Tennessee · County property tax · ACS 2024
Smith County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Smith County pays $1,136 a year, an effective rate of 0.47%, well below the U.S. average.
- $1,136
- Median tax / yr · Below-median bill
- 0.47%
- Effective rate · Low rate
- -43%
- vs U.S. average
- #50 of 95
- rank in TN
The verdict
Homeowners in Smith County pay a median $1,136 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.47%, more affordable than 87% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,136
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.47%
- Effective rate on median home
- #418 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -43%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($243,800). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Tennessee. Population: 20,389. Owner-occupied homes: 6,100.
The median annual property tax in Smith County is $1,136, which is 21% lower than the Tennessee state average and 43% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.47% on a median home value of $243,800. Property taxes represent 1.7% of the median household income in this county.
Smith County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Smith County's 0.47% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 87%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Smith County pay a median annual property tax of $1,136, well below the national median and notably lower than the Tennessee state median. On a $243,800 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.47% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Smith County run a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.7% of the $66,293 median household income.
Decision signal 4
Near the middle of Tennessee counties by effective rate
Smith County ranks #50 of 95 counties in Tennessee by effective rate (47% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
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.
A falling rate took the edge off
Smith County's effective rate fell 12.3% across the 4-year span while its median home value rose 50.0%, leaving the median bill 31.6% higher at $1,136. That rate move is larger than the one in 50% 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
The bill here climbed steeply over 2020-2024, up 32% from $863 to $1,136. 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 fullest band here is the $800 to $1,499 range, holding 2,597 of 6,100 owner-occupied homes (42.6%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
Incomes run above the national midpoint and the rate is in the lowest quarter, leaving the median bill at 1.7% of median household income. Both figures move in the same direction here, so the ratio above is not pulled in two directions the way it is in most counties.
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, 2,597 of 6,100 owner-occupied homes (42.6%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 28.0% (1,707)
- $800 to $1,499 42.6% (2,597)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.8% (658)
- $2,000 to $2,999 9.0% (552)
- $3,000 or more 6.0% (368)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
218 homes here (3.6%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Tennessee handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Smith County, mortgaged homeowners pay 15% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
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 47% of the 95 counties in Tennessee - ranking #50 of 95.
Where Smith County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.47% Among the most affordable more affordable than 87% 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 Smith County moved from $863 in the 2020 release to $1,136 in 2024, a change of about 32%. 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.
Smith County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Smith County | Tennessee Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Below-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Light income burden | 1.7% | - | - |
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 is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Tennessee counties.
Smith County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,136 +8.5% | 0.47% |
| 2023 | $1,047 +5.5% | 0.47% |
| 2022 | $992 +6.4% | 0.49% |
| 2021 | $932 +8.0% | 0.54% |
| 2020 | $863 | 0.53% |
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 takes only 1.7% of income
Counties near Smith County's effective rate
On effective rate, Smith County sits nearest Marion County (SC), Kershaw County (SC), Stone County (MO).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are East Baton Rouge Parish (LA), Swift County (MN), Macon County (NC).
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 2% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 170 of 9,160 returns from Smith County reported real estate taxes, averaging $3,324 - 35% 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 Tennessee
Smith County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Smith County?
- Smith County, Tennessee scores B (73/100) 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 (0.47%). 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 Smith County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Smith County run well below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.47% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Smith County, Tennessee?
- The median annual property tax in Smith County is $1,136, an effective rate of 0.47% on a $243,800 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Smith County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Smith County jumped 31.6% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $863 to $1,136, 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 a bit below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.7% of the $66,293 median household income.
What to do with Smith County's QUIET rate
Smith County's $1,136 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 1.7% of Smith County's $66,293 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Smith 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: 0.47%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,136/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 (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Hoonah-Angoon Census Area, AK
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Smith County at $1,136/yr; rate 0.43% vs Smith County 0.47%.
Highland County, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,135/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.57% vs Smith County 0.47%.
Polk County, MO
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,137/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.55% vs Smith County 0.47%.
Pontotoc County, OK
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,135/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.65% vs Smith County 0.47%.
Wayne County (rate-lane contrast)
Near Smith County on ACS median bill yet stamps a different effective-rate lane (0.81% vs 0.47%).
Tennessee county set
State ACS overview for every published Tennessee county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Smith 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 Smith County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.