Arlington County, Virginia property tax
The median homeowner in Arlington County, Virginia pays $7,774 a year in property tax on a home worth $864,800, an effective rate of 0.90%. The national effective rate is 0.98%.
What the rate means here
Arlington County taxes property at 0.90%, within a rounding error of the national 0.98%. That makes the $7,774 median bill mostly a statement about local house prices rather than about local tax policy.
It ranks #19 of 129 Virginia counties by effective rate, against a statewide 0.74%, and #1,245 nationally. The state runs from 1.14% in Manassas Park city down to 0.40% in Prince Edward County.
The median home costs 6.17 times the median household income of $140,160, against 3.86 nationally, so housing absorbs an unusually large share of what people here earn. Renters pay 19.48% of median income in gross rent. The county has 235,463 residents, which is small enough that the medians describe a reasonably coherent market.
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
| Arlington County | Virginia | United States | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Effective property tax | 0.90% | 0.74% | 0.98% |
| Median tax bill | $7,774 | $2,686 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $864,800 | $360,700 | $303,400 |
| Median gross rent | $2,275 | $1,514 | $1,348 |
| Median household income | $140,160 | $90,974 | $78,538 |
| Home price to income | 6.17× | 3.96× | 3.86× |
| Rent as share of income | 19.48% | 19.97% | 20.6% |
| Owner-occupied | 41.85% | 67.18% | 65.02% |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2023 five-year estimates. Population 235,463.
Nearby counties of similar size
| County | Rate | Median bill | Home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Norfolk city | 1.01% | $2,738 | $271,900 |
| Richmond city | 0.86% | $2,834 | $328,100 |
| Chesapeake city | 0.82% | $2,937 | $359,100 |
| Newport News city | 1.03% | $2,507 | $243,300 |
| Stafford County | 0.72% | $3,301 | $458,800 |
Arlington County property tax: common questions
What is the property tax rate in Arlington County, Virginia?
The effective rate is 0.90% of home value, from a median tax bill of $7,774 against a median home value of $864,800. That is 0.08 points below the national 0.98%.
How much is property tax on a $400,000 home in Arlington County?
Roughly $3,600 a year at the county effective rate of 0.90%.
Is Arlington County expensive compared with the rest of Virginia?
It ranks #19 of 129 Virginia counties by effective property tax rate, and #1245 of 2,826 nationally. That is 0.16 points above the Virginia average of 0.74%.
What does housing cost in Arlington County?
The median home is worth $864,800 and median gross rent is $2,275 a month. Median household income is $140,160, which puts the home at 6.17 times annual income and rent at 19.48% of it.