North Carolina · County property tax · ACS 2024
McDowell County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in McDowell County pays $911 a year, an effective rate of 0.53%, far below the U.S. average.
- $911
- Median tax / yr · Low bill
- 0.53%
- Effective rate · Low rate
- -54%
- vs U.S. average
- #84 of 100
- rank in NC
The verdict
Homeowners in McDowell County pay a median $911 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.53%, more affordable than 80% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $911
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.53%
- Effective rate on median home
- #619 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -54%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($171,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Carolina. Population: 44,817. Owner-occupied homes: 14,088.
The median annual property tax in McDowell County is $911, which is 52% lower than the North Carolina state average and 54% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.53% on a median home value of $171,100. Property taxes represent 1.6% of the median household income in this county.
McDowell County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
McDowell County's 0.53% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 80%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in McDowell County pay a median annual property tax of $911, far below the national median and far below the North Carolina state median. On a $171,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.53% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among North Carolina counties by effective rate
McDowell County ranks #84 of 100 counties in North Carolina by effective rate (16% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in McDowell County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.6% of the $57,168 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in McDowell 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 6.5% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 73% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 32.2%, the median bill rose 23.6% to $911: 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 $737 to $911, a gain of 24%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The largest reported group here falls at the bottom of the national range: 6,072 of 14,088 owner-occupied homes (43.1%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
Household income sits in the second quarter nationally and the effective rate in the lowest, so the median bill takes 1.6% of median household income. Both figures point the same way, which is unusual enough that the ratio above is worth reading rather than assumed.
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 McDowell County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of McDowell County homeowners, 6,072 of 14,088 owner-occupied homes (43.1%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 43.1% (6,072)
- $800 to $1,499 27.7% (3,902)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.0% (1,413)
- $2,000 to $2,999 9.6% (1,351)
- $3,000 or more 6.4% (905)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
445 homes here (3.2%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Carolina handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in McDowell County pay a substantially higher bill, 36% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
McDowell County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
McDowell County's effective rate is higher than 16% of the 100 counties in North Carolina - ranking #84 of 100.
Where McDowell County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.53% Among the most affordable more affordable than 80% 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 North Carolina on both measures
McDowell County's effective rate runs 20% under the North Carolina median and its bill 52% 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 $911 median bill reflects a genuinely lighter charge than the North Carolina norm rather than a different denominator. Compare it against the state page before reading anything into the county rank.
McDowell County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | McDowell County | North Carolina Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Light income burden | 1.6% | - | - |
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.
McDowell County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Carolina counties.
McDowell County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $911 +4.6% | 0.53% |
| 2023 | $871 +7.4% | 0.52% |
| 2022 | $811 +7.8% | 0.53% |
| 2021 | $752 +2.0% | 0.57% |
| 2020 | $737 | 0.57% |
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.
McDowell County: tax takes only 1.6% of income
Counties near McDowell County's effective rate
On effective rate, McDowell County sits nearest Lincoln County (NM), Churchill County (NV), Sanders County (MT).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Chesterfield County (SC), Buckingham County (VA), Leon 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
McDowell County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 510 of 19,900 returns from McDowell County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,571 - 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 North Carolina
McDowell County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for McDowell County?
- McDowell County, North Carolina scores B (73/100) 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 income room at A- (1.6%). 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.
- How does McDowell County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in McDowell County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.53% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in McDowell County, North Carolina?
- The median annual property tax in McDowell County is $911, an effective rate of 0.53% on a $171,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in McDowell County?
- Property taxes in McDowell County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.6% of the $57,168 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in McDowell County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for McDowell County jumped 23.6% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $737 to $911, 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 McDowell County's QUIET rate
McDowell County's $911 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 1.6% of McDowell County's $57,168 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for McDowell 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: 0.53%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $911/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with McDowell County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for McDowell County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Cherokee County, OK
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with McDowell County at $911/yr; rate 0.54% vs McDowell County 0.53%.
Pontotoc County, MS
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with McDowell County at $911/yr; rate 0.58% vs McDowell County 0.53%.
Cass County, IN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $910/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.68% vs McDowell County 0.53%.
McIntosh County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $913/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.08% vs McDowell County 0.53%.
North Carolina county set
State ACS overview for every published North Carolina county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
McDowell 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 McDowell County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.