Kansas · County property tax · ACS 2024
Smith County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Smith County pays $1,722 a year, an effective rate of 1.83%, notably lower than the U.S. average.
- $1,722
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.83%
- Effective rate · Highest-decile rate
- -14%
- vs U.S. average
- #16 of 105
- rank in KS
The verdict
Homeowners in Smith County pay a median $1,722 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.83%, more affordable than 4% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,722
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.83%
- Effective rate on median home
- #3004 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -14%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($94,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Kansas. Population: 3,552. Owner-occupied homes: 1,338.
The median annual property tax in Smith County is $1,722, which is 38% lower than the Kansas state average and 14% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.83% on a median home value of $94,100. Property taxes represent 2.9% of the median household income in this county.
Smith County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national headwind
Smith County's 1.83% effective rate is among the highest of 3,135 tracked counties: only about 96% pay more.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Kansas median
Homeowners in Smith County pay a median annual property tax of $1,722, notably lower than the national median and well below the Kansas state median. On a $94,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.83% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Kansas counties by effective rate
Smith County ranks #16 of 105 counties in Kansas by effective rate (85% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Smith County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.9% of the $59,135 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Smith 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 held while the market moved
Smith County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 1.4% down, against a median home value that rose 25.0%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 23.3%, from $1,397 to $1,722.
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 $1,397 to $1,722, a gain of 23%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The heaviest band is also the fullest one here: 345 of 1,338 owner-occupied homes (25.8%) 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.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 2.9% of median household income. A rate ranking places this county by the rate alone; the ratio above is the figure that accounts for what is earned here.
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 Smith County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Smith County homeowners, 345 of 1,338 owner-occupied homes (25.8%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 19.1% (256)
- $800 to $1,499 24.0% (321)
- $1,500 to $1,999 14.7% (197)
- $2,000 to $2,999 15.7% (210)
- $3,000 or more 25.8% (345)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Smith County pay a substantially higher bill, 30% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Smith County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Smith County's effective rate is higher than 85% of the 105 counties in Kansas - ranking #16 of 105.
Where Smith County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.83% more affordable than 4% 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
A high rate, a smaller bill
Smith County taxes property at 1.83%, about 42% above the Kansas average, yet its median bill of $1,722 lands roughly 38% below it. The effective rate is the bill divided by the home's value, so a county can only sit on opposite sides of the state average this way when its homes are worth materially less than the state norm. The rate is the policy; the bill is what the housing market does with it.
Smith County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Smith County | Kansas Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Highest-decile rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.9% | - | - |
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.
Smith County's PEAK · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Smith County's published figures (PEAK · MID), a $94,100 median home carries a $1,722 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $172 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Kansas.
Smith County rate trail · PEAK
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,722 +14.6% | 1.83% |
| 2023 | $1,503 +4.2% | 1.65% |
| 2022 | $1,443 +7.4% | 1.72% |
| 2021 | $1,344 -3.8% | 1.96% |
| 2020 | $1,397 | 1.86% |
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.
Smith County: tax-to-income at 2.9%
Counties near Smith County's effective rate
On effective rate, Smith County sits nearest Clinton County (IL), Ingham County (MI), Crosby County (TX).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Perry County (IL), Rio Blanco County (CO), Ransom County (ND).
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
Smith County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 50 of 1,830 returns from Smith County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,740 - 60% of those reporters sat in the $75-100k 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 Kansas
Smith County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Smith County?
- Smith County, Kansas scores F (34/100) 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 housing pressure at A+ (1.59×). 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 Smith County, Kansas?
- The median annual property tax in Smith County is $1,722, an effective rate of 1.83% on a $94,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Smith County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Smith County run notably lower than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.83% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Smith County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Smith County jumped 23.3% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $1,397 to $1,722, 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 Smith County?
- Property taxes in Smith County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.9% of the $59,135 median household income.
What to do with Smith County's PEAK rate
Inside Kansas, Smith County's $1,722 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Kansas overview →
Smith County ranks #16 of 105 Kansas counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Kansas overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Smith County's PEAK 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: 1.83%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,722/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Smith County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Smith County (PEAK · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PEAK MID
Candler County, GA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,721/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.08% vs Smith County 1.83%.
Blair County, PA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,724/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.07% vs Smith County 1.83%.
Kiowa County, KS
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,720/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.11% vs Smith County 1.83%.
McLean County, ND
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,724/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.76% vs Smith County 1.83%.
Kansas county set
State ACS overview for every published Kansas county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Smith County stamps PEAK · MID - review notice deadlines before quoting the ACS median.
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 Smith County (PEAK · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.