Nebraska · County property tax · ACS 2024
Howard County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Howard County pays $2,429 a year, an effective rate of 1.16%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,429
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.16%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +22%
- vs U.S. average
- #63 of 93
- rank in NE
The verdict
Homeowners in Howard County pay a median $2,429 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.16%, more affordable than 25% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,429
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.16%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2350 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +22%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($209,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Nebraska. Population: 6,534. Owner-occupied homes: 1,959.
The median annual property tax in Howard County is $2,429, which is 32% lower than the Nebraska state average and 22% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.16% on a median home value of $209,100. Property taxes represent 3.2% of the median household income in this county.
Howard County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Howard County's 1.16% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 25%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Nebraska median
Homeowners in Howard County pay a median annual property tax of $2,429, notably higher than the national median and well below the Nebraska state median. On a $209,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.16% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Near the middle of Nebraska counties by effective rate
Howard County ranks #63 of 93 counties in Nebraska by effective rate (32% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Howard County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $76,767 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Howard 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 8.4% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 66% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 34.6%, the median bill rose 23.3% to $2,429: 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 $1,970 to $2,429, a gain of 23%. 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: 662 of 1,959 owner-occupied homes (33.8%) 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.
Earnings are in the national top quarter and the rate is above the midpoint, so the median bill represents 3.2% of median household income. A headline bill conflates the dollar figure with the proportion; the two come apart here, and the ratio above is the second of them.
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 Howard County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Howard County homeowners, 662 of 1,959 owner-occupied homes (33.8%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 8.5% (167)
- $800 to $1,499 13.5% (264)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.2% (298)
- $2,000 to $2,999 24.0% (471)
- $3,000 or more 33.8% (662)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
97 homes here (5.0%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Nebraska handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Howard 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.
Howard County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Howard County's effective rate is higher than 32% of the 93 counties in Nebraska - ranking #63 of 93.
Where Howard County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.16% more affordable than 25% 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
Below Nebraska on both measures
Howard County's effective rate runs 22% under the Nebraska median and its bill 32% under. Both sitting on the same side means the gap is not a valuation artefact: a county can post a low rate purely because its homes are expensive, but then the bill rises to meet the state. Here it does not, so the $2,429 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the Nebraska norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
Howard County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Howard County | Nebraska 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.
Howard County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Nebraska counties.
Howard County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,429 +5.0% | 1.16% |
| 2023 | $2,314 +4.3% | 1.13% |
| 2022 | $2,219 +13.5% | 1.22% |
| 2021 | $1,955 -0.8% | 1.18% |
| 2020 | $1,970 | 1.27% |
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.
Howard County: tax-to-income at 3.2%
Counties near Howard County's effective rate
On effective rate, Howard County sits nearest Atchison County (MO), Ontonagon County (MI), Monroe County (MI).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Blackford County (IN), Stafford County (KS), Ransom County (ND).
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
Howard County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 80 of 3,110 returns from Howard County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,950 - 50% of those reporters sat in the $75-100k 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 Nebraska
Howard County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Howard County?
- Howard County, Nebraska scores F (35/100) 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 C (2.72×). 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 Howard County, Nebraska?
- The median annual property tax in Howard County is $2,429, an effective rate of 1.16% on a $209,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Howard County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Howard County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.16% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Howard County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Howard County jumped 23.3% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,970 to $2,429, 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 Howard County?
- Property taxes in Howard County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.2% of the $76,767 median household income.
What to do with Howard County's PAR rate
Inside Nebraska, Howard County's $2,429 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Nebraska overview →
Howard County ranks #63 of 93 Nebraska counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Nebraska overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Howard 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: 1.16%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,429/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Howard County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Howard County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Berrien County, MI
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Howard County at $2,429/yr; rate 1.08% vs Howard County 1.16%.
Shelby County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Howard County at $2,429/yr; rate 0.98% vs Howard County 1.16%.
Dawson County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,430/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.60% vs Howard County 1.16%.
Erie County, OH
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,428/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.22% vs Howard County 1.16%.
Nebraska county set
State ACS overview for every published Nebraska county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Howard 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 Howard County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.