Arkansas · County property tax · ACS 2024
Van Buren County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Van Buren County pays $581 a year, an effective rate of 0.43%, far below the U.S. average.
- $581
- Median tax / yr · Very low bill
- 0.43%
- Effective rate · Very low rate
- -71%
- vs U.S. average
- #68 of 75
- rank in AR
The verdict
Homeowners in Van Buren County pay a median $581 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.43%, more affordable than 91% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $581
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 0.43%
- Effective rate on median home
- #292 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- -71%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($135,700). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Arkansas. Population: 15,998. Owner-occupied homes: 5,788.
The median annual property tax in Van Buren County is $581, which is 44% lower than the Arkansas state average and 71% below the national average. The effective tax rate is 0.43% on a median home value of $135,700. Property taxes represent 1.2% of the median household income in this county.
Van Buren County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate is a national tailwind
Van Buren County's 0.43% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 91% pay a higher rate.
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well below the national median
Homeowners in Van Buren County pay a median annual property tax of $581, far below the national median and well below the Arkansas state median. On a $135,700 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 0.43% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
High among Arkansas counties by effective rate
Van Buren County ranks #68 of 75 counties in Arkansas by effective rate (9% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income carries a light tax share
Property taxes in Van Buren County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.2% of the $50,354 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Van Buren 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.
Most of the market's rise reached the bill
The effective rate here moved 8.9% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 64% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 28.6%, the median bill rose 17.1% to $581: the rate did comparatively little to offset the market.
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 $496 to $581, a gain of 17%. This is a comparison of published ACS medians, not an explanation of a particular property's assessment or tax bill.
The largest reported group here falls at the bottom of the national range: 3,123 of 5,788 owner-occupied homes (54.0%) 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 1.2% 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 Van Buren County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Van Buren County homeowners, 3,123 of 5,788 owner-occupied homes (54.0%), pays less than $800 a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 54.0% (3,123)
- $800 to $1,499 20.3% (1,173)
- $1,500 to $1,999 6.2% (358)
- $2,000 to $2,999 4.4% (256)
- $3,000 or more 3.5% (203)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
675 homes here (11.7%) report no real estate tax at all, a sizeable minority for a county this size. Exemptions are set by state: how Arkansas handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Van Buren County, mortgaged homeowners pay 18% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Van Buren County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Van Buren County's effective rate is higher than 9% of the 75 counties in Arkansas - ranking #68 of 75.
Where Van Buren County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
0.43% Among the most affordable more affordable than 91% 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 0.43%, Van Buren County sits in the lowest 9% 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 $581, and what a homeowner actually pays depends as much on local home values as on the rate.
Van Buren County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Van Buren County | Arkansas Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax Very low bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Very low rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Very light income burden | 1.2% | - | - |
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.
Van Buren County is QUIET · LIGHT on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · Arkansas counties.
Van Buren County rate trail · QUIET
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $581 +3.4% | 0.43% |
| 2023 | $562 -9.5% | 0.46% |
| 2022 | $621 +17.4% | 0.53% |
| 2021 | $529 +6.7% | 0.50% |
| 2020 | $496 | 0.47% |
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.
Van Buren County: tax takes only 1.2% of income
Counties near Van Buren County's effective rate
On effective rate, Van Buren County sits nearest Hoonah-Angoon Census Area (AK), Sumter County (AL), Alamosa County (CO).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Penobscot County (ME), Cayuga County (NY), Washburn County (WI).
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
Van Buren County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 200 of 6,620 returns from Van Buren County reported real estate taxes, averaging $2,190 - 40% 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 Arkansas
Van Buren County rate FAQs
- How does Van Buren County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Van Buren County run far below the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 0.43% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the tax affordability score for Van Buren County?
- Van Buren County, Arkansas scores A (88/100) 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 income room at A+ (1.2%). 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 Van Buren County, Arkansas?
- The median annual property tax in Van Buren County is $581, an effective rate of 0.43% on a $135,700 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- What percentage of income goes to property taxes in Van Buren County?
- Property taxes in Van Buren County run well below the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 1.2% of the $50,354 median household income.
- Are property taxes increasing in Van Buren County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Van Buren County climbed 17.1% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $496 to $581, 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 Van Buren County's QUIET rate
Van Buren County's $581 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 1.2% of Van Buren County's $50,354 median household income goes to the property-tax bill.
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Van Buren 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: 0.43%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $581/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Van Buren County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Van Buren County (QUIET · LIGHT), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
QUIET LIGHT
Costilla County, CO
ABS(median_tax) peer · $582/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.32% vs Van Buren County 0.43%.
Cochran County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $583/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.10% vs Van Buren County 0.43%.
Union County, SC
ABS(median_tax) peer · $579/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.56% vs Van Buren County 0.43%.
Lunenburg County, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $578/yr (near-tied bill ABS $3); rate 0.39% vs Van Buren County 0.43%.
Arkansas county set
State ACS overview for every published Arkansas county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Van Buren 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 Van Buren County (QUIET · LIGHT) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.