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North Carolina property tax
North Carolina does not give every homeowner a standard homestead exemption. Relief is targeted: an elderly or disabled exclusion, a disabled-veteran exclusion, and a circuit-breaker deferment. You may use only one of those programs.
Homestead and veteran relief (2026)
NCDOR Form AV-9 for tax year 2026, which implements G.S. 105-277.1 and 105-277.1C, describes three programs. File the form with your county assessor by June 1 (do not send it to NCDOR):
- Elderly or disabled exclusion. If you are at least 65 or totally and permanently disabled, and your prior-year income does not exceed the limit, the exclusion is the greater of $25,000 or 50% of the home's appraised value. For the 2026 tax year the income limit is $38,800.
- Disabled veteran exclusion. Up to the first $45,000 of appraised value. There is no age or income limit. A qualifying unremarried surviving spouse may also apply. You must file Form NCDVA-9 completed by a veterans service officer.
- Circuit-breaker deferment. If you are 65 or disabled, taxes are limited to 4% of income when prior-year income is at or below $38,800, or 5% of income when income is above that amount but not above $58,200 (150% of the limit). Tax above the cap is deferred and remains a lien; the last three years of deferred tax can come due, with interest, after a disqualifying event (death, transfer, or ceasing to use the home as your permanent residence). You must file a new application every year. This program cannot be combined with either exclusion.
Each owner (other than spouses filing together) applies separately. An owner who receives one of these benefits may not receive the others.
Assessment rules
Counties appraise real property at its current market value and must reappraise at least every eight years (G.S. 105-286). Between reappraisals, assessed value usually stays at the last reappraisal value unless something about the property changes. Present-use value programs exist for qualifying farm, horticultural and forest land.
Payment calendar
Under G.S. 105-360, property taxes are due on September 1 and may be paid at par through January 5 of the following year. Interest generally begins on January 6. Your county tax office mails the bill and can confirm any local collection details.
Appeals
If you disagree with the appraised value, appeal first to your county Board of Equalization and Review while that board is in session after notices go out. Deadlines follow the county's notice and board schedule rather than one statewide calendar date. After the board adjourns, further appeal is typically to the North Carolina Property Tax Commission. Ask your county assessor for this year's dates.
Effective rates by county
ACS 2024 5-year median taxes paid divided by median home value (Tax Foundation 2026 compilation). For official posted millage and effective rates by taxing unit, see NCDOR's 2025-2026 county and municipal rate tables.
| County | Median home value | Median taxes paid | Effective rate |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alamance | $241,500 | $1,494 | 0.62% |
| Alexander | $211,800 | $1,269 | 0.60% |
| Alleghany | $214,800 | $1,217 | 0.57% |
| Anson | $148,600 | $1,141 | 0.77% |
| Ashe | $243,100 | $1,190 | 0.49% |
| Avery | $265,800 | $1,010 | 0.38% |
| Beaufort | $192,700 | $1,300 | 0.67% |
| Bertie | $98,500 | $778 | 0.79% |
| Bladen | $135,100 | $1,227 | 0.91% |
| Brunswick | $349,800 | $1,890 | 0.54% |
| Buncombe | $391,800 | $2,222 | 0.57% |
| Burke | $185,400 | $1,253 | 0.68% |
| Cabarrus | $354,800 | $2,586 | 0.73% |
| Caldwell | $192,200 | $1,150 | 0.60% |
| Camden | $337,100 | $1,952 | 0.58% |
| Carteret | $333,300 | $1,423 | 0.43% |
| Caswell | $164,500 | $1,140 | 0.69% |
| Catawba | $241,600 | $1,407 | 0.58% |
| Chatham | $446,200 | $2,847 | 0.64% |
| Cherokee | $232,300 | $1,064 | 0.46% |
| Chowan | $235,800 | $1,677 | 0.71% |
| Clay | $278,400 | $1,186 | 0.43% |
| Cleveland | $200,000 | $1,286 | 0.64% |
| Columbus | $146,000 | $1,120 | 0.77% |
| Craven | $231,600 | $1,450 | 0.63% |
| Cumberland | $199,200 | $1,850 | 0.93% |
| Currituck | $378,800 | $1,760 | 0.46% |
| Dare | $460,400 | $2,391 | 0.52% |
| Davidson | $219,100 | $1,320 | 0.60% |
| Davie | $253,900 | $1,595 | 0.63% |
| Duplin | $137,400 | $950 | 0.69% |
| Durham | $389,400 | $3,092 | 0.79% |
| Edgecombe | $125,100 | $1,306 | 1.04% |
| Forsyth | $250,400 | $1,984 | 0.79% |
| Franklin | $284,300 | $1,834 | 0.65% |
| Gaston | $266,000 | $1,982 | 0.75% |
| Gates | $170,800 | $1,296 | 0.76% |
| Graham | $170,600 | $979 | 0.57% |
| Granville | $247,700 | $1,664 | 0.67% |
| Greene | $117,400 | $1,041 | 0.89% |
| Guilford | $259,900 | $2,174 | 0.84% |
| Halifax | $106,200 | $1,216 | 1.15% |
| Harnett | $246,200 | $1,689 | 0.69% |
| Haywood | $279,200 | $1,583 | 0.57% |
| Henderson | $351,400 | $1,810 | 0.52% |
| Hertford | $119,200 | $1,168 | 0.98% |
| Hoke | $219,300 | $1,465 | 0.67% |
| Hyde | $124,000 | $975 | 0.79% |
| Iredell | $321,400 | $1,952 | 0.61% |
| Jackson | $284,700 | $976 | 0.34% |
| Johnston | $305,600 | $1,908 | 0.62% |
| Jones | $130,300 | $964 | 0.74% |
| Lee | $240,200 | $1,785 | 0.74% |
| Lenoir | $120,500 | $1,015 | 0.84% |
| Lincoln | $321,000 | $1,856 | 0.58% |
| Macon | $251,900 | $1,074 | 0.43% |
| Madison | $284,600 | $1,362 | 0.48% |
| Martin | $109,700 | $1,168 | 1.06% |
| McDowell | $171,100 | $911 | 0.53% |
| Mecklenburg | $406,800 | $2,890 | 0.71% |
| Mitchell | $220,100 | $1,141 | 0.52% |
| Montgomery | $161,700 | $1,037 | 0.64% |
| Moore | $351,400 | $1,849 | 0.53% |
| Nash | $191,000 | $1,362 | 0.71% |
| New Hanover | $387,800 | $2,105 | 0.54% |
| Northampton | $114,500 | $1,239 | 1.08% |
| Onslow | $236,400 | $1,502 | 0.64% |
| Orange | $459,500 | $4,162 | 0.91% |
| Pamlico | $216,800 | $1,218 | 0.56% |
| Pasquotank | $234,600 | $1,573 | 0.67% |
| Pender | $299,000 | $1,883 | 0.63% |
| Perquimans | $231,700 | $1,375 | 0.59% |
| Person | $213,900 | $1,328 | 0.62% |
| Pitt | $208,900 | $1,734 | 0.83% |
| Polk | $315,000 | $1,697 | 0.54% |
| Randolph | $197,100 | $1,324 | 0.67% |
| Richmond | $127,800 | $1,138 | 0.89% |
| Robeson | $94,500 | $820 | 0.87% |
| Rockingham | $168,600 | $1,258 | 0.75% |
| Rowan | $238,400 | $1,554 | 0.65% |
| Rutherford | $201,800 | $1,178 | 0.58% |
| Sampson | $150,700 | $1,130 | 0.75% |
| Scotland | $114,900 | $1,068 | 0.93% |
| Stanly | $242,400 | $1,385 | 0.57% |
| Stokes | $196,700 | $1,179 | 0.60% |
| Surry | $177,600 | $1,071 | 0.60% |
| Swain | $207,000 | $859 | 0.41% |
| Transylvania | $373,600 | $1,674 | 0.45% |
| Tyrrell | $164,500 | $1,331 | 0.81% |
| Union | $417,300 | $2,396 | 0.57% |
| Vance | $161,500 | $1,256 | 0.78% |
| Wake | $461,300 | $3,260 | 0.71% |
| Warren | $154,200 | $1,093 | 0.71% |
| Washington | $125,900 | $1,252 | 0.99% |
| Watauga | $358,900 | $1,386 | 0.39% |
| Wayne | $178,700 | $1,249 | 0.70% |
| Wilkes | $168,800 | $1,002 | 0.59% |
| Wilson | $186,000 | $1,471 | 0.79% |
| Yadkin | $181,200 | $1,220 | 0.67% |
| Yancey | $243,100 | $1,157 | 0.48% |
Sources
- North Carolina Department of Revenue Form AV-9 (2026), Application for Property Tax Relief (elderly or disabled exclusion is the greater of $25,000 or 50% of appraised value if income for the previous year does not exceed $38,800 for the 2026 tax year; disabled veteran exclusion of up to $45,000 with no age or income limit; circuit-breaker deferment limits tax to 4% of income at or below $38,800 or 5% of income up to $58,200; file by June 1 with the county assessor)
- G.S. 105-277.1 (elderly or disabled homestead exclusion) and G.S. 105-277.1C (disabled veteran exclusion)
- NCDOR: 2025-2026 County and Municipal Tax Rates and Effective Tax Rates (official posted rate tables; the county comparison here uses ACS effective rates so all five states share one method)
- Tax Foundation, Property Taxes by State and County, 2026 (published March 16, 2026; county median housing value, median real estate taxes paid, and statewide rankings from the US Census Bureau American Community Survey 2024 5-year estimates)
Common questions
Does every North Carolina homeowner get a homestead exemption?
No. The main programs are an income-limited elderly or disabled exclusion (greater of $25,000 or 50% of value), a disabled-veteran exclusion of up to $45,000, and a circuit-breaker deferment. Each owner may use only one.
What is the 2026 income limit for the elderly or disabled exclusion?
NCDOR's 2026 Form AV-9 states that the income eligibility limit for the 2026 tax year is $38,800.