Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Hamilton County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Hamilton County pays $1,977 a year, an effective rate of 1.26%, roughly in line with the U.S. average.
- $1,977
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.26%
- Effective rate · High rate
- -1%
- vs U.S. average
- #66 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Hamilton County pay a median $1,977 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.26%, more affordable than 21% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,977
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.26%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2487 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -1%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($156,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 14,886. Owner-occupied homes: 4,721.
The median annual property tax in Hamilton County is $1,977, which is 32% lower than the Iowa state average and 1% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.26% on a median home value of $156,400. Property taxes represent 2.7% of the median household income in this county.
Hamilton County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Hamilton County's 1.26% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 21%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Hamilton County pay a median annual property tax of $1,977, roughly in line with the national median and well below the Iowa state median. On a $156,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.26% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Iowa counties by effective rate
Hamilton County ranks #66 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (33% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
The latest release moved the bill up
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has climbed 9.4%, from $1,807 to $1,977. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
Decision signal 5
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Hamilton County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.7% of the $72,432 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Hamilton 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.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 27% from $1,557 to $1,977. These ACS medians describe the reported change; they do not identify whether a levy, assessment, home value, or change in the responding households caused it.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 1,388 of 4,721 owner-occupied homes (29.4%) 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 rate is in the national top quarter while earnings are only moderately above the midpoint, so the median bill claims 2.7% of median household income. A high rate is affordable only relative to something, and this is what it is relative to here.
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 Hamilton County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Hamilton County homeowners, 1,388 of 4,721 owner-occupied homes (29.4%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 13.5% (636)
- $800 to $1,499 23.1% (1,089)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.0% (615)
- $2,000 to $2,999 19.0% (895)
- $3,000 or more 29.4% (1,388)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
98 homes here (2.1%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Hamilton County pay about the same bill, a 3% gap.
Hamilton County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Hamilton County's effective rate is higher than 33% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #66 of 99.
Where Hamilton County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.26% more affordable than 21% 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 Hamilton County moved from $1,557 in the 2020 release to $1,977 in 2024, a change of about 27%. 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.
Hamilton County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Hamilton County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.7% | - | - |
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.
Hamilton County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Iowa counties.
Hamilton County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,977 +9.4% | 1.26% |
| 2023 | $1,807 +12.2% | 1.37% |
| 2022 | $1,611 +1.1% | 1.39% |
| 2021 | $1,593 +2.3% | 1.51% |
| 2020 | $1,557 | 1.48% |
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.
Hamilton County: tax-to-income at 2.7%
Counties near Hamilton County's effective rate
On effective rate, Hamilton County sits nearest Anchorage Municipality (AK), Jefferson County (KS), Chippewa County (MI).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Washington County (OK), Delta County (TX), Josephine County (OR).
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
Hamilton County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 240 of 6,900 returns from Hamilton County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,538 - 29% 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 Iowa
Hamilton County rate FAQs
- What is the average property tax in Hamilton County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Hamilton County is $1,977, an effective rate of 1.26% on a $156,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Hamilton County?
- Hamilton County, Iowa scores D (45/100) 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 housing pressure at A- (2.16×). 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.
- How does Hamilton County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Hamilton County run roughly in line with the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.26% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Hamilton County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Hamilton County is recorded at $1,977 in the 2024 5-year release against $1,557 in 2020. That is a large swing, and it should be read as movement in a survey estimate rather than as a tax change: the median here rests on about 4,721 owner-occupied homes, and swings above 50% are roughly twelve times more common in the smallest counties than in the largest. Treat the two figures as imprecise and check the county assessor for actual rate changes.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Hamilton County?
- Property taxes in Hamilton County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.7% of the $72,432 median household income.
What to do with Hamilton County's PAR rate
Inside Iowa, Hamilton County's $1,977 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Hamilton County ranks #66 of 99 Iowa counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Iowa overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Hamilton 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: 1.26%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,977/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Hamilton County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Hamilton County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Brown County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,976/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.03% vs Hamilton County 1.26%.
Butts County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,976/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.82% vs Hamilton County 1.26%.
Maverick County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,976/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.25% vs Hamilton County 1.26%.
Ramsey County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,976/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.99% vs Hamilton County 1.26%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Hamilton 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 Hamilton County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.