What is the property tax rate in Virginia?
The property tax rate in Virginia averages 0.78% of market value for owner-occupied homes (Tax Foundation 2026, using the 2024 American Community Survey). That is below Maryland at 0.92% and above North Carolina at 0.66% on the same measure.
Virginia Tax’s own figure, from its 2025 assessment/sales ratio study, is a statewide effective true tax rate of $0.7609 per $100 of market value, against an average nominal rate of $0.8986 per $100 of assessed value. The gap between the two exists because assessments in many places trail actual sale prices.
How Virginia sets assessed value
Virginia law requires real estate to be assessed at 100% of fair market value. Section 58.1-3201 of the Code of Virginia applies that standard to general reassessments and to annual assessments in localities that use them. There is no fractional assessment ratio and no separate class for apartment buildings.
In practice, assessments often come in below sale prices. The 2025 ratio study found a median assessment-to-sales ratio of 91.30% in Fairfax County and 94.42% in Arlington County, and much lower ratios in some rural counties, such as 58.30% in Sussex County. That is why the effective rate on true value is lower than the nominal rate on the tax bill.
For rent-restricted affordable housing operated under federal programs such as the low-income housing tax credit, Section 58.1-3295 requires the assessor to use an income approach based on contract rents and actual operating expenses. Market-rate apartment buildings are valued by the assessor’s usual methods, and income and expense data you provide can shape that value.
How often Virginia reassesses property
Counties must do a general reassessment at least every four years under Section 58.1-3252, and a board of supervisors can shorten that to three. Counties with 50,000 people or fewer may choose five or six years. The Code also lets localities assess annually or every two years instead, and some do.
A sale does not trigger a new assessment by itself. In an annual-assessment locality, though, the sale price becomes evidence for the next year’s value, so a buyer who pays well above the current assessment should expect the next bill to reflect it. In a county on a four-year cycle, the bump may wait until the next general reassessment.
Is there a cap on property tax increases in Virginia?
No. Virginia has no cap on how much an assessment can rise. The 100% market value rule means the assessor follows the market up as well as down.
What Virginia has is a levy rule. Under Section 58.1-3321, when a reassessment raises a locality’s total real estate levy by 1% or more, the governing body must lower its rate so the levy is no more than 101% of the prior year’s, not counting new construction. It can adopt a higher rate only after advertising the effective rate increase and holding a separate public hearing. The rule makes a rate increase public; it does not stop one.
Virginia property tax rates by county and city
Effective rates in Virginia range from about $0.21 to more than $1.00 per $100 of market value among counties. The figures below are from Virginia Tax’s 2025 assessment/sales ratio study. The effective true tax rate is tax per $100 of actual market value; the nominal rate is the rate on the tax bill, per $100 of assessed value.
Independent cities are separate from counties in Virginia, and several carry higher effective rates than any county. Among cities, the study lists Manassas Park at $1.21 effective, Portsmouth at $1.13 and Norfolk at $1.12, while Williamsburg is lowest at $0.59 and Covington at $0.61. Richmond city is $1.05 effective on a $1.20 nominal rate.
| County | Effective rate (per $100 true value) | Nominal rate (per $100 assessed) | Group |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fairfax | $1.02 | $1.12 | Highest |
| Arlington | $0.98 | $1.03 | Highest |
| Roanoke | $0.93 | $1.03 | Highest |
| Albemarle | $0.85 | $0.90 | Highest |
| Prince William | $0.82 | $0.91 | Highest |
| Sussex | $0.31 | $0.53 | Lowest |
| Nottoway | $0.30 | $0.48 | Lowest |
| Amelia | $0.29 | $0.46 | Lowest |
| Mecklenburg | $0.27 | $0.36 | Lowest |
| Lunenburg | $0.21 | $0.33 | Lowest |
Effective rate or nominal rate: which one to use
Use the nominal rate on your tax bill to figure your own taxes, and the effective rate to compare places. The nominal rate is what the treasurer multiplies by your assessed value. The effective true rate divides the tax by what property actually sells for, so it shows the real cost of owning in a given county or city.
The difference can be large. In Sussex County, the 2025 study shows a nominal rate of $0.53 but an effective rate of $0.31, because assessments there ran at a median of 58.30% of sale prices. In Arlington, the two are close, at $1.03 and $0.98, because assessments track sales closely. A buyer moving from a low-ratio county to a high-ratio one can be surprised by how much a similar nominal rate costs.
For an apartment building, the ratio for your own parcel matters more than the county median. If your assessment sits far below what the building would sell for, a sale may close that gap at the next assessment, and the buyer will model the bill at the full price.
How Virginia compares with nearby states
On the Tax Foundation’s 2026 effective rates, Virginia at 0.78% sits in the middle of its region. Maryland is higher at 0.92%. Kentucky is 0.74%, North Carolina 0.66%, Tennessee 0.52% and West Virginia 0.51%. Within Virginia, the spread between Northern Virginia and Southside counties is wider than the spread between most states.
How to appeal your assessment in Virginia
Start with the local assessor, then the board of equalization, on the schedule your locality sets. Each county and city publishes its own deadlines, usually on the assessment notice, so read that notice the week it arrives.
If you still disagree, Section 58.1-3984 lets you apply to the circuit court for relief from an erroneous assessment. The deadline is the latest of three years from the last day of the tax year, one year from the assessment date, or one year from certain final determinations by the Tax Commissioner. A valuation set by the board of equalization is presumed correct in court, so build your case before that hearing.
For an apartment building, the strongest appeals rest on the rent roll, trailing operating statements and sales of similar buildings. An assessment that assumes market rents on units that are below market, or ignores deferred maintenance, is a common error worth checking.
Property tax exemptions for Virginia apartments
Virginia has no general exemption for apartment buildings, but localities can adopt a partial exemption for rehabilitated buildings. Section 58.1-3220 lets a county, city or town exempt part of the value added by substantially rehabilitating a residential structure at least 15 years old, including multifamily buildings, for up to 15 years. The locality sets the terms, can limit it to certain districts and can phase it down each year.
The exemption runs with the land, so it can transfer to a buyer. If your building has one, get the ordinance, the start date and the phase-down schedule before you market the property, because the buyer will model the year it ends.
Worked example: property tax on a $2M Virginia apartment building
Take a 20-unit building worth $2,000,000. At the statewide effective true rate of $0.7609 per $100, the yearly tax is about $15,218. The same building would owe about $20,400 in Fairfax County at $1.02 effective, $21,000 in the city of Richmond at $1.05 and $4,200 in Lunenburg County at $0.21.
Now the sale, in Richmond, where the nominal rate is $1.20 per $100. Say the building is assessed at $1,700,000, so the current bill is $20,400. A buyer pays $2,000,000. If the next assessment moves the value to the price, the bill rises to $24,000, or $3,600 more a year, unless the city lowers its rate under the 101% rule.
At an illustrative 6% cap rate, $3,600 of lost net operating income takes about $60,000 off what a buyer can pay. Buyers in annual-assessment localities underwrite to the post-sale assessment, not your current bill, so expect them to price that in.
| Scenario | Rate per $100 | Yearly tax |
|---|---|---|
| Statewide effective true rate, $2M value | $0.7609 | $15,218 |
| Fairfax County effective, $2M value | $1.02 | $20,400 |
| Richmond city effective, $2M value | $1.05 | $21,000 |
| Lunenburg County effective, $2M value | $0.21 | $4,200 |
| Richmond nominal, assessed at $1.7M | $1.20 | $20,400 |
| Richmond nominal, reassessed to $2M sale price | $1.20 | $24,000 |
What to check on your tax records before you sell
A buyer will ask for most of this in due diligence, so gather it before you list.
- The current assessment and how far it sits below what you expect to sell for.
- Whether your locality assesses annually or on a multi-year cycle, and when the next reassessment takes effect.
- The nominal rate and any special district or service district rates on the parcel.
- Any rehabilitation exemption or affordable housing valuation and its end date.
- Results of past assessor reviews or board of equalization appeals.
Selling an apartment building in Virginia
Skyline buys apartment buildings with five or more units in Virginia, including higher-rate localities such as Fairfax County, Norfolk and Richmond. We buy directly, close on your timeline, and can work inside 1031 deadlines. We underwrite from your actual tax bills and the next assessment, so you can see how property tax shapes our number.
For the income tax on the sale, see Virginia capital gains tax on real estate. For the tenant rules a buyer inherits, see Virginia landlord-tenant law for apartment owners.
