New Mexico · County property tax · ACS 2024
Rio Arriba County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Rio Arriba County pays $1,021 a year, an effective rate of 0.42%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,021
- Median tax / yr · Low bill
- 0.42%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -49%
- vs U.S. average
- #31 of 33
- rank in NM
The verdict
Homeowners in Rio Arriba County pay a median $1,021 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.42%, more affordable than 92% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,021
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.42%
- Effective rate on median home
- #265 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -49%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($243,700). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for New Mexico. Population: 40,070. Owner-occupied homes: 12,517.
The median annual property tax in Rio Arriba County is $1,021, which is 41% lower than the New Mexico state average and 49% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.42% on a median home value of $243,700. Property taxes represent 1.8% of the median household income in this county.
Rio Arriba County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Rio Arriba County's 0.42% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 92% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Rio Arriba County pay a median annual property tax of $1,021, well below the national median and well below the New Mexico state median. On a $243,700 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.42% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among New Mexico counties by effective rate
Rio Arriba County ranks #31 of 33 counties in New Mexico by effective rate (6% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Rio Arriba County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.8% of the $57,155 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Rio Arriba 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.
A falling rate took the edge off
Rio Arriba County's effective rate fell 14.7% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 40.9%, leaving the median bill 20.3% higher at $1,021. That rate move is larger than the one in 62% of counties, so a good deal of the market's rise never reached the bill.
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 $849 to $1,021, a gain of 20%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 4,433 of 12,517 owner-occupied homes (35.4%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Household income sits in the second quarter nationally and the effective rate in the lowest, so the median bill takes 1.8% 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.
Paying off the mortgage changes the picture here
27.2% of Rio Arriba County homes owned free and clear (2,270 of 8,348) report no property tax at all, against 12.8% 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.
What Rio Arriba County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Rio Arriba County homeowners, 4,433 of 12,517 owner-occupied homes (35.4%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 26.7% (3,345)
- $800 to $1,499 35.4% (4,433)
- $1,500 to $1,999 5.9% (738)
- $2,000 to $2,999 6.4% (807)
- $3,000 or more 3.1% (389)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
2,805 homes here (22.4%) report no real estate tax at all, a sizeable minority for a county this size. Exemptions are set by state: how New Mexico handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Rio Arriba County pay a substantially higher bill, 38% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Rio Arriba County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Rio Arriba County's effective rate is higher than 6% of the 33 counties in New Mexico - ranking #31 of 33.
Where Rio Arriba County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.42% Among the most affordable more affordable than 92% 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 0.42%, Rio Arriba County sits in the lowest 8% 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 $1,021, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Rio Arriba County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Rio Arriba County | New Mexico Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 1.8% | - | - |
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.
Rio Arriba County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · New Mexico counties.
Rio Arriba County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,021 +2.1% | 0.42% |
| 2023 | $1,000 +5.7% | 0.43% |
| 2022 | $946 +11.7% | 0.44% |
| 2021 | $847 -0.2% | 0.47% |
| 2020 | $849 | 0.49% |
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.
Rio Arriba County: tax takes only 1.8% of income
Counties near Rio Arriba County's effective rate
On effective rate, Rio Arriba County sits nearest Carter County (MO), Smith County (MS), Red River Parish (LA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Beaufort County (NC), Cole County (MO), McMinn County (TN).
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
Rio Arriba County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 480 of 17,620 returns from Rio Arriba County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,640 - 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 New Mexico
Rio Arriba County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Rio Arriba County?
- Rio Arriba County, New Mexico scores B (70/100) 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+ (0.42%). 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 Rio Arriba County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Rio Arriba County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.42% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Rio Arriba County, New Mexico?
- The median annual property tax in Rio Arriba County is $1,021, an effective rate of 0.42% on a $243,700 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Rio Arriba County?
- Property taxes in Rio Arriba County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.8% of the $57,155 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Rio Arriba County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Rio Arriba County jumped 20.3% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $849 to $1,021, 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 Rio Arriba County's QUIET rate
Rio Arriba County's $1,021 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 1.8% of Rio Arriba County's $57,155 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Rio Arriba 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: 0.42%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,021/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Rio Arriba County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Rio Arriba County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Fannin County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Rio Arriba County at $1,021/yr; rate 0.33% vs Rio Arriba County 0.42%.
Laurens County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Rio Arriba County at $1,021/yr; rate 0.66% vs Rio Arriba County 0.42%.
Lawrence County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Rio Arriba County at $1,021/yr; rate 0.53% vs Rio Arriba County 0.42%.
Muskogee County, OK
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Rio Arriba County at $1,021/yr; rate 0.67% vs Rio Arriba County 0.42%.
Beaver County (rate-lane contrast)
Near Rio Arriba County on ACS median bill yet stamps a different effective-rate lane (0.78% vs 0.42%).
New Mexico county set
State ACS overview for every published New Mexico county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Rio Arriba 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 Rio Arriba County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.