Property tax in Porter County, Indiana
In Porter County, the property tax bill comes from the Porter County Treasurer. The 2025 pay 2026 bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due November 10, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Porter County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Porter County, Indiana is $2,326 a year, which is about 0.83% of the county's median home value of $281,500. That effective rate is higher than the typical Indiana county (0.66%) and higher 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 Porter County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Porter County Treasurer. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Porter 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.
Property tax bills come from the Porter County Treasurer in Valparaiso. Indiana bills a year in arrears: the 2025 assessment is taxed in two installments during 2026. The Porter County Assessor values property; Portage Township has its own assessor's office in Portage. Deductions and credits such as the homestead deduction and the over-65 credit are the state's and are filed with the Porter County Auditor. E-check payments online are free; paying in person by credit card costs 2.5% (at least $1.55) and by debit card $3.95, and card payments online or by phone carry a processor's fee. Porter County is one of the counties in the federal disaster declaration for the August 11 and 12, 2026 storms. Owners whose property was damaged can petition the assessor to reassess it (state Form 137R); any reduction applies from the date of the storm, without penalty.
When are property taxes due in Porter County?
For the 2025 pay 2026 bill, Porter County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due May 11, 2026 and the last November 10, 2026. The next one due is the fall installment, on November 10, 2026. A late installment is charged a penalty of 5% of the unpaid tax if it is paid within 30 days of the due date and you owe no back taxes on the property. Otherwise the penalty is 10%. The Treasurer accepts full and partial payments all year, but penalties still apply to whatever is unpaid after a due date.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Spring installment | May 11, 2026 (passed) | The county's due dates are May 10 and November 10, moved to the next business day when they fall on a weekend or holiday. May 10, 2026 was a Sunday, so the spring installment was due Monday, May 11. Bills are mailed in April with a coupon for each installment. |
| Fall installment | November 10, 2026 | November 10, 2026 is a Tuesday. A mailed payment is on time if it is postmarked by the U.S. Postal Service on or before the due date, or handed to a national express carrier by that date. The state has not moved this date because of the August 2026 storms. |
From Porter 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 Porter County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Porter County's average effective rate of 0.83% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $2,336 / year
Property tax in Porter County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $2,326 |
| Median home value | $281,500 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.83% |
| Typical Indiana county rate | 0.66% |
| 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 Porter County compare in Indiana?
Among Indiana's 92 counties, Porter County has the 6th highest effective property-tax rate: 5 rank higher and 86 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 1505th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Indiana county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Porter County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Porter County's 53,352 owner-occupied homes, 31.6% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 57.5% pay at least $2,000, and 9.9% pay under $800. Another 1.8% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 5,258 | 9.9% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 8,662 | 16.2% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 7,765 | 14.6% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 13,827 | 25.9% |
| $3,000 or more | 16,863 | 31.6% |
| No property tax paid | 977 | 1.8% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,359 and owners without one pay $2,251. That is within 10% either way, so in Porter County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.
How does the Porter County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $2,326 is about 2.3% of the median income of Porter County homeowner households, $100,997 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 77.7% of Porter 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 Porter County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,781 in 2015-2019 to $2,326 in 2020-2024, a 30.6% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 51.8%, from $185,400 to $281,500. 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 Porter County
Porter County borders 6 counties, 2 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cook County, IL | 1.91% | $6,191 | $324,500 |
| Berrien County, MI | 1.08% | $2,429 | $224,300 |
| Lake County, IN | 0.92% | $2,112 | $230,600 |
| Porter County, IN (this county) | 0.83% | $2,326 | $281,500 |
| LaPorte County, IN | 0.77% | $1,503 | $195,500 |
| Starke County, IN | 0.61% | $967 | $157,700 |
| Jasper County, IN | 0.46% | $1,029 | $221,500 |
How is a home assessed in Porter County?
Indiana assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Porter County included. How Indiana assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Porter County?
Yes, but it is shrinking. Indiana's homestead standard deduction is $40,000 for assessment year 2026 and reaches $0 from 2030; a bill paid in 2026 reflects the $48,000 figure. That is the Indiana rule, and it applies in Porter County. Indiana's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the Indiana programs, Porter County runs its own:
- County homestead credit (LIT 1% credit): Porter County uses part of its local income tax to lower property tax bills on homesteads (homes in the 1% tax cap category); the state certified about $15.5 million for this credit for 2026. It is figured on every homestead, and the rate changes each year.
How to appeal your Porter County property assessment
In Porter County you appeal to the Porter County Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals (PTABOA). The deadline: File Form 130 with your assessor (the Porter County Assessor, or the Portage Township Assessor for property in Portage Township) by June 15 of the assessment year if the notice of assessment was mailed before May 1. If the notice was mailed on or after May 1, or no notice was sent, the deadline is June 15 of the year the tax bill is mailed. A Property Tax Assessment Board of Appeals decision can be appealed to the Indiana Board of Tax Review on Form 131. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Indiana's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Indiana rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Indiana 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 Porter 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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Indiana income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Indiana actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Porter County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Porter County, Indiana: 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.