Property tax in Washington County, Arkansas
In Washington County, the property tax bill comes from the Washington County Collector. The 2025 bill is due October 15, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Washington County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Washington County, Arkansas is $1,564 a year, which is about 0.52% of the county's median home value of $298,400. That effective rate is higher than the typical Arkansas county (0.51%) and lower than the national median (0.81%). These are American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2024); your own bill depends on your home's assessed value and any exemptions.
Who sends the property tax bill in Washington County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Washington County Collector. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Washington County Assessor, which is who to ask if the value looks wrong. For how to look up and pay the bill, go to the county's own payment information.
The Assessor values property and the Collector sends the bill, from separate offices. Statements are mailed in late March or early April; call the Collector at (479) 444-1526 if yours has not arrived by April 15. Personal property (cars, trailers, boats) must be assessed with the Assessor between January 1 and May 31 each year, or a 10% late assessment fee is added. Online payments run through the actDataScout portal the county links to, with a card processing fee. Washington County reappraises all real estate every four years.
When are property taxes due in Washington County?
For the 2025 (payable 2026) bill, Washington County has one due date: October 15, 2026. Arkansas collects property tax a year behind, so the 2025 tax is due October 15, 2026 (a Thursday). The Collector takes payments without penalty from the first business day of March through October 15. Under the state rule, when October 15 falls on a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday the deadline moves to the next business day. After October 15 the office no longer takes personal checks, only money orders, cashier's checks and debit or credit cards with the penalty and interest included. A 10% penalty is added to real estate and personal property taxes paid after October 15, plus 10% annual interest on real estate.
From Washington County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. If a date falls on a weekend or holiday, the county's own rules on the next business day apply.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Washington County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Washington County's average effective rate of 0.52% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,552 / year
Property tax in Washington County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,564 |
| Median home value | $298,400 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.52% |
| Typical Arkansas county rate | 0.51% |
| National median county rate | 0.81% |
Effective rate = median real estate taxes paid divided by median home value. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates.
How does Washington County compare in Arkansas?
Among Arkansas's 75 counties, Washington County has the 37th highest effective property-tax rate: 36 rank higher and 38 rank lower. That is near the middle for Arkansas. Nationally, it ranks 2560th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Arkansas county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Washington County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Washington County's 54,053 owner-occupied homes, 16.9% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 33.9% pay at least $2,000, and 18.7% pay under $800. Another 5.3% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 10,131 | 18.7% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 14,404 | 26.6% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 8,276 | 15.3% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 9,209 | 17% |
| $3,000 or more | 9,158 | 16.9% |
| No property tax paid | 2,875 | 5.3% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $1,691 and owners without one pay $1,373. Owners who have paid off a home have usually held it longer, and in states that cap how fast an existing owner's assessment can rise, long-held homes carry lower assessed values. Census table B25103.
How does the Washington County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,564 is about 1.6% of the median income of Washington County homeowner households, $98,371 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 55.6% of Washington County's occupied homes are lived in by their owners; renters pay property tax too, just folded into rent.
Have property taxes gone up in Washington County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,195 in 2015-2019 to $1,564 in 2020-2024, a 30.9% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 72.1%, from $173,400 to $298,400. Bills rose more slowly than values, which is what assessment caps and falling millage rates do: the county is taxing a smaller share of each home's worth.
Two Census ACS 5-year periods with no survey years in common, in each period's own dollars. A change counts only if it exceeds the combined 90% margin of error.
Property tax in counties next to Washington County
Washington County borders 4 counties, 1 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Benton County, AR | 0.56% | $1,823 | $323,500 |
| Crawford County, AR | 0.54% | $982 | $182,800 |
| Washington County, AR (this county) | 0.52% | $1,564 | $298,400 |
| Adair County, OK | 0.48% | $569 | $117,800 |
| Madison County, AR | 0.41% | $736 | $178,100 |
How is a home assessed in Washington County?
Arkansas assesses homes at 20% of market value in every county, Washington County included. How Arkansas assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Washington County?
Yes, as a credit off the bill. Arkansas's Amendment 79 homestead credit is $600 on bills payable in 2026, rising to $675 on bills payable in 2027. Register once with the county assessor. That is the Arkansas rule, and it applies in Washington County. Arkansas's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Washington County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Arkansas ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Washington County property assessment
In Washington County you appeal to the Washington County Board of Equalization. The deadline: Schedule a hearing on or before the third Monday in August (in 2026 that was August 17). The board sits from August 1 through September 30. An informal review with an appraiser in the Assessor's office, by the same date, comes first. A board decision can be appealed to County Court and then to Circuit Court. Because Arkansas bills a year behind, an appeal of this year's value changes the bill due the following October. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Arkansas's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Arkansas rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Arkansas page.
Work out your own numbers
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How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Washington County's tax rate to hand.
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Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
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Arkansas income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Arkansas actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Washington County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Washington County, Arkansas: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-year estimates (2020-2024), tables B25103, B25077, B25102, B25119 and B25003; the five-year comparison uses the 2015-2019 estimates. Neighboring counties: Census county adjacency file.