Texas · County property tax · ACS 2024
Lee County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Lee County pays $2,584 a year, an effective rate of 0.96%, well above the U.S. average.
- $2,584
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 0.96%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +30%
- vs U.S. average
- #202 of 250
- rank in TX
The verdict
Homeowners in Lee County pay a median $2,584 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.96%, more affordable than 39% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,584
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.96%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1923 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +30%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($267,800). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Texas. Population: 17,971. Owner-occupied homes: 5,434.
The median annual property tax in Lee County is $2,584, which is 39% lower than the Texas state average and 30% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.96% on a median home value of $267,800. Property taxes represent 3.4% of the median household income in this county.
Lee County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Lee County's 0.96% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 39%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Lee County pay a median annual property tax of $2,584, well above the national median and well below the Texas state median. On a $267,800 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.96% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among Texas counties by effective rate
Lee County ranks #202 of 250 counties in Texas by effective rate (19% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Lee County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.4% of the $76,371 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Lee 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.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Lee County rose 64.5%, from $162,800 to $267,800. The effective rate fell 21.2% over the same span, a steeper move than in 86% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 29.7%, to $2,584. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
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
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 30% from $1,993 to $2,584. 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: 2,227 of 5,434 owner-occupied homes (41.0%) 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 3.4% 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 Lee County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Lee County homeowners, 2,227 of 5,434 owner-occupied homes (41.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 14.1% (766)
- $800 to $1,499 15.9% (866)
- $1,500 to $1,999 8.7% (473)
- $2,000 to $2,999 13.4% (727)
- $3,000 or more 41.0% (2,227)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
375 homes here (6.9%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Texas handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Lee County pay more than double the bill of those without one (+103%), the widest kind of value gap this dataset tracks.
Lee County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Lee County's effective rate is higher than 19% of the 250 counties in Texas - ranking #202 of 250.
Where Lee County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.96% more affordable than 39% 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 Lee County moved from $1,993 in the 2020 release to $2,584 in 2024, a change of about 30%. 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.
Lee County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Lee County | Texas Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.4% | - | - |
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.
Lee County is UNDER · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Texas counties.
Lee County rate trail · UNDER
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,584 +7.7% | 0.96% |
| 2023 | $2,399 +10.5% | 0.97% |
| 2022 | $2,172 -0.8% | 1.04% |
| 2021 | $2,189 +9.8% | 1.16% |
| 2020 | $1,993 | 1.22% |
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.
Lee County: tax-to-income at 3.4%
Counties near Lee County's effective rate
On effective rate, Lee County sits nearest Hyde County (SD), Brule County (SD), Multnomah County (OR).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Morgan County (OH), Humboldt County (IA), Lincoln 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
Lee County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 340 of 8,590 returns from Lee County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,900 - 32% 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 Texas
Lee County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Lee County?
- Lee County, Texas scores F (26/100) 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 rate relief at F (0.96%). 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 Lee County, Texas?
- The median annual property tax in Lee County is $2,584, an effective rate of 0.96% on a $267,800 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Lee County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Lee County run well above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.96% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Lee County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Lee County jumped 29.7% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,993 to $2,584, 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 Lee County?
- Property taxes in Lee County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.4% of the $76,371 median household income.
What to do with Lee County's UNDER rate
Lee County's $2,584 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Lee County ranks #202 of 250 Texas counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Texas overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Lee County's UNDER 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: 0.96%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,584/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Lee County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Lee County (UNDER · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER MID
Cabarrus County, NC
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,586/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.73% vs Lee County 0.96%.
Kanabec County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,582/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.13% vs Lee County 0.96%.
Tillamook County, OR
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,582/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.60% vs Lee County 0.96%.
Ford County, IL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,587/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 2.12% vs Lee County 0.96%.
Texas county set
State ACS overview for every published Texas county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Lee County stamps UNDER · 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 Lee County (UNDER · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.