Kentucky · County property tax · ACS 2024
McLean County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in McLean County pays $954 a year, an effective rate of 0.64%, far below the U.S. average.
- $954
- Median tax / yr · Low bill
- 0.64%
- Effective rate · Below-median rate
- -52%
- vs U.S. average
- #87 of 120
- rank in KY
The verdict
Homeowners in McLean County pay a median $954 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.64%, more affordable than 67% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $954
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.64%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1040 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -52%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($148,500). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Kentucky. Population: 9,114. Owner-occupied homes: 3,013.
The median annual property tax in McLean County is $954, which is 38% lower than the Kentucky state average and 52% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.64% on a median home value of $148,500. Property taxes represent 1.5% of the median household income in this county.
McLean County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
McLean County's 0.64% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 67%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in McLean County pay a median annual property tax of $954, far below the national median and well below the Kentucky state median. On a $148,500 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.64% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in McLean County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.5% of the $65,596 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Near the middle of Kentucky counties by effective rate
McLean County ranks #87 of 120 counties in Kentucky by effective rate (28% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 5
The latest release moved the bill down
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has eased 3.0%, from $984 to $954. 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 McLean 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 27% from $753 to $954. 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: 1,016 of 3,013 owner-occupied homes (33.7%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
Both figures cluster near the middle of the national range, and the median bill comes to 1.5% of median household income. Counties like this are the reason a national average exists at all, and also the reason it explains so little.
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 McLean County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of McLean County homeowners, 1,016 of 3,013 owner-occupied homes (33.7%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 33.7% (1,016)
- $800 to $1,499 32.0% (963)
- $1,500 to $1,999 12.3% (370)
- $2,000 to $2,999 5.4% (164)
- $3,000 or more 4.9% (149)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
351 homes here (11.6%) report no real estate tax at all, a sizeable minority for a county this size. Exemptions are set by state: how Kentucky handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In McLean County, mortgaged homeowners pay 14% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
McLean County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
McLean County's effective rate is higher than 28% of the 120 counties in Kentucky - ranking #87 of 120.
Where McLean County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.64% Among the most affordable more affordable than 67% 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 McLean County moved from $753 in the 2020 release to $954 in 2024, a change of about 27%. 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.
McLean County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | McLean County | Kentucky Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Below-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Light income burden | 1.5% | - | - |
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.
McLean County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Kentucky counties.
McLean County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $954 -3.0% | 0.64% |
| 2023 | $984 +2.5% | 0.68% |
| 2022 | $960 +22.9% | 0.69% |
| 2021 | $781 +3.7% | 0.66% |
| 2020 | $753 | 0.67% |
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.
McLean County: tax takes only 1.5% of income
Counties near McLean County's effective rate
On effective rate, McLean County sits nearest Union County (IN), Jefferson County (IN), Latah County (ID).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Otero County (NM), Dixon County (NE), Butler County (KS).
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
McLean County: only 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 70 of 3,850 returns from McLean County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,100 - 57% 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 Kentucky
McLean County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for McLean County?
- McLean County, Kentucky scores B+ (77/100) 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 (1.5%). 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 McLean County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in McLean County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.64% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in McLean County, Kentucky?
- The median annual property tax in McLean County is $954, an effective rate of 0.64% on a $148,500 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in McLean County?
- Property taxes in McLean County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.5% of the $65,596 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in McLean County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for McLean County is recorded at $954 in the 2024 5-year release against $753 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 3,013 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 McLean County's QUIET rate
McLean County's $954 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 1.5% of McLean County's $65,596 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for McLean 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: 0.64%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $954/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with McLean County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for McLean County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Macon County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with McLean County at $954/yr; rate 0.98% vs McLean County 0.64%.
White County, IN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $953/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.54% vs McLean County 0.64%.
Hawkins County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $956/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.54% vs McLean County 0.64%.
Haywood County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $952/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.62% vs McLean County 0.64%.
Kentucky county set
State ACS overview for every published Kentucky county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
McLean 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 McLean County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.