Kentucky · County property tax · ACS 2024
Russell County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Russell County pays $929 a year, an effective rate of 0.57%, far below the U.S. average.
- $929
- Median tax / yr · Low bill
- 0.57%
- Effective rate · Low rate
- -53%
- vs U.S. average
- #106 of 120
- rank in KY
The verdict
Homeowners in Russell County pay a median $929 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.57%, more affordable than 75% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $929
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.57%
- Effective rate on median home
- #782 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -53%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($163,200). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Kentucky. Population: 18,221. Owner-occupied homes: 5,354.
The median annual property tax in Russell County is $929, which is 40% lower than the Kentucky state average and 53% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.57% on a median home value of $163,200. Property taxes represent 2.1% of the median household income in this county.
Russell County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Russell County's 0.57% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 75%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Russell County pay a median annual property tax of $929, far below the national median and well below the Kentucky state median. On a $163,200 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.57% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among Kentucky counties by effective rate
Russell County ranks #106 of 120 counties in Kentucky by effective rate (12% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Russell County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.1% of the $44,738 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Russell 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.
The rate gave way faster than almost anywhere
Between the 2020 and 2024 releases the median home value in Russell County rose 64.8%, from $99,000 to $163,200. The effective rate fell 24.2% over the same span, a steeper move than in 92% of U.S. counties.
The median bill still rose 25.0%, to $929. Where the rate drops this far and the bill rises anyway, what changed is the value the rate is applied to.
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
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 25% from $743 to $929. 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: 2,124 of 5,354 owner-occupied homes (39.7%) report annual real-estate taxes under $800. This distribution describes reported owner-occupied homes, not an affordability judgment for any property.
Both sides of this comparison sit low: household income here is in the bottom quarter of US counties, and so is the effective tax rate. The median bill works out at 2.1% of median household income, which is the arithmetic of a modest levy on modest earnings rather than of any deliberate relief.
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 Russell County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Russell County homeowners, 2,124 of 5,354 owner-occupied homes (39.7%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 39.7% (2,124)
- $800 to $1,499 27.1% (1,453)
- $1,500 to $1,999 13.2% (707)
- $2,000 to $2,999 7.1% (382)
- $3,000 or more 4.6% (247)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
441 homes here (8.2%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Kentucky handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Russell County pay more than double the bill of those without one (+69%), the widest kind of value gap this dataset tracks.
Russell County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Russell County's effective rate is higher than 12% of the 120 counties in Kentucky - ranking #106 of 120.
Where Russell County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.57% Among the most affordable more affordable than 75% 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 Russell County moved from $743 in the 2020 release to $929 in 2024, a change of about 25%. 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.
Russell County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Russell County | Kentucky Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Below-median income burden | 2.1% | - | - |
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.
Russell County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Kentucky counties.
Russell County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $929 +6.5% | 0.57% |
| 2023 | $872 +13.5% | 0.59% |
| 2022 | $768 +2.7% | 0.63% |
| 2021 | $748 +0.7% | 0.66% |
| 2020 | $743 | 0.75% |
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.
Russell County: tax-to-income at 2.1%
Counties near Russell County's effective rate
On effective rate, Russell County sits nearest Steuben County (IN), Glynn County (GA), Dade County (GA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Dawes County (NE), Rankin County (MS), Decatur County (GA).
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
Russell County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 190 of 7,420 returns from Russell County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,316 - 42% 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
Russell County rate FAQs
- How does Russell County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Russell County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.57% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Russell County, Kentucky?
- The median annual property tax in Russell County is $929, an effective rate of 0.57% on a $163,200 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What is the tax affordability score for Russell County?
- Russell County, Kentucky scores C+ (62/100) 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 bill size at A- ($929/yr). 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.
- Are property taxes increasing in Russell County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Russell County jumped 25.0% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $743 to $929, 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 percentage of income goes to property taxes in Russell County?
- Property taxes in Russell County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.1% of the $44,738 median household income.
What to do with Russell County's QUIET rate
Russell County's $929 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 →
Russell County ranks #106 of 120 Kentucky counties by effective rate - on the lower-burden half of the state ACS set. Kentucky overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Russell 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: 0.57%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $929/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Russell County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Russell County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Grant County, NE
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Russell County at $929/yr; rate 0.68% vs Russell County 0.57%.
Houston County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Russell County at $929/yr; rate 0.54% vs Russell County 0.57%.
Crockett County, TN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $930/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.59% vs Russell County 0.57%.
Giles County, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $928/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.61% vs Russell County 0.57%.
Sunflower County (rate-lane contrast)
Near Russell County on ACS median bill yet stamps a different effective-rate lane (0.93% vs 0.57%).
Kentucky county set
State ACS overview for every published Kentucky county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Russell 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 Russell County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.