Alabama · County property tax · ACS 2024
Hale County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Hale County pays $406 a year, an effective rate of 0.32%, far below the U.S. average.
- $406
- Median tax / yr · Very low bill
- 0.32%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -80%
- vs U.S. average
- #43 of 67
- rank in AL
The verdict
Homeowners in Hale County pay a median $406 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.32%, more affordable than 97% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $406
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.32%
- Effective rate on median home
- #99 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -80%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($127,600). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Alabama. Population: 14,829. Owner-occupied homes: 4,197.
The median annual property tax in Hale County is $406, which is 48% lower than the Alabama state average and 80% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.32% on a median home value of $127,600. Property taxes represent 1.0% of the median household income in this county.
Hale County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Hale County's 0.32% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 97% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Hale County pay a median annual property tax of $406, far below the national median and well below the Alabama state median. On a $127,600 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.32% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Hale County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.0% of the $39,250 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Near the middle of Alabama counties by effective rate
Hale County ranks #43 of 67 counties in Alabama by effective rate (36% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Hale 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
Hale County's effective rate fell 15.6% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 39.5%, leaving the median bill 17.7% higher at $406. That rate move is larger than the one in 67% 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 $345 to $406, a gain of 18%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The largest reported group here falls at the bottom of the national range: 2,242 of 4,197 owner-occupied homes (53.4%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
Both sides of this comparison sit low: household income here is in the bottom quarter of US counties, and so is the effective tax rate. The median bill works out at 1.0% of median household income, which is the arithmetic of a modest levy on modest earnings rather than of any deliberate relief.
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.
Paying off the mortgage changes the picture here
39.0% of Hale County homes owned free and clear (1,063 of 2,729) report no property tax at all, against 23.1% of homes still carrying a mortgage. A reported zero is not proof of an exemption: it can equally mean a bill paid by another party, or a reporting artefact. But a gap this size is where age- and disability-based relief usually shows up, because those programmes reach owners who have finished paying.
What Hale County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Hale County homeowners, 2,242 of 4,197 owner-occupied homes (53.4%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 53.4% (2,242)
- $800 to $1,499 7.8% (327)
- $1,500 to $1,999 1.0% (42)
- $2,000 to $2,999 3.1% (129)
- $3,000 or more 1.3% (55)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,402 homes here (33.4%) report no real estate tax at all, an unusually large share, high enough that the median bill above describes a minority of Hale County homeowners. Exemptions are set by state: how Alabama handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Hale County pay a substantially higher bill, 41% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Hale County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Hale County's effective rate is higher than 36% of the 67 counties in Alabama - ranking #43 of 67.
Where Hale County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.32% Among the most affordable more affordable than 97% 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
Among the lowest-taxed counties in the country
At 0.32%, Hale County sits in the lowest 3% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. A low rate does not by itself mean a low bill: the median here is $406, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Hale County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Hale County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Very low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Very light income burden | 1.0% | - | - |
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.
Hale County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Alabama counties.
Hale County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $406 +0.0% | 0.32% |
| 2023 | $406 +15.0% | 0.32% |
| 2022 | $353 +1.4% | 0.32% |
| 2021 | $348 +0.9% | 0.39% |
| 2020 | $345 | 0.38% |
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.
Hale County: tax takes only 1.0% of income
Counties near Hale County's effective rate
On effective rate, Hale County sits nearest Montgomery County (AR), Stone County (AR), Costilla County (CO).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Osage County (KS), Wabaunsee County (KS), Charles County (MD).
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
Hale County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 180 of 6,570 returns from Hale County reported real estate taxes, averaging $1,072 - 33% 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 Alabama
Hale County rate FAQs
- How does Hale County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Hale County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.32% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Hale County, Alabama?
- The median annual property tax in Hale County is $406, an effective rate of 0.32% on a $127,600 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Hale County?
- Hale County, Alabama scores A+ (90/100) 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 A+ (0.32%). 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 Hale County?
- Property taxes in Hale County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.0% of the $39,250 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Hale County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Hale County climbed 17.7% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $345 to $406, 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 Hale County's QUIET rate
Hale County's $406 median bill sits well below the U.S. median - still size a parcel estimate; local millage and exemptions move the real bill. Estimate your bill →
Income burden is light here: about 1.0% of Hale County's $39,250 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Hale County's QUIET 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: 0.32%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $406/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Hale County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Hale County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Claiborne County, MS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $403/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.49% vs Hale County 0.32%.
Marengo County, AL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $409/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.38% vs Hale County 0.32%.
Gilmer County, WV
ABS(median_tax) peer · $410/yr (near-tied bill ABS $4); rate 0.49% vs Hale County 0.32%.
Richland Parish, LA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $401/yr (near-tied bill ABS $5); rate 0.28% vs Hale County 0.32%.
Alabama county set
State ACS overview for every published Alabama county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Hale County stamps QUIET · LIGHT - 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 Hale County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.