Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Jefferson County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Jefferson County pays $2,311 a year, an effective rate of 1.41%, notably higher than the U.S. average.
- $2,311
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.41%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +16%
- vs U.S. average
- #27 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Jefferson County pay a median $2,311 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.41%, more affordable than 14% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,311
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.41%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2688 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 ($163,400). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 15,705. Owner-occupied homes: 4,706.
The median annual property tax in Jefferson County is $2,311, which is 20% lower than the Iowa state average and 16% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.41% on a median home value of $163,400. Property taxes represent 3.8% of the median household income in this county.
Jefferson County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Jefferson County's 1.41% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 14%).
Decision signal 2
Near the middle of Iowa counties by effective rate
Jefferson County ranks #27 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (73% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Iowa median
Homeowners in Jefferson County pay a median annual property tax of $2,311, notably higher than the national median and notably lower than the Iowa state median. On a $163,400 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.41% 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 Jefferson County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $61,620 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Jefferson 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
Jefferson County's effective rate fell 16.6% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 35.5%, leaving the median bill 13.0% higher at $2,311. That rate move is larger than the one in 71% 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 $2,046 to $2,311, a gain of 13%. 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: 1,492 of 4,706 owner-occupied homes (31.7%) 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.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 3.8% 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 Jefferson County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Jefferson County homeowners, 1,492 of 4,706 owner-occupied homes (31.7%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 9.8% (462)
- $800 to $1,499 15.5% (728)
- $1,500 to $1,999 15.3% (720)
- $2,000 to $2,999 23.5% (1,104)
- $3,000 or more 31.7% (1,492)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
200 homes here (4.2%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Jefferson County, mortgaged homeowners pay 12% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Jefferson County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Jefferson County's effective rate is higher than 73% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #27 of 99.
Where Jefferson County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.41% more affordable than 14% 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 20% 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 $2,311 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Jefferson County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Jefferson County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.8% | - | - |
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.
Jefferson County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Jefferson County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $163,400 median home carries a $2,311 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $231 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Iowa.
Jefferson County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,311 -3.6% | 1.41% |
| 2023 | $2,397 +5.5% | 1.49% |
| 2022 | $2,273 +9.5% | 1.61% |
| 2021 | $2,076 +1.5% | 1.74% |
| 2020 | $2,046 | 1.70% |
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.
Jefferson County: tax-to-income at 3.8%
Counties near Jefferson County's effective rate
On effective rate, Jefferson County sits nearest Wabash County (IL), Franklin County (KS), Thomas County (KS).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are LaMoure County (ND), Anderson County (TX), Calumet County (WI).
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
Jefferson County: only 5% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 340 of 7,090 returns from Jefferson County reported real estate taxes, averaging $5,429 - 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
Jefferson County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Jefferson County?
- Jefferson County, Iowa scores F (30/100) 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+ (2.65×). 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 Jefferson County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Jefferson County is $2,311, an effective rate of 1.41% on a $163,400 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Jefferson County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Jefferson County run notably higher than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.41% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Jefferson County?
- Property taxes in Jefferson County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.8% of the $61,620 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Jefferson County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Jefferson County climbed 13.0% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,046 to $2,311, 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 Jefferson County's STEEP rate
Inside Iowa, Jefferson County's $2,311 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Iowa overview →
Jefferson County ranks #27 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 Jefferson 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: 1.41%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,311/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Jefferson County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Jefferson County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Brevard County, FL
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Jefferson County at $2,311/yr; rate 0.68% vs Jefferson County 1.41%.
Beltrami County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,309/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.97% vs Jefferson County 1.41%.
Hamlin County, SD
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,313/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.11% vs Jefferson County 1.41%.
Codington County, SD
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,308/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.97% vs Jefferson County 1.41%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Jefferson 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 Jefferson County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.