1.04%.
Johnson County, IN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,024/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.71% vs Franklin County 1.04%.
Maine county set
State ACS overview for every published Maine county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Franklin 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 Franklin County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.