Wake County, North Carolina property tax
The median homeowner in Wake County, North Carolina pays $3,023 a year in property tax on a home worth $422,800, an effective rate of 0.71%. The national effective rate is 0.98%.
What the rate means here
At 0.71%, Wake County taxes property more lightly than the national 0.98%. Rate and bill part company here. The percentage is below national, the house is worth $422,800, and the bill lands at $3,023 anyway.
It ranks #40 of 98 North Carolina counties by effective rate, against a statewide 0.70%, and #1,729 nationally. The state runs from 1.21% in Northampton County down to 0.37% in Jackson County.
The median home costs 4.15 times the median household income of $101,763, close to the national 3.86. Incomes here run above the national median, which is what keeps that ratio ordinary despite the house prices. With 1,151,009 residents this is one of the larger counties in the country, so the medians here average across a genuinely varied housing market and hide a lot of local range.
The rate is derived rather than quoted. How and why.
What that costs at different home values
Arithmetic at the county effective rate, before any exemption or assessment cap.
Housing and income
| Wake County | North Carolina | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Effective property tax | 0.71% | 0.70% | 0.98% |
| Median tax bill | $3,023 | $1,815 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $422,800 | $259,400 | $303,400 |
| Median gross rent | $1,508 | $1,162 | $1,348 |
| Median household income | $101,763 | $69,904 | $78,538 |
| Home price to income | 4.15× | 3.71× | 3.86× |
| Rent as share of income | 17.78% | 19.95% | 20.6% |
| Owner-occupied | 64.43% | 66.37% | 65.02% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 five-year estimates. Population 1,151,009.
Nearby counties of similar size
| County | Rate | Median bill | Home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mecklenburg County | 0.75% | $2,780 | $371,200 |
| Guilford County | 0.88% | $2,075 | $234,900 |
| Forsyth County | 0.85% | $1,934 | $227,800 |
| Cumberland County | 0.99% | $1,823 | $183,700 |
| Durham County | 0.84% | $2,951 | $351,700 |
Wake County property tax: common questions
What is the property tax rate in Wake County, North Carolina?
The effective rate is 0.71% of home value, from a median tax bill of $3,023 against a median home value of $422,800. That is 0.27 points below the national 0.98%.
How much is property tax on a $400,000 home in Wake County?
Roughly $2,840 a year at the county effective rate of 0.71%.
Is Wake County expensive compared with the rest of North Carolina?
It ranks #40 of 98 North Carolina counties by effective property tax rate, and #1729 of 2,826 nationally. That is 0.01 points above the North Carolina average of 0.70%.
What does housing cost in Wake County?
The median home is worth $422,800 and median gross rent is $1,508 a month. Median household income is $101,763, which puts the home at 4.15 times annual income and rent at 17.78% of it.