What is the property tax rate in Washington?
Washington’s average effective property tax rate is 0.75%, based on the Tax Foundation’s 2026 table, which uses 2024 American Community Survey data on owner-occupied homes. That puts Washington close to the middle of the states, well below New Jersey or Illinois and above Arizona or Colorado.
Assessors and treasurers in Washington talk in levy rates, not percentages. For taxes due in 2025, the Department of Revenue reports a statewide average of $8.96 per $1,000 of assessed value, which works out to about 0.90%. The two numbers differ because the Tax Foundation measures what homeowners pay against home values, after senior and other exemptions, while the levy average covers all taxable property.
How property taxes are calculated in Washington state
Your tax is the assessed value of the parcel times the combined levy rate for its tax code area, divided by 1,000. A building assessed at $2,000,000 in an area with a $9.50 rate owes $19,000 for the year.
The combined rate stacks every district that serves the parcel: the state school levy, the county, the city, the school district, and junior districts such as fire, library, hospital, port and transit. Each district sets a dollar budget, and the county spreads that budget over the total assessed value in the district. That is why rates often fall when values climb fast. The levy dollars grow slowly, so a larger tax base means a smaller rate per $1,000.
Half of the year’s tax is due by April 30 and the other half by October 31, under RCW 84.56.020, for any parcel with a bill of $50 or more.
How assessed value is set
County assessors value all taxable real property at 100% of its true and fair market value. There is no fractional assessment ratio and no separate class with a lower ratio for apartments or commercial buildings.
Under RCW 84.41.030, every county revalues property each year and physically inspects each parcel at least once every six years. For an apartment building, assessors typically lean on an income approach using market rents, vacancy and expenses, checked against recent sales of similar buildings. The Department of Revenue tests each county’s results in an annual ratio study.
Does Washington reassess property when it sells?
No. Washington has no reassessment trigger on sale, because every parcel is already revalued each year at market value. A sale does not reset the tax the way it does in California under Proposition 13.
A sale still has an effect. Assessors use recorded sale prices as evidence, so if your building sells for well above its assessed value, the next valuation notice for that building, and for similar buildings nearby, can move toward the price. A buyer should underwrite next year’s tax on the purchase price, not on the seller’s current bill.
Is there a cap on property tax increases in Washington?
There is no cap on the value of an individual property, but there is a cap on what each taxing district can collect. The 1% levy limit in chapter 84.55 RCW holds the growth in a district’s regular property tax levy to 1% a year, plus an amount for new construction and certain other additions.
The limit applies to the district’s total dollars, not to your bill. If your building’s value rises faster than the values around it, your share of the levy rises too. Voter-approved levies, such as school enrichment levies and bond measures, sit outside the 1% limit, and they explain much of the year-to-year change in local rates.
Washington property tax rates by county
Levy rates vary more inside a county than between counties, because each tax code area has its own mix of school, fire and city levies. The Department of Revenue publishes county averages in its property tax statistics tables, but we could not open the 2025 table files, so the figures below come from each county’s own 2026 reports and are labeled by type.
Snohomish County reports a typical 2026 rate of $8.1949 per $1,000, down from $8.2776 in 2025, with tax code areas ranging from $4.4334 to $10.3664. King County does not post a single average, but its assessor reports $8.4 billion in 2026 taxes on $920 billion of value, which is about $9.13 per $1,000 by our division. Spokane County’s 2026 report did not show its average in a form we could confirm, so it is left out.
| Area (2026 taxes) | Rate per $1,000 | Type of figure | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pierce County: Sumner | $11.88 | Highest city average rate in the county | Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer |
| Snohomish County: highest tax code area | $10.37 | Highest area in the county | Snohomish County Assessor |
| Clark County: highest tax code area (037076) | $10.18 | Highest area in the county | Clark County Treasurer |
| Clark County: Vancouver (TCA 037078) | $9.72 | Single tax code area | Clark County Treasurer |
| King County | About $9.13 | Total taxes divided by total value | King County Assessor |
| Statewide average (taxes due 2025) | $8.96 | Statewide average | WA Department of Revenue |
| Snohomish County | $8.19 | Countywide typical rate | Snohomish County Assessor |
| Pierce County: Carbonado | $7.32 | Lowest city average rate in the county | Pierce County Assessor-Treasurer |
| Clark County: lowest tax code areas (098000 and others) | $6.74 | Lowest area in the county | Clark County Treasurer |
| Snohomish County: lowest tax code area | $4.43 | Lowest area in the county | Snohomish County Assessor |
How to appeal a property assessment in Washington
You appeal to your county board of equalization by July 1 of the assessment year or within 30 days of the date on your Change of Value Notice, whichever is later. Some counties have adopted a 60-day window, so check the date printed on your notice.
If the board rules against you, you can take the case to the state Board of Tax Appeals within 30 days of the decision. For an apartment building, the strongest appeals use the property’s actual rent roll, vacancy and operating statements to show that the assessor’s income assumptions are too high. Appealing the value is the only way to lower your bill directly, since the levy rate is set by district budgets.
Property tax exemptions for Washington apartment buildings
The main exemption for apartments is the multifamily housing property tax exemption in chapter 84.14 RCW, offered by participating cities in designated areas. It exempts the value of qualifying new, converted or rehabilitated housing improvements. Land and nonhousing improvements stay taxable.
The exemption lasts 8 years, 12 years if at least 20% of the units are rented or sold as affordable to low- and moderate-income households, or 20 years under options tied to transit and station areas with long affordability covenants. No new exemptions can be granted on or after January 1, 2032. Separate exemptions cover some nonprofit and low-income housing.
If you are selling a building that still has an exemption certificate, give the buyer the certificate, its expiration year and any affordability agreement early. A buyer will price the building on the full tax that starts when the exemption ends, and the jump can be large, since the improvements are usually most of a new building’s value.
Why Washington property tax bills rose in 2026
In King County, total property taxes rose about twice as fast as total value for 2026, and the county’s 2026 tax page lists a series of voter-approved levies among the measures behind the bills. The King County Assessor reports $8.4 billion in property taxes for 2026, up about $770 million or 10% from $7.7 billion in 2025, while total county value grew about 5.4%, from $873 billion to $920 billion.
Snohomish County shows the other side of the same math. Its typical rate dipped from $8.2776 to $8.1949 per $1,000, but a rate cut does not mean a smaller bill when the assessed value goes up. For a building owner, the useful comparison is the dollar change on the tax statement, not the rate.
For a sale, the practical step is to pull the last three years of tax statements and the current Change of Value Notice. Buyers and lenders will ask for both, and they show whether the building’s tax has been tracking the county or running ahead of it.
Worked example: the property tax on a $2 million apartment building
Take a 16-unit building in Vancouver, in Clark County tax code area 037078, which carries a 2026 levy rate of $9.7183 per $1,000. If the assessor values the building at $2,000,000, the 2026 tax is $19,436.55. The same value in a Snohomish County area at the $8.1949 typical rate would owe $16,389.80.
Now say the seller’s building is assessed at $1,650,000 and it sells for $2,000,000. Using a round $9.72 rate, the seller’s bill is about $16,038. If the next revaluation moves to the sale price, the buyer pays about $19,440, which is $3,402 more each year.
That increase comes straight out of net operating income. At a 6% cap rate, $3,402 of lost NOI is worth about $56,700 of value, so a careful buyer prices it in. The real change may be smaller, since rates tend to fall as values rise, but it is the number most buyers will use.
| Line | Amount |
|---|---|
| Seller’s assessed value | $1,650,000 |
| Seller’s yearly tax at $9.72 per $1,000 | $16,038 |
| Value after revaluation to the $2,000,000 price | $2,000,000 |
| Buyer’s yearly tax at $9.72 per $1,000 | $19,440 |
| Increase in yearly tax (drop in NOI) | $3,402 |
| Effect on value at a 6% cap rate | About $56,700 |
Selling a Washington apartment building to Skyline
Skyline buys apartment buildings with five or more units in Washington, including buildings in King, Pierce, Snohomish, Spokane and Clark counties. We buy directly, close on your timeline, and can work inside 1031 deadlines. We underwrite the tax at the expected new value up front, so a higher property tax bill does not surprise anyone late in escrow.
