How South Dakota property tax works
Homes are assessed at full market value as of November 1, then equalized to 85%. Levies are in dollars per $1,000 of that taxable value and add up the county, the school district, the city and small water and fire districts. A $350,000 home has $297,500 of taxable value.
The most important thing to do as a homeowner is claim owner-occupied status. It's the only classification that gets the lower school levy, and it isn't automatic. Apply to your county Director of Equalization by March 15 (form PT 3001). Once approved, it lasts until you sell or change how the home is used.
Owner-occupied levies, taxes payable 2026
Total levies for each city's main district and school district. The last columns show the tax on a $350,000 owner-occupied home and the effective rate on market value.
| City | County | County | School | City | Total per $1,000 | Tax on $350,000 | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vermillion | Clay | 5.625 | 8.052 | 4.461 | 18.166 | $5,404 | 1.54% |
| Huron | Beadle | 2.450 | 7.543 | 7.280 | 17.329 | $5,155 | 1.47% |
| Aberdeen | Brown | 3.775 | 6.734 | 5.374 | 15.939 | $4,742 | 1.35% |
| Box Elder (Pennington part) | Pennington | 3.559 | 6.995 | 3.775 | 15.128 | $4,501 | 1.29% |
| Brookings | Brookings | 3.921 | 8.237 | 2.220 | 14.397 | $4,283 | 1.22% |
| Mitchell | Davison | 3.201 | 6.644 | 4.260 | 14.161 | $4,213 | 1.20% |
| Sioux Falls (Minnehaha part) | Minnehaha | 2.933 | 7.129 | 3.661 | 13.742 | $4,088 | 1.17% |
| Yankton | Yankton | 2.977 | 6.832 | 3.350 | 13.215 | $3,931 | 1.12% |
| Sioux Falls (Lincoln part) | Lincoln | 1.845 | 7.129 | 3.661 | 12.654 | $3,765 | 1.08% |
| Rapid City | Pennington | 3.559 | 6.251 | 2.488 | 12.315 | $3,664 | 1.05% |
| Pierre | Hughes | 2.627 | 6.407 | 2.851 | 11.897 | $3,539 | 1.01% |
| Watertown | Codington | 3.081 | 6.377 | 1.715 | 11.192 | $3,330 | 0.95% |
| Spearfish | Lawrence | 2.775 | 5.851 | 1.934 | 10.560 | $3,142 | 0.90% |
Totals include water development district levies (about 0.02 to 0.06) and, in Box Elder, the fire district. Parts of cities served by other school districts or sanitary and lake districts will be a little different. For example, Sioux Falls homes in the Harrisburg, Tea or Brandon Valley school districts pay different school levies.
The school levy is the biggest piece everywhere. Its general fund part for owner-occupied homes is set statewide at 2.518 for taxes payable 2026, down from 2.954 two years earlier, which is how the state delivers most of its property tax relief.
The 2025 and 2026 property tax laws
- 3% caps (SB 216, 2025): for five years, the growth in total owner-occupied valuation in each county and in local property tax budgets is capped at 3% a year. It first appeared on 2026 assessment notices and applies to taxes paid in 2027.
- Lower school levy (SB 245, 2026): further cuts the owner-occupied school levy, funded first with one-time money and then by the 0.3-point increase when the state sales tax returns from 4.2% to 4.5% on July 1, 2027.
- County sales tax option (SB 96, 2026): counties can adopt a local sales tax of up to 0.5% to fund a credit on county property taxes, starting no earlier than January 1, 2027.
Relief, deadlines and appeals
- Assessment freeze for seniors and the disabled: for owners 65+ or disabled with prior-year income under $56,595 (one person) or $66,885 (household), with a home worth under $514,500, who have owned and lived there 5 years. Apply to the County Treasurer by April 1 each year.
- Disabled veterans: the first $200,000 of value is exempt. See disabled veteran exemptions.
- Payments: first half by April 30, second half by October 31.
- Appeals: notices go out by March 1. For 2026, written appeals to the local board were due March 12 and to the county board April 7. Watch for your notice. See our appeal guide.
South Dakota is one of the nine states without an income tax. See states with no income tax for how its property taxes compare.
Where these numbers come from
Levies are from the South Dakota Department of Revenue's property tax portal ("Explain My Taxes," 2025 assessment, owner-occupied class), and the owner-occupied school levy history from its 2024 statistical report. Classification, freeze, exemption, payment and appeal rules are from Department of Revenue publications, including Property Tax 101, the 2026 property tax reduction programs summary and the 2026 appeal guide. The 2025 and 2026 laws are from Department of Revenue fact sheets. The $350,000 examples are our calculations. For ZIP-level data, start at our South Dakota page.