Ohio · County property tax · ACS 2024
Lake County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Lake County pays $3,475 a year, an effective rate of 1.62%, far above the U.S. average.
- $3,475
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.62%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- +74%
- vs U.S. average
- #4 of 88
- rank in OH
The verdict
Homeowners in Lake County pay a median $3,475 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.62%, more affordable than 8% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $3,475
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.62%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2893 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +74%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($214,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Ohio. Population: 232,216. Owner-occupied homes: 76,626.
The median annual property tax in Lake County is $3,475, which is 23% higher than the Ohio state average and 74% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.62% on a median home value of $214,100. Property taxes represent 4.3% of the median household income in this county.
Lake County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
Lake County's 1.62% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 92% pay more.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Lake County pay a median annual property tax of $3,475, far above the national median and notably higher than the Ohio state median. On a $214,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.62% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Ohio counties by effective rate
Lake County ranks #4 of 88 counties in Ohio by effective rate (95% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Lake County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $80,925 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Lake 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 9.8% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 61% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 33.6%, the median bill rose 20.6% to $3,475: 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 $2,882 to $3,475, a gain of 21%. 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: 45,780 of 76,626 owner-occupied homes (59.7%) 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.
Both figures are in the national top quarter, and the median bill still equals only 4.3% of median household income. A high rate on high earnings produces a large dollar figure, and only the dollar figure tends to get quoted; the ratio above is the other half.
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.
Lake County is an outlier inside Ohio
Across the 88 Ohio counties with a published rate, the average effective rate is 1.11%. Lake County is at 1.62%, which sits 2.2 standard deviations above that average. Fewer than one county in twenty nationally is this far from its own state's centre, so a state-level average is a poor guide to what is owed here.
Standard deviations are computed across every county in the state with a published effective rate for 2024; states with fewer than five such counties are not assessed.
What Lake County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Lake County homeowners, 45,780 of 76,626 owner-occupied homes (59.7%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 4.7% (3,592)
- $800 to $1,499 6.6% (5,024)
- $1,500 to $1,999 7.2% (5,504)
- $2,000 to $2,999 19.5% (14,917)
- $3,000 or more 59.7% (45,780)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,809 homes here (2.4%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Ohio handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged and non-mortgaged homeowners in Lake County pay about the same bill, a 3% gap.
Lake County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Lake County's effective rate is higher than 95% of the 88 counties in Ohio - ranking #4 of 88.
Where Lake County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.62% more affordable than 8% 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 highest-taxed counties in the country
At 1.62%, Lake County sits in the top 8% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. That is the rate, not the bill: a high rate on a modest home can still produce a smaller cheque than a low rate on an expensive one, which is why the $3,475 median bill is the number to compare against another county.
Lake County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Lake County | Ohio Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Highest-decile rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 4.3% | - | - |
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.
Lake County's STEEP · HEAVY lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Lake County's published figures (STEEP · HEAVY), a $214,100 median home carries a $3,475 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $348 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Ohio.
Lake County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $3,475 +2.1% | 1.62% |
| 2023 | $3,405 +3.6% | 1.70% |
| 2022 | $3,286 +8.9% | 1.73% |
| 2021 | $3,017 +4.7% | 1.82% |
| 2020 | $2,882 | 1.80% |
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.
Lake County: tax takes 4.3% of income
Counties near Lake County's effective rate
On effective rate, Lake County sits nearest Lewis County (NY), Marion County (KS), Southeastern Connecticut Planning Region (CT).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Pennington County (SD), Lampasas County (TX), Mitchell County (TX).
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
Lake County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 5,450 of 125,820 returns from Lake County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,601 - 35% 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 Ohio
Lake County rate FAQs
- How does Lake County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Lake County run far above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.62% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Lake County?
- Lake County, Ohio scores F (25/100) 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 mortgage premium at B+ (+$115). 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 Lake County, Ohio?
- The median annual property tax in Lake County is $3,475, an effective rate of 1.62% on a $214,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Lake County?
- Property taxes in Lake County run a bit above the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 4.3% of the $80,925 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Lake County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Lake County jumped 20.6% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,882 to $3,475, 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 Lake County's STEEP rate
Lake County's $3,475 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Lake County ranks #4 of 88 Ohio counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Ohio overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Lake 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: 1.62%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $3,475/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Lake County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Lake County (STEEP · HEAVY), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP HEAVY
Bell County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,476/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.44% vs Lake County 1.62%.
Chambers County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,474/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.05% vs Lake County 1.62%.
Yates County, NY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,477/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.88% vs Lake County 1.62%.
McLennan County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $3,471/yr (near-tied bill ABS $4); rate 1.42% vs Lake County 1.62%.
Ohio county set
State ACS overview for every published Ohio county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Lake County stamps STEEP · HEAVY - 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 Lake County (STEEP · HEAVY) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.