North Carolina · County property tax · ACS 2024
Guilford County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Guilford County pays $2,174 a year, an effective rate of 0.84%, modestly above the U.S. average.
- $2,174
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.84%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +9%
- vs U.S. average
- #15 of 100
- rank in NC
The verdict
Homeowners in Guilford County pay a median $2,174 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.84%, more affordable than 47% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,174
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.84%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1663 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +9%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($259,900). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Carolina. Population: 547,940. Owner-occupied homes: 131,715.
The median annual property tax in Guilford County is $2,174, which is 15% higher than the North Carolina state average and 9% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.84% on a median home value of $259,900. Property taxes represent 3.2% of the median household income in this county.
Guilford County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Guilford County's 0.84% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 47%).
Decision signal 2
Low among North Carolina counties by effective rate
Guilford County ranks #15 of 100 counties in North Carolina by effective rate (85% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill is near the usual comparison points
Homeowners in Guilford County pay a median annual property tax of $2,174, modestly above the national median and notably higher than the North Carolina state median. On a $259,900 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.84% 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 Guilford County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $68,642 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Guilford 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 Guilford County rose 50.3%, from $172,900 to $259,900. The effective rate fell 20.9% over the same span, a steeper move than in 85% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 18.9%, to $2,174. 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 $1,828 to $2,174, 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: 39,575 of 131,715 owner-occupied homes (30.0%) 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.
Both the income and the rate here sit in the third quarter nationally, and the median bill is 3.2% 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 Guilford County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Guilford County homeowners, 39,575 of 131,715 owner-occupied homes (30.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 9.3% (12,235)
- $800 to $1,499 21.4% (28,220)
- $1,500 to $1,999 14.2% (18,756)
- $2,000 to $2,999 22.8% (30,079)
- $3,000 or more 30.0% (39,575)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
2,850 homes here (2.2%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Carolina handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Guilford County, mortgaged homeowners pay 17% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Guilford County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Guilford County's effective rate is higher than 85% of the 100 counties in North Carolina - ranking #15 of 100.
Where Guilford County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.84% more affordable than 47% 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
Above North Carolina on both measures
Guilford County's effective rate runs 27% over the North Carolina median and its bill 15% over. When both move together the rate is not being offset by cheaper housing, so the $2,174 median bill is carrying the full weight of the higher rate rather than a valuation difference. This is a comparison of two published medians, not a statement about any individual parcel.
Guilford County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Guilford County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 3.2% | - | - |
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.
Guilford County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Carolina counties.
Guilford County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,174 +4.8% | 0.84% |
| 2023 | $2,075 +4.7% | 0.88% |
| 2022 | $1,982 +7.1% | 0.92% |
| 2021 | $1,851 +1.3% | 1.02% |
| 2020 | $1,828 | 1.06% |
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.
Guilford County: tax-to-income at 3.2%
Counties near Guilford County's effective rate
On effective rate, Guilford County sits nearest Prairie County (MT), Glacier County (MT), Antrim County (MI).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Clay County (MO), Athens County (OH), Madison 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
Guilford County: only 6% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 16,110 of 250,570 returns from Guilford County reported real estate taxes, averaging $5,308 - 33% 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
Guilford County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Guilford County?
- Guilford County, North Carolina 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 rate relief at D (0.84%). 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 Guilford County, North Carolina?
- The median annual property tax in Guilford County is $2,174, an effective rate of 0.84% on a $259,900 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Guilford County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Guilford County run modestly above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.84% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Guilford County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Guilford County climbed 18.9% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,828 to $2,174, 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 Guilford County?
- Property taxes in Guilford County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $68,642 median household income.
What to do with Guilford County's UNDER rate
At Guilford County's 0.84% effective rate, a $259,900 home implies about $2,174/yr - plug in your own assessed value rather than quoting the county median. Estimate your bill →
Guilford County ranks #15 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 Guilford 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: 0.84%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,174/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Guilford County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Guilford County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Beaufort County, SC
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Guilford County at $2,174/yr; rate 0.48% vs Guilford County 0.84%.
Uvalde County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,173/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.44% vs Guilford County 0.84%.
Dawson County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,172/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.31% vs Guilford County 0.84%.
Sheridan County, WY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,177/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.55% vs Guilford County 0.84%.
North Carolina county set
State ACS overview for every published North Carolina county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Guilford 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 Guilford County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.