South Dakota · County property tax · ACS 2024
Mellette County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Mellette County pays $825 a year, an effective rate of 0.98%, far below the U.S. average.
- $825
- Median tax / yr · Low bill
- 0.98%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- -59%
- vs U.S. average
- #41 of 66
- rank in SD
The verdict
Homeowners in Mellette County pay a median $825 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.98%, more affordable than 37% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $825
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.98%
- Effective rate on median home
- #1972 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -59%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($84,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Tax affordability score · Mellette County, SD
70/100
4 ACS dimensions · release 2024
Comparative score against U.S. county percentiles on Census ACS medians (effective rate, bill, income share, mortgage gap, home-value/income). Higher means more affordable on those published medians, not a recommendation to buy, sell, appeal, or move, and not your personal tax bill. Missing inputs drop out and redistribute weight. How it is calculated.
Median home value relative to Mellette County's median income
Mellette County's median annual property-tax bill vs U.S. counties
Median tax as a share of Mellette County's median household income
Mellette County's effective rate vs U.S. county percentiles (ACS 2024)
Mortgage split not published for this county
Read the chart values
- Housing pressure: 100/100 (A+) · 1.56×
- Bill size: 85/100 (A-) · $825/yr
- Income room: 83/100 (A-) · 1.5%
- Rate relief: 38/100 (F) · 0.98%
Track this county alongside up to five others. Saved figures refresh when the annual source data changes.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for South Dakota. Population: 1,943. Owner-occupied homes: 387.
The median annual property tax in Mellette County is $825, which is 70% lower than the South Dakota state average and 59% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.98% on a median home value of $84,100. Property taxes represent 1.5% of the median household income in this county.
What This Data Tells Us About Mellette County
Primary signal
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Mellette County pay a median annual property tax of $825, far below the national median and far below the South Dakota state median. On a $84,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.98% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 2
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Mellette County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.5% of the $54,076 median household income.
Decision signal 3
The latest release moved the bill down
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has declined 14.3%, from $963 to $825. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
Decision signal 4
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Mellette County's 0.98% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 37%).
Decision signal 5
Near the middle of South Dakota counties by effective rate
Mellette County ranks #41 of 66 counties in South Dakota by effective rate (38% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
This page is for informational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Figures describe the median homeowner household in Mellette County as reported to the Census Bureau, your own bill can differ based on your parcel's assessed value, exemptions, special districts, and municipal overlays. Always consult your county assessor, tax collector, or a qualified professional before making decisions that depend on these numbers.
How to read this county's bill
Very little moved here between 2020 and 2024: the typical bill went from $817 to $825, a change of 1%. The comparison describes county-level medians only; individual assessments and bills can differ.
The largest single group of owner-occupied homes in this county reports no real estate tax at all: 139 of 387 homes (35.9%). When that group leads, the county median does not describe the most common reported amount.
This county earns in the bottom quarter of the country and taxes above the median rate, so the median bill absorbs 1.5% of median household income. The rate alone understates that; it is the pairing that matters.
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 Mellette County Homeowners Actually Pay
Most Mellette County homeowners are not billed at all: 139 of 387 owner-occupied homes (35.9%) report no real estate tax. A median bill describes only the minority who pay one.
- Less than $800 30.2% (117)
- $800 to $1,499 15.5% (60)
- $1,500 to $1,999 11.1% (43)
- $2,000 to $2,999 2.8% (11)
- $3,000 or more 4.4% (17)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
139 homes here (35.9%) report no real estate tax at all, an unusually large share, high enough that the median bill above describes a minority of Mellette County homeowners. Exemptions are set by state: how South Dakota handles assessments and appeals.
How Mellette County compares
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Mellette County's effective rate is higher than 38% of the 66 counties in South Dakota - ranking #41 of 66 for property tax burden.
Where Mellette County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.98% more affordable than 37% 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
Same rate as South Dakota, a smaller bill
The effective rate here sits within 8% of the South Dakota median, yet the median bill runs 70% below it. When the rate matches and the cheque does not, the difference is in what is being taxed, not how heavily: the same percentage applied to cheaper housing produces $825 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Mellette County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Mellette County | South Dakota Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-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.
Mellette County stamps UNDER · LIGHT - still check the parcel card
On Mellette County's published figures (UNDER · LIGHT), a $84,100 median home carries a $825 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $83 a year at the same rate. Whether an appeal is worth filing depends on your own parcel. Use our free Appeal Savings Estimator to run your own numbers, then read our step-by-step appeal guide for the procedure in South Dakota.
Property Tax History · UNDER · LIGHT
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $825 -14.3% | 0.98% |
| 2023 | $963 -2.1% | 1.53% |
| 2022 | $984 +9.3% | 1.62% |
| 2021 | $900 +10.2% | 1.74% |
| 2020 | $817 | N/A |
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.
Tax Burden
Tax Affordability Score
An effective rate modestly above the national average of 0.92% puts Mellette County in the "Affordable" band for property tax burden.
How this score is calculated: a 1-10 scale derived mechanically from the ratio of this county's effective rate to the national average effective rate (0.92%) - a ratio at or below 0.5× scores 10, a ratio at or above 2.0× scores 1, with a linear scale between. It is a factual comparison of Census figures only, not a recommendation, quality rating, or endorsement of Mellette County or any other county.
Counties with similar tax profiles
On effective rate, Mellette County sits nearest Somerset County (PA), Vinton County (OH), Miami County (OH).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Billings County (ND), Hamilton County (IL), Morgan County (WV).
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
What tax filers report in Mellette County
The IRS county file records no returns reporting real estate taxes on Schedule A for Mellette County. That is a limit of the published data rather than a finding about the county: county-level figures are withheld where the counts are too small to disclose safely, which is common in places with few filers. Roughly one county in sixteen is in this position, so the filer view available elsewhere on this site is simply not available here. Source: IRS Statistics of Income county data.
Other Counties in South Dakota
Frequently Asked Questions
How does Mellette County property tax compare to the national average? ▼
What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Mellette County? ▼
What is the tax affordability score for Mellette County? ▼
What is the average property tax in Mellette County, South Dakota? ▼
Are property taxes increasing in Mellette County? ▼
What to do with Mellette County's numbers
- Mellette County's $825 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 Mellette County's $54,076 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
- Mellette County ranks #41 of 66 South Dakota counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. South Dakota overview →
- If Mellette County's assessment looks high versus the $84,100 typical home, check South Dakota's filing window and evidence rules before the notice deadline passes. How to appeal →
Effective-rate definition
Effective rate is the county median tax divided by the county median home value ($84,100); your parcel's assessed value, exemptions, and local levies determine your actual bill. U.S. Census Bureau ACS · 2024.
Nationwide peers by effective rate & median bill
Two PlainPropertyTax-derived comparison paths for Mellette County, both outside South Dakota so the link neighborhoods are not the same-state geography lattice. Axes stay disjoint: median-bill peers exclude the effective-rate peer set.
Similar effective rate
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS effective rate. This county: 0.98%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $825/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Mellette County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Mellette County (UNDER · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
UNDER LIGHT
DeKalb County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $824/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.35% vs Mellette County 0.98%.
Hancock County, WV
ABS(median_tax) peer · $826/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.63% vs Mellette County 0.98%.
Lewis County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $824/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.48% vs Mellette County 0.98%.
Panola County, MS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $826/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.65% vs Mellette County 0.98%.
South Dakota county set
State ACS overview for every published South Dakota county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Mellette County stamps UNDER · 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.
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Editorial standards and provenance
PlainPropertyTax is rendered directly from the U.S. Census Bureau's American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, no number is typed in by an editor. This page draws directly on the Census ACS county-level record for Mellette County. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of 2026-08-09.