What is the property tax rate in North Carolina?
The North Carolina property tax rate averages 0.66% of value statewide, based on the Tax Foundation’s 2026 ranking of effective rates from the 2024 American Community Survey. On the same Tax Foundation table, neighboring Virginia is at 0.78%, Georgia at 0.79%, Tennessee at 0.52% and South Carolina at 0.49%, while New Jersey and Illinois top the list at 1.88%. North Carolina sits in the middle of its region.
The average hides a wide spread. Your actual bill depends on the county rate, the city rate if the building is inside city limits, any fire or school district rate, and how recently the county reappraised. A building in a rural eastern county with a high county rate and no recent reappraisal can pay a very different share of its market value than one in a coastal county with a low rate.
Confirm your building’s value and appeal deadline on the county assessor site after each revaluation notice.
How North Carolina property tax rates are quoted
North Carolina quotes property tax rates in dollars per $100 of assessed value, not in mills. A county rate of $0.52 means 52 cents of tax for every $100 of value, or $5,200 on a $1,000,000 building.
Your bill adds every rate that applies at the property’s location and multiplies the total by the assessed value divided by 100. Counties and cities set their rates each year when they adopt their annual budgets, so the rate can change even in a year with no reappraisal.
| Layer | Who sets it | Example rate per $100 |
|---|---|---|
| County | Board of county commissioners | $0.52 |
| City or town | City council, for property inside city limits | $0.40 |
| Fire, school or special district | County or district board, where one exists | Varies |
| Total on a $1,000,000 building | Sum of the layers times value / 100 | About $9,200 at $0.92 |
How assessed value is set in North Carolina
North Carolina assesses all property at 100% of its true value, meaning market value, as of the county’s most recent reappraisal date. G.S. 105-284 requires that uniform standard, and G.S. 105-283 defines true value as what a willing buyer would pay a willing seller.
For an apartment building, county appraisers usually lean on the income approach: rents, vacancy, expenses and a capitalization rate drawn from local sales. They also look at comparable sales and replacement cost. You can ask the assessor’s office which method and which figures it used for your parcel, and that request is the first step in any appeal.
Does North Carolina reassess property when it sells?
No. A sale does not change the assessed value in North Carolina. The value set at the last countywide reappraisal stays on the books until the next one, even if the building sells for far more.
Under G.S. 105-286, every county must reappraise at least once every eight years, and many now do it every four years or less by board resolution. A county with 75,000 or more people must move its reappraisal up if its sales assessment ratio falls below 0.85 or rises above 1.15, which happens when values drift too far from market prices.
For a buyer, that means the tax bill shown in the offering memo may be the bill for a few years, then jump at the next reappraisal. For a seller, it means a recent reappraisal at a high value can weigh on what buyers will pay, because they underwrite the higher tax from day one.
Is there a cap on property tax increases in North Carolina?
No. North Carolina has no annual cap on assessed value for apartment buildings or other commercial property. Value changes only at reappraisal, and when it changes it moves all the way to the new market value in one step.
The other lever is the rate. Counties and cities can raise or cut rates every year, so a bill can rise between reappraisals even though the value stays the same. Owners who want to know what is coming should watch county budget hearings in May and June.
Highest and lowest county property tax rates in North Carolina
The table lists county-only rates per $100 of value for fiscal year 2025-26, from NCDOR’s county property tax rate report. These are nominal county rates, not effective rates, and they leave out city, fire and school district rates, which can add a lot inside city limits.
Because counties reappraise in different years, a low nominal rate does not always mean a low bill. A county that reappraised recently at high values often sets a lower rate than one still using older, lower values. NCDOR also publishes sales-ratio-adjusted effective rates for comparing counties. Counties adopted new rates for fiscal year 2026-27 in mid-2026, so check the county tax office for the rate on your current bill.
| County | County-only rate per $100 (FY 2025-26) | County tax on $1,000,000 of assessed value | Group |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | $0.99 | $9,900 | Highest |
| Bertie | $0.93 | $9,300 | Highest |
| Hyde | $0.92 | $9,200 | Highest |
| Edgecombe | $0.89 | $8,900 | Highest |
| Tyrrell | $0.87 | $8,700 | Highest |
| New Hanover | $0.306 | $3,060 | Lowest |
| Moore | $0.295 | $2,950 | Lowest |
| Macon | $0.27 | $2,700 | Lowest |
| Dare | $0.2632 | $2,632 | Lowest |
| Carteret | $0.225 | $2,250 | Lowest |
How to appeal a property tax assessment in North Carolina
You appeal first to the county Board of Equalization and Review, and you must file before that board adjourns. Under G.S. 105-322, the board first meets between the first Monday in April and the first Monday in May. In most years it sits for only a few weeks, but in a reappraisal year it may stay in session until December 1.
Watch for your notice of value, especially in a reappraisal year. Many counties let you talk the value through with an appraiser before the formal board hearing. Ask the assessor’s office how its county handles that step.
- Gather evidence: the current rent roll, a trailing 12-month operating statement, recent comparable sales and any appraisal you have.
- File with the county Board of Equalization and Review before it adjourns. Check the county’s published adjournment date each year.
- If you disagree with the board’s decision, appeal to the North Carolina Property Tax Commission within 30 days after the board mails its decision.
- Note the date the board mails its decision, because the 30-day clock for the Property Tax Commission runs from that date.
Property tax exemptions for apartment buildings in North Carolina
There is no general property tax exemption for market-rate rental apartments in North Carolina. The homestead programs, including the elderly or disabled exclusion and the circuit breaker deferral, apply only to owner-occupied homes.
The main exception for apartment owners is affordable housing. Under G.S. 105-277.16, buildings financed with low-income housing tax credits under IRC Section 42 are a special class, valued by the income approach using the restricted rents rather than market rents. That usually produces a lower value than a comparable market-rate building. The treatment follows the rent restrictions, so a buyer should confirm how long they last.
Worked example: property tax on a $2 million apartment building in North Carolina
Take a 24-unit building inside city limits, in a county with a rate of $0.52 per $100 and a city rate of $0.40 per $100, for a combined $0.92. At the last reappraisal the county valued it at $1,500,000, so this year’s bill is $1,500,000 divided by 100, times $0.92, or $13,800.
A buyer pays $2,000,000. The sale does not change the value, so the buyer’s first bill is still $13,800. At the next reappraisal, if the county sets the value at $2,000,000 and keeps the same rates, the bill becomes $18,400. That is $4,600 more a year.
The extra $4,600 comes straight out of net operating income. At a 6% cap rate, $4,600 of lost NOI equals about $76,667 of value. Careful buyers underwrite the post-reappraisal tax from the start, which is why the reappraisal calendar matters when you price a North Carolina building. For comparison, the statewide 0.66% effective rate on $2,000,000 would be $13,200.
How property tax affects the sale price of an apartment building
Property tax is usually one of the largest operating expenses on a North Carolina apartment building, so every dollar of tax a buyer expects lowers the price they can pay at their target cap rate. Sellers who know the county’s next reappraisal year can answer the buyer’s first question before it is asked.
If your building was reappraised low and the next reappraisal is close, expect buyers to adjust. If the county just reappraised high and you have a good case, appealing before you list can help the numbers in the offering memo.
What buyers check in a North Carolina property tax review
Buyers of North Carolina apartment buildings look at four tax items during due diligence, and a seller who has them ready shortens the process. Each one feeds straight into the buyer’s model of net operating income.
- The current assessed value and the reappraisal date it is based on, from the county tax office’s parcel record.
- The full list of rates at the address: county, city and any fire or school district.
- The county’s next scheduled reappraisal year, and whether its sales ratio could force an earlier one.
- Any special valuation, such as the LIHTC income approach under G.S. 105-277.16, and the date the rent restrictions end.
- Open appeals or recent Board of Equalization and Review decisions on the parcel.
Selling a North Carolina apartment building to Skyline
Skyline buys apartment buildings with five or more units in North Carolina, from Charlotte and Raleigh to Fayetteville, Greensboro and the coast. We buy directly, close on your timeline, and can work inside 1031 deadlines. We look at the county reappraisal schedule with you, so the tax question does not stall the deal.
