Colorado · County property tax · ACS 2024
Ouray County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Ouray County pays $2,050 a year, an effective rate of 0.28%, modestly above the U.S. average.
- $2,050
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 0.28%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- +3%
- vs U.S. average
- #58 of 64
- rank in CO
The verdict
Homeowners in Ouray County pay a median $2,050 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.28%, more affordable than 99% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,050
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.28%
- Effective rate on median home
- #42 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +3%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($739,800). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Colorado. Population: 5,087. Owner-occupied homes: 2,165.
The median annual property tax in Ouray County is $2,050, which is 21% lower than the Colorado state average and 3% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.28% on a median home value of $739,800. Property taxes represent 2.3% of the median household income in this county.
Ouray County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Ouray County's 0.28% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 99% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
High among Colorado counties by effective rate
Ouray County ranks #58 of 64 counties in Colorado by effective rate (9% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 3
The bill sits below the Colorado median
Homeowners in Ouray County pay a median annual property tax of $2,050, modestly above the national median and notably lower than the Colorado state median. On a $739,800 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.28% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Ouray County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.3% of the $91,020 median household income.
Decision signal 5
The latest release moved the bill up
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has climbed 10.6%, from $1,854 to $2,050. 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 Ouray 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 35% from $1,516 to $2,050. 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: 617 of 2,165 owner-occupied homes (28.5%) 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.
The most forgiving PAIRING in the data, top-quartile household income with a bottom-quartile effective rate, puts the median bill at 2.3% of median household income. Home values still drive the dollar figure, which is why the ratio above varies widely among counties that share this position.
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 Ouray County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Ouray County homeowners, 617 of 2,165 owner-occupied homes (28.5%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 13.3% (288)
- $800 to $1,499 20.2% (437)
- $1,500 to $1,999 14.7% (318)
- $2,000 to $2,999 21.8% (473)
- $3,000 or more 28.5% (617)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
32 homes here (1.5%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Colorado handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Ouray County, mortgaged homeowners pay 21% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Ouray County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Ouray County's effective rate is higher than 9% of the 64 counties in Colorado - ranking #58 of 64.
Where Ouray County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.28% Among the most affordable more affordable than 99% 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
Among the lowest-taxed counties in the country
At 0.28%, Ouray County sits in the lowest 1% of all U.S. counties by effective property-tax rate. A low rate does not by itself mean a low bill: the median here is $2,050, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Ouray County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Ouray County | Colorado Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 2.3% | - | - |
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.
Ouray County is QUIET · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Colorado counties.
Ouray County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,050 +10.6% | 0.28% |
| 2023 | $1,854 +16.9% | 0.28% |
| 2022 | $1,586 +2.2% | 0.27% |
| 2021 | $1,552 +2.4% | 0.29% |
| 2020 | $1,516 | 0.31% |
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.
Ouray County: tax-to-income at 2.3%
Counties near Ouray County's effective rate
On effective rate, Ouray County sits nearest Marion County (AL), Fayette County (AL), Hawaii County (HI).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Clark County (IN), Goliad County (TX), Clarendon County (SC).
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
Ouray County: only 11% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 320 of 2,970 returns from Ouray County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,309 - 38% of those reporters sat in the $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 Colorado
Ouray County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Ouray County?
- Ouray County, Colorado scores C (58/100) 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 A+ (0.28%). 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 Ouray County, Colorado?
- The median annual property tax in Ouray County is $2,050, an effective rate of 0.28% on a $739,800 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Ouray County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Ouray County is recorded at $2,050 in the 2024 5-year release against $1,516 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 2,165 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.
- How does Ouray County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Ouray County run modestly above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.28% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Ouray County?
- Property taxes in Ouray County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.3% of the $91,020 median household income.
What to do with Ouray County's QUIET rate
Inside Colorado, Ouray County's $2,050 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Colorado overview →
Ouray County ranks #58 of 64 Colorado counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Colorado overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Ouray 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: 0.28%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,050/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Ouray County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Ouray County (QUIET · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET MID
Adair County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Ouray County at $2,050/yr; rate 1.28% vs Ouray County 0.28%.
Bullitt County, KY
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Ouray County at $2,050/yr; rate 0.83% vs Ouray County 0.28%.
Clay County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Ouray County at $2,050/yr; rate 1.15% vs Ouray County 0.28%.
Coconino County, AZ
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,051/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.46% vs Ouray County 0.28%.
Colorado county set
State ACS overview for every published Colorado county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Ouray County stamps QUIET · 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 Ouray County (QUIET · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.