Alabama · County property tax · ACS 2024
Macon County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Macon County pays $509 a year, an effective rate of 0.50%, far below the U.S. average.
- $509
- Median tax / yr · Very low bill
- 0.50%
- Effective rate · Low rate
- -74%
- vs U.S. average
- #3 of 67
- rank in AL
The verdict
Homeowners in Macon County pay a median $509 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.50%, more affordable than 84% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $509
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.50%
- Effective rate on median home
- #514 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 ($102,000). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Alabama. Population: 18,691. Owner-occupied homes: 4,454.
The median annual property tax in Macon County is $509, which is 35% lower than the Alabama state average and 74% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.50% on a median home value of $102,000. Property taxes represent 1.2% of the median household income in this county.
Macon County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Macon County's 0.50% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 84%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Macon County pay a median annual property tax of $509, far below the national median and well below the Alabama state median. On a $102,000 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.50% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Alabama counties by effective rate
Macon County ranks #3 of 67 counties in Alabama by effective rate (96% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Macon County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.2% of the $43,707 median household income.
Decision signal 5
The latest release moved the bill up
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has climbed 8.8%, from $468 to $509. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Macon 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.
How to read this county's bill
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 29% from $395 to $509. 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 largest reported group here falls at the bottom of the national range: 2,253 of 4,454 owner-occupied homes (50.6%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
Both sides of this comparison sit low: household income here is in the bottom quarter of US counties, and so is the effective tax rate. The median bill works out at 1.2% of median household income, which is the arithmetic of a modest levy on modest earnings rather than of any deliberate relief.
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.
Paying off the mortgage changes the picture here
31.7% of Macon County homes owned free and clear (850 of 2,681) report no property tax at all, against 27.5% of homes still carrying a mortgage. A reported zero is not proof of an exemption: it can equally mean a bill paid by another party, or a reporting artefact. But a gap this size is where age- and disability-based relief usually shows up, because those programmes reach owners who have finished paying.
Macon County is an outlier inside Alabama
Across the 67 Alabama counties with a published rate, the average effective rate is 0.34%. Macon County is at 0.50%, which sits 2.1 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 Macon County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Macon County homeowners, 2,253 of 4,454 owner-occupied homes (50.6%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 50.6% (2,253)
- $800 to $1,499 11.9% (529)
- $1,500 to $1,999 2.6% (115)
- $2,000 to $2,999 4.0% (178)
- $3,000 or more 0.9% (42)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
1,337 homes here (30.0%) report no real estate tax at all, an unusually large share, high enough that the median bill above describes a minority of Macon County homeowners. Exemptions are set by state: how Alabama handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Macon County pay a substantially higher bill, 42% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Macon County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Macon County's effective rate is higher than 96% of the 67 counties in Alabama - ranking #3 of 67.
Where Macon County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.50% Among the most affordable more affordable than 84% 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
A high rate, a smaller bill
Macon County taxes property at 0.50%, about 32% above the Alabama average, yet its median bill of $509 lands roughly 35% below it. The effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, so a county can only sit on opposite sides of the state average this way when its homes are worth materially less than the state norm. The rate is the policy; the bill is what the housing market does with it.
Macon County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Macon County | Alabama Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Very low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Very light income burden | 1.2% | - | - |
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.
Macon County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Alabama counties.
Macon County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $509 +8.8% | 0.50% |
| 2023 | $468 +8.8% | 0.49% |
| 2022 | $430 +10.8% | 0.46% |
| 2021 | $388 -1.8% | 0.46% |
| 2020 | $395 | 0.48% |
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.
Macon County: tax takes only 1.2% of income
Counties near Macon County's effective rate
On effective rate, Macon County sits nearest Clay County (AR), Little River County (AR), Larimer County (CO).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Logan County (ND), Goochland County (VA), DeSoto County (FL).
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
Macon County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 260 of 6,890 returns from Macon County reported real estate taxes, averaging $1,492 - 27% 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 Alabama
Macon County rate FAQs
- How does Macon County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Macon County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.50% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Macon County?
- Macon County, Alabama scores A (86/100) 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 bill size at A+ ($509/yr). 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 Macon County, Alabama?
- The median annual property tax in Macon County is $509, an effective rate of 0.50% on a $102,000 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Macon County?
- Property taxes in Macon County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.2% of the $43,707 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Macon County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Macon County is recorded at $509 in the 2024 5-year release against $395 in 2020. That is a large swing, and it should be read as movement in a survey estimate rather than as a tax change: the median here rests on about 4,454 owner-occupied homes, and swings above 50% are roughly twelve times more common in the smallest counties than in the largest. Treat the two figures as imprecise and check the county assessor for actual rate changes.
What to do with Macon County's QUIET rate
Macon County's $509 median bill sits well below the U.S. median - still size a parcel estimate; local millage and exemptions move the real bill. Estimate your bill →
Income burden is light here: about 1.2% of Macon County's $43,707 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Macon County's QUIET 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: 0.50%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $509/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Macon County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Macon County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Breathitt County, KY
ABS(median_tax) peer · $510/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.73% vs Macon County 0.50%.
Eureka County, NV
ABS(median_tax) peer · $511/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.62% vs Macon County 0.50%.
Washington Parish, LA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $507/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.33% vs Macon County 0.50%.
Red River Parish, LA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $506/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.42% vs Macon County 0.50%.
Alabama county set
State ACS overview for every published Alabama county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Macon County stamps QUIET · LIGHT - 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 Macon County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.