Texas · County property tax · ACS 2024
Stephens County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Stephens County pays $1,633 a year, an effective rate of 1.48%, notably lower than the U.S. average.
- $1,633
- Median tax / yr · Above-median bill
- 1.48%
- Effective rate · High rate
- -18%
- vs U.S. average
- #50 of 250
- rank in TX
The verdict
Homeowners in Stephens County pay a median $1,633 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.48%, more affordable than 12% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $1,633
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.48%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2774 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -18%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($110,200). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Texas. Population: 9,351. Owner-occupied homes: 2,868.
The median annual property tax in Stephens County is $1,633, which is 61% lower than the Texas state average and 18% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.48% on a median home value of $110,200. Property taxes represent 2.8% of the median household income in this county.
Stephens County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Stephens County's 1.48% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 12%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits below the Texas median
Homeowners in Stephens County pay a median annual property tax of $1,633, notably lower than the national median and far below the Texas state median. On a $110,200 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.48% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Texas counties by effective rate
Stephens County ranks #50 of 250 counties in Texas by effective rate (80% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
The latest release moved the bill down
Since 2023, the published ACS median estimate has declined 8.2%, from $1,779 to $1,633. This compares two release estimates; it does not identify a local policy, assessment, exemption, or household-bill cause.
Decision signal 5
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Stephens County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $58,008 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Stephens 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 31% from $1,249 to $1,633. 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 648 of 2,868 owner-occupied homes (22.6%). The band shows where the largest share of reported owner-occupied households falls; it is not an individual-bill estimate.
A top-quartile rate meets below-median earnings here, and the median bill reaches 2.8% 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 Stephens County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Stephens County homeowners, 648 of 2,868 owner-occupied homes (22.6%), pays $800 to $1,499 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 21.5% (616)
- $800 to $1,499 22.6% (648)
- $1,500 to $1,999 11.5% (330)
- $2,000 to $2,999 19.5% (558)
- $3,000 or more 19.2% (552)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
164 homes here (5.7%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Texas handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
Mortgaged homeowners in Stephens County pay a substantially higher bill, 34% more, pointing to a wide home-value gap between the two groups.
Stephens County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Stephens County's effective rate is higher than 80% of the 250 counties in Texas - ranking #50 of 250.
Where Stephens County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.48% more affordable than 12% 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 Stephens County moved from $1,249 in the 2020 release to $1,633 in 2024, a change of about 31%. 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.
Stephens County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Stephens County | Texas Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Above-median bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Above-median income burden | 2.8% | - | - |
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.
Stephens County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Stephens County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $110,200 median home carries a $1,633 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $163 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Texas.
Stephens County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $1,633 -8.2% | 1.48% |
| 2023 | $1,779 +8.2% | 1.68% |
| 2022 | $1,644 +7.5% | 1.68% |
| 2021 | $1,529 +22.4% | 1.85% |
| 2020 | $1,249 | 1.54% |
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.
Stephens County: tax-to-income at 2.8%
Counties near Stephens County's effective rate
On effective rate, Stephens County sits nearest Scotts Bluff County (NE), Wilson County (KS), Madison County (IA).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Appanoose County (IA), Sacramento County (CA), Chambers County (AL).
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
Stephens County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 100 of 3,690 returns from Stephens County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,720 - 40% 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 Texas
Stephens County rate FAQs
- How does Stephens County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Stephens County run notably lower than the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.48% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Stephens County?
- Stephens County, Texas scores F (37/100) 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+ (1.90×). 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 Stephens County, Texas?
- The median annual property tax in Stephens County is $1,633, an effective rate of 1.48% on a $110,200 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Stephens County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Stephens County is recorded at $1,633 in the 2024 5-year release against $1,249 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 2,868 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.
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Stephens County?
- Property taxes in Stephens County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 2.8% of the $58,008 median household income.
What to do with Stephens County's STEEP rate
Inside Texas, Stephens County's $1,633 median bill runs low versus the state median - check peer counties before assuming the lowest bill is the best move. Texas overview →
Stephens County ranks #50 of 250 Texas counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Texas overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Stephens County's STEEP 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: 1.48%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $1,633/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Stephens County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Stephens County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Franklin County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Stephens County at $1,633/yr; rate 1.32% vs Stephens County 1.48%.
Audubon County, IA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,634/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 1.34% vs Stephens County 1.48%.
Skagway Municipality, AK
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,634/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.38% vs Stephens County 1.48%.
Stevens County, MN
ABS(median_tax) peer · $1,634/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.81% vs Stephens County 1.48%.
Texas county set
State ACS overview for every published Texas county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Stephens County stamps STEEP · 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 Stephens County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.