Iowa · County property tax · ACS 2024
Woodbury County Property Taxes
The median homeowner in Woodbury County pays $2,656 a year, an effective rate of 1.45%, well above the U.S. average.
- $2,656
- Median tax / yr · High bill
- 1.45%
- Effective rate · High rate
- +33%
- vs U.S. average
- #21 of 99
- rank in IA
The verdict
Homeowners in Woodbury County pay a median $2,656 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 1.45%, more affordable than 13% of U.S. counties (Census ACS 2024).
- $2,656
- Median annual tax bill, 2024
- 1.45%
- Effective rate on median home
- #2737 of 3135
- U.S. counties by tax burden
- +33%
- vs the national average bill
Effective rate is the median property tax bill divided by the median home value ($183,200). U.S. Census Bureau, ACS 5-Year Estimates · 2024.
Census Bureau ACS property tax data for Iowa. Population: 106,247. Owner-occupied homes: 27,754.
The median annual property tax in Woodbury County is $2,656, which is 8% lower than the Iowa state average and 33% above the national average. The effective tax rate is 1.45% on a median home value of $183,200. Property taxes represent 3.6% of the median household income in this county.
Woodbury County's rate standing among U.S. counties
Primary signal
The effective rate sits near the national middle
Woodbury County's 1.45% effective rate sits near the middle of 3,135 tracked counties (more affordable than 13%).
Decision signal 2
The bill sits well above the national median
Homeowners in Woodbury County pay a median annual property tax of $2,656, well above the national median and modestly below the Iowa state median. On a $183,200 median home, that works out to an effective rate of 1.45% once the local assessment base and millage are combined.
Decision signal 3
Low among Iowa counties by effective rate
Woodbury County ranks #21 of 99 counties in Iowa by effective rate (79% of in-state counties pay a lower rate).
Decision signal 4
Income and the tax bill sit in the middle band
Property taxes in Woodbury County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.6% of the $73,658 median household income.
Informational notice
Figures describe the median homeowner household in Woodbury 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 11.3% down between 2020 and 2024, a smaller shift than in 54% of U.S. counties. With the median home value rose 39.5%, the median bill rose 23.7% to $2,656: 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 $2,147 to $2,656, a gain of 24%. 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: 11,112 of 27,754 owner-occupied homes (40.0%) 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.
The rate is in the national top quarter while earnings are only moderately above the midpoint, so the median bill claims 3.6% of median household income. A high rate is affordable only relative to something, and this is what it is relative to 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 Woodbury County Homeowners Actually Pay
The single largest group of Woodbury County homeowners, 11,112 of 27,754 owner-occupied homes (40.0%), pays $3,000 or more a year. The median is one point in this spread, not a typical bill.
- Less than $800 7.6% (2,096)
- $800 to $1,499 13.6% (3,773)
- $1,500 to $1,999 10.9% (3,015)
- $2,000 to $2,999 25.8% (7,162)
- $3,000 or more 40.0% (11,112)
Census ACS 2024, table B25102. Bands and the no-tax share sum to 100%.
596 homes here (2.1%) report no real estate tax at all. Exemptions are set by state: how Iowa handles assessments and appeals.
With vs Without Mortgage
In Woodbury County, mortgaged homeowners pay 16% more than those without a mortgage, a gap that typically tracks higher home values rather than a different tax rate.
Woodbury County's effective rate vs peers
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value), ACS 2024.
Woodbury County's effective rate is higher than 79% of the 99 counties in Iowa - ranking #21 of 99.
Where Woodbury County sits among every U.S. county
Effective property tax rate (median tax ÷ median home value)
1.45% more affordable than 13% 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
Close to the Iowa median on both measures
Rate and bill both land within 10% of the Iowa medians here, which makes Woodbury County a reasonable stand-in for the state when comparing against counties elsewhere. It also means the county-level figure adds little beyond the state figure for this particular comparison; the $2,656 median bill and the state median tell substantially the same story.
Woodbury County vs Benchmarks
| Metric | Woodbury County | Iowa Avg | U.S. Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median Annual Tax High bill | |||
| Effective Tax Rate High rate | |||
| Median Home Value | |||
| Tax as % of income Heavy income burden | 3.6% | - | - |
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.
Woodbury County's STEEP · MID lane - is an appeal worth running?
On Woodbury County's published figures (STEEP · MID), a $183,200 median home carries a $2,656 median bill, so every 10% off an assessed value is worth about $266 a year at the same rate. Appeal Savings Estimator · appeal guide for Iowa.
Woodbury County rate trail · STEEP
| Year | Median Tax (vs prior release) | Effective Rate |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $2,656 +4.5% | 1.45% |
| 2023 | $2,542 +2.9% | 1.48% |
| 2022 | $2,471 +9.0% | 1.56% |
| 2021 | $2,266 +5.5% | 1.62% |
| 2020 | $2,147 | 1.64% |
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.
Woodbury County: tax-to-income at 3.6%
Counties near Woodbury County's effective rate
On effective rate, Woodbury County sits nearest Fayette County (IL), Edwards County (IL), Edgar County (IL).
On published median-tax change, the nearest matches are Sebastian County (AR), Muskingum County (OH), Monroe 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
Woodbury County: only 4% of returns show Schedule A real-estate tax
Tax year 2022: 1,730 of 48,370 returns from Woodbury County reported real estate taxes, averaging $4,875 - 33% 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 Iowa
Woodbury County rate FAQs
- What is the tax affordability score for Woodbury County?
- Woodbury County, Iowa scores F (27/100) 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 B (2.49×). 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 Woodbury County, Iowa?
- The median annual property tax in Woodbury County is $2,656, an effective rate of 1.45% on a $183,200 median home (Census ACS, 2024).
- How does Woodbury County property tax compare to the national average?
- Property taxes in Woodbury County run well above the national median of $1,993, an effective rate of 1.45% versus 0.92% nationally.
- Are property taxes increasing in Woodbury County?
- The ACS median property-tax bill for Woodbury County jumped 23.7% between the 2020 and 2024 5-year releases, from $2,147 to $2,656, 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 Woodbury County?
- Property taxes in Woodbury County run within the commonly cited 2%-4% national benchmark, at about 3.6% of the $73,658 median household income.
What to do with Woodbury County's STEEP rate
Woodbury County's $2,656 median bill sits well above the U.S. median - size a personal estimate before treating the county headline as your budget. Estimate your bill →
Woodbury County ranks #21 of 99 Iowa counties by effective rate - on the higher-burden half of the state ACS set. Iowa overview →
Nationwide peers by effective rate (then bill)
Rate-first peers for Woodbury 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: 1.45%.
Similar median bill
Nearest out-of-state counties by ACS median annual tax. This county: $2,656/yr. Rate peers are excluded so the two link sets stay distinct.
Read with Woodbury County
Nearest ABS(median_tax) ACS peers for Woodbury County (STEEP · MID), replacing the old fixed Keep exploring strip.
STEEP MID
Ada County, ID
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,655/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.52% vs Woodbury County 1.45%.
Clarke County, VA
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,657/yr (near-tied bill ABS $1); rate 0.48% vs Woodbury County 1.45%.
Coryell County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,654/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 1.36% vs Woodbury County 1.45%.
Llano County, TX
ABS(median_tax) peer · $2,658/yr (near-tied bill ABS $2); rate 0.75% vs Woodbury County 1.45%.
Iowa county set
State ACS overview for every published Iowa county rate and median bill.
Appeal filing windows
Woodbury 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 Woodbury County (STEEP · MID) - ACS medians, not a parcel bill.