North Dakota · County property tax · ACS 2024
Ward County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Ward County pays $2,859 a year, an effective rate of 1.07%, well above the U.S. average.
- $2,859
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.07%
- Effective rate · Above-median rate
- +43%
- vs U.S. average
- #13 of 53
- rank in ND
The verdict
Homeowners in Ward County pay a median $2,859 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.07%, more affordable than 30% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,859
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.07%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2185 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 ($267,100). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for North Dakota. Population: 68,973. Owner-occupied homes: 17,365.
The median annual property tax in Ward County is $2,859, which is 16% higher than the North Dakota state average and 43% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.07% on a median home value of $267,100. Property taxes represent 3.7% of the median household income in this county.
Ward County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Ward County's 1.07% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 30%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Ward County pay a median annual property tax of $2,859, well above the national median and notably higher than the North Dakota state median. On a $267,100 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.07% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among North Dakota counties by effective rate
Ward County ranks #13 of 53 counties in North Dakota by effective rate (75% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Ward County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.7% of the $78,238 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Ward 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
Ward County sits in the quarter of U.S. counties whose effective rate moved least over this span: 0.2% down, against a median home value that rose 22.7%.
A near-steady rate on a moving market passes that movement straight through: the median bill rose 22.4%, from $2,335 to $2,859.
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 $2,335 to $2,859, a gain of 22%. 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: 7,806 of 17,365 owner-occupied homes (45.0%) 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.
Earnings are in the national top quarter and the rate is above the midpoint, so the median bill represents 3.7% of median household income. A headline bill conflates the dollar figure with the proportion; the two come apart here, and the ratio above is the second of them.
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 Ward County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Ward County homeowners, 7,806 of 17,365 owner-occupied homes (45.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 10.5% (1,819)
- $800 to $1,499 10.1% (1,757)
- $1,500 to $1,999 9.7% (1,677)
- $2,000 to $2,999 20.5% (3,557)
- $3,000 or more 45.0% (7,806)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
749 homes here (4.3%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how North Dakota handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Ward County, mortgaged homeowners pay 11% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Ward County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Ward County's effective rate is higher than 75% of the 53 counties in North Dakota - ranking #13 of 53.
Where Ward County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.07% more affordable than 30% 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
Same rate as North Dakota, a larger bill
The effective rate here sits within 8% of the North Dakota median, yet the median bill runs 16% above it. When the rate matches and the cheque does not, the difference is in what is being taxed, not how heavily: the same percentage applied to costlier housing produces $2,859 here. That is why comparing counties on rate alone can invert the answer a homeowner actually cares about.
Ward County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Ward County | North Dakota Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate Above-median rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.7% | - | - |
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.
Ward County is PAR · MID on ACS medians, still verify your parcel card before quoting the county figure. Estimate appeal savings · North Dakota counties.
Ward County rate trail · PAR
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,859 +2.7% | 1.07% |
| 2023 | $2,785 +4.5% | 1.07% |
| 2022 | $2,666 +8.1% | 1.07% |
| 2021 | $2,467 +5.7% | 1.10% |
| 2020 | $2,335 | 1.07% |
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.
Ward County: tax-to-income at 3.7%
Counties near Ward County's effective rate
On effective rate, Ward County sits nearest Rock County (NE), Clay County (MO), Chisago County (MN).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Keith County (NE), Uintah County (UT), Harris County (TX).
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
Ward County: only 3% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 1,000 of 32,440 returns from Ward County reported real estate taxes, averaging $6,178 - 37% 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 North Dakota
Ward County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Ward County?
- Ward County, North Dakota scores F (29/100) 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 mortgage premium at C- (+$298). 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 Ward County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Ward County run well above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.07% versus 0.92% nationally.
- What is the average property tax in Ward County, North Dakota?
- The median annual property tax in Ward County is $2,859, an effective rate of 1.07% on a $267,100 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- Are property taxes increasing in Ward County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Ward County jumped 22.4% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,335 to $2,859, 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 Ward County?
- Property taxes in Ward County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.7% of the $78,238 median household income.
What to do with Ward County's PAR rate
Ward County's $2,859 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Ward County ranks #13 of 53 North Dakota counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. North Dakota overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Ward County's PAR 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: 1.07%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,859/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Ward County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Ward County (PAR · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
PAR MID
Perry County, PA
ABS(median_tax) peer · tied with Ward County at $2,859/yr; rate 1.21% vs Ward County 1.07%.
Humboldt County, CA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,858/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.64% vs Ward County 1.07%.
Lee County, FL
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,858/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.79% vs Ward County 1.07%.
Crawford County, WI
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,861/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.56% vs Ward County 1.07%.
North Dakota county set
State ACS overview for every published North Dakota county rate and median bill.
Assessment cycle basics
Ward County stamps PAR · MID - 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 Ward County (PAR · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.