How North Carolina property tax works
North Carolina taxes property at 100% of its value as of the county's last reappraisal, at a rate per $100. Inside a city you pay the county rate plus the city rate, and some areas add a school or fire district.
The catch is the word "last." Counties must reappraise at least every eight years, and values in between fall further behind the market. So the state also publishes an effective rate: the nominal rate times the county's ratio of assessed value to recent sale prices. When a county hasn't reappraised in a while, its effective rate is far below the nominal one.
Bills for fiscal 2026-27 were due September 1, 2026. You have until January 5 to pay before interest starts.
2026-27 tax rates in North Carolina cities
Combined = county + city rate per $100. The last column is the tax on a home assessed at $350,000.
| City | County rate | City rate | Combined | Effective rate | Last / next reappraisal | Tax on $350,000 assessed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Greensboro | 0.7895 | 0.7985 | 1.5880 | 1.0079 | 2022 / 2027 | $5,558 |
| High Point (Guilford) | 0.7895 | 0.7349 | 1.5244 | 0.9675 | 2022 / 2027 | $5,335 |
| Jacksonville | 0.6550 | 0.6300 | 1.2850 | 0.9344 | 2022 / 2027 | $4,498 |
| Chapel Hill* | 0.6805 | 0.5000 | 1.1805 | 1.1275 | 2025 / 2029 | $4,132 |
| Winston-Salem | 0.5540 | 0.5890 | 1.1430 | 1.1060 | 2025 / 2029 | $4,000 |
| Asheville* | 0.6154 | 0.5078 | 1.1232 | 0.7084 | 2021 / 2027 | $3,931 |
| Gastonia | 0.5990 | 0.4700 | 1.0690 | 0.9325 | 2023 / 2027 | $3,742 |
| Statesville | 0.5000 | 0.5176 | 1.0176 | 0.8822 | 2023 / 2027 | $3,562 |
| Durham | 0.5792 | 0.4371 | 1.0163 | 1.0167 | 2025 / 2029 | $3,557 |
| Concord | 0.5760 | 0.4200 | 0.9960 | 0.9395 | 2024 / 2028 | $3,486 |
| Greenville | 0.5663 | 0.3954 | 0.9617 | 0.9020 | 2024 / 2028 | $3,366 |
| Smithfield | 0.5100 | 0.4500 | 0.9600 | 0.9458 | 2025 / 2029 | $3,360 |
| Fayetteville | 0.4990 | 0.4495 | 0.9485 | 0.9381 | 2025 / 2031 | $3,320 |
| Apex | 0.5371 | 0.3735 | 0.9106 | 0.8686 | 2024 / 2027 | $3,187 |
| Raleigh | 0.5371 | 0.3720 | 0.9091 | 0.8672 | 2024 / 2027 | $3,182 |
| Cary | 0.5371 | 0.3675 | 0.9046 | 0.8629 | 2024 / 2027 | $3,166 |
| Monroe | 0.4342 | 0.4400 | 0.8742 | 0.8528 | 2025 / 2029 | $3,060 |
| Charlotte | 0.4927 | 0.2930 | 0.7857 | 0.7012 | 2023 / 2027 | $2,750 |
| Huntersville | 0.4927 | 0.2275 | 0.7202 | 0.6428 | 2023 / 2027 | $2,521 |
| Wilmington | 0.3060 | 0.3315 | 0.6375 | 0.6116 | 2025 / 2029 | $2,231 |
*Chapel Hill homes in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro school district also pay a $0.1479 school district tax, and Asheville homes in the Asheville City school district pay $0.1175.
Compare Greensboro and Durham. Greensboro's nominal rate is more than 50% higher, but its effective rate is lower, because Guilford County last reappraised in 2022 and its values are only about 63% of current sale prices. When Guilford reappraises, the nominal rate will fall sharply and the bills will shift. Asheville is in the same position.
Several cities raised rates for 2026-27: Raleigh, Cary and Apex (Wake County rose 2 cents), Greensboro and High Point (Guilford County rose about 6 cents), Charlotte, Durham, Winston-Salem, Asheville, Wilmington and Jacksonville.
The 2026 reappraisal freeze
A 2026 state law (S.L. 2026-8) froze values for counties that had scheduled a reappraisal effective January 1, 2026. Those counties, which include Guilford, Buncombe and Onslow, kept their 2025 values for 2026, and new values take effect in 2027. If you live there, expect a big reappraisal notice in early 2027 and a chance to appeal it.
Highest and lowest county rates
For 2026-27, the lowest county rates are on the coast and in the mountains: Carteret ($0.225), Dare ($0.2632), Clay and Macon ($0.27). The highest are rural eastern counties: Bertie ($0.93), Hyde ($0.92), Edgecombe ($0.89) and Tyrrell ($0.87). Watauga has the lowest effective rate in the state, about $0.21.
Relief programs
- Elderly or disabled exclusion: for owners 65+ or totally and permanently disabled with income up to $38,800 (2026), the greater of $25,000 or 50% of the home's value is excluded.
- Circuit breaker: caps the tax at 4% of income for incomes up to $38,800, or 5% up to $58,200. The rest is deferred as a lien.
- Disabled veterans: the first $45,000 of value is excluded, with no income limit. See disabled veteran exemptions.
Applications are due June 1 to the county tax office. You can appeal a value after a reappraisal notice, usually by the date on the notice, and to the county Board of Equalization and Review. See our appeal guide.
Where these numbers come from
Rates, effective rates and reappraisal years are from the North Carolina Department of Revenue's County and Municipal Property Tax Rates files for fiscal 2025-26 and 2026-27 and its county reappraisal schedules. The reappraisal freeze is from S.L. 2026-8 and Guilford County's tax department. Relief limits for 2026 are from the Forsyth County tax office, and the 2025 limits from the Department of Revenue. For ZIP-level data, start from our North Carolina page.