Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Hardin County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Hardin County pays $1,683 a year, an effective rate of 1.37%, notably lower than the U.S. average.
- $1,683
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.37%
- Effective rate · High rate
- -16%
- vs U.S. average
- #37 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Hardin County pay a median $1,683 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.37%, more affordable than 16% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,683
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.37%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2647 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -16%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($122,500). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 16,639. Owner-occupied homes: 5,177.
The median annual property tax in Hardin County is $1,683, which is 42% lower than the Iowa state average and 16% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.37% on a median home value of $122,500. Property taxes represent 2.6% of the median household income in this county.
Hardin County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Hardin County's 1.37% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 16%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Hardin County pay a median annual property tax of $1,683, notably lower than the national median and well below the Iowa state median. On a $122,500 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.37% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Iowa counties by effective rate
Hardin County ranks #37 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (63% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Hardin County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.6% of the $65,069 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Hardin 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.
Most of the market's rise reached the bill
The effective rate here moved 8.5% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 66% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 28.8%, the median bill rose 17.9% to $1,683: the rate did comparatively little to offset the market.
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 $1,428 to $1,683, 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 fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 1,442 of 5,177 owner-occupied homes (27.9%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 2.6% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned 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 Hardin County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Hardin County homeowners, 1,442 of 5,177 owner-occupied homes (27.9%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 15.2% (788)
- $800 to $1,499 27.9% (1,442)
- $1,500 to $1,999 16.5% (854)
- $2,000 to $2,999 18.5% (960)
- $3,000 or more 20.1% (1,042)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
91 homes here (1.8%) 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 Hardin County pay about the same bill, a 1% gap.
Hardin County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Hardin County's effective rate is higher than 63% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #37 of 99.
Where Hardin County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.37% more affordable than 16% 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 Iowa, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 1% of the Iowa median, yet the median bill runs 42% 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 $1,683 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Hardin County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Hardin 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 | 2.6% | - | - |
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.
Hardin County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Hardin County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $122,500 median home carries a $1,683 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $168 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Iowa.
Hardin County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,683 +4.3% | 1.37% |
| 2023 | $1,613 +3.7% | 1.43% |
| 2022 | $1,556 +2.6% | 1.42% |
| 2021 | $1,516 +6.2% | 1.56% |
| 2020 | $1,428 | 1.50% |
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.
Hardin County: tax-to-income at 2.6%
Counties near Hardin County's effective rate
On effective rate, Hardin County sits nearest Anderson County (KS), Chase County (KS), McPherson County (KS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Elko County (NV), Anderson County (KY), Johnson County (MO).
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
Hardin County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 260 of 7,650 returns from Hardin County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,023 - 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 Iowa
Hardin County rate FAQs
- How does Hardin County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Hardin County run notably lower than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.37% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Hardin County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Hardin County is $1,683, an effective rate of 1.37% on a $122,500 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Hardin County?
- Hardin County, Iowa scores D (49/100) 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+ (1.88×). 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.
- Are property taxes increasing in Hardin County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Hardin County climbed 17.9% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,428 to $1,683, 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 Hardin County?
- Property taxes in Hardin County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.6% of the $65,069 median household income.
What to do with Hardin County's STEEP rate
Inside Iowa, Hardin County's $1,683 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Hardin County ranks #37 of 99 Iowa counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Iowa overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Hardin County's STEEP 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: 1.37%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,683/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Hardin County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Hardin County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Hodgeman County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Hardin County at $1,683/yr; rate 1.66% vs Hardin County 1.37%.
Sevier County, UT
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Hardin County at $1,683/yr; rate 0.54% vs Hardin County 1.37%.
Washington County, ME
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Hardin County at $1,683/yr; rate 1.04% vs Hardin County 1.37%.
Thurston County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,682/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.47% vs Hardin County 1.37%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Hardin County stamps STEEP · MID - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
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 Hardin County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.