Property tax in Clayton County, Iowa

By Brent Chudoba, editor Updated September 23, 2026

The median property tax bill in Clayton County, Iowa is $2,181 a year, which is about 1.29% of the county's median home value of $168,500. That effective rate is lower than the typical Iowa county (1.32%) 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.

Estimate the property tax on a home in Clayton County

Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Clayton County's average effective rate of 1.29% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.

Home market value

Estimated property tax: $2,174 / year

Property tax in Clayton County at a glance

Clayton County, Iowa property tax (Census ACS, reviewed September 23, 2026)
Measure	Value
Median annual property tax	$2,181
Median home value	$168,500
Effective tax rate	1.29%
Typical Iowa county rate	1.32%
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 Clayton County compare in Iowa?

Among Iowa's 99 counties, Clayton County has the 57th highest effective property-tax rate: 56 rank higher and 42 rank lower. That is near the middle for Iowa. Nationally, it ranks 605th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Iowa county ranked.

How much do homeowners in Clayton County actually pay?

The median is only the middle bill. Across Clayton County's 5,856 owner-occupied homes, 27.3% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 53.9% pay at least $2,000, and 8.2% pay under $800. Another 2% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.

Annual property tax paid by Clayton County homeowners (Census ACS 2020-2024)
Annual bill	Homes	Share
Under $800	481	8.2%
$800 to $1,499	1,220	20.8%
$1,500 to $1,999	888	15.2%
$2,000 to $2,999	1,555	26.6%
$3,000 or more	1,597	27.3%
No property tax paid	115	2%

Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,248 and owners without one pay $2,116. That is within 10% either way, so in Clayton County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.

How does the Clayton County property tax bill compare with local incomes?

The median property tax bill of $2,181 is about 2.8% of the median income of Clayton County homeowner households, $76,779 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 78% of Clayton 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 Clayton County?

Yes. The median bill went from $1,731 in 2015-2019 to $2,181 in 2020-2024, a 26% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 38.5%, from $121,700 to $168,500. 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 Clayton County

Clayton County borders 8 counties, 2 of them across the state line.

Clayton County and its neighbors, highest effective rate first (Census ACS 2020-2024)
County	Effective rate	Median bill	Median home value
Crawford County, WI	1.56%	$2,861	$183,400
Buchanan County, IA	1.36%	$2,390	$176,000
Grant County, WI	1.36%	$2,729	$200,700
Delaware County, IA	1.34%	$2,382	$177,900
Fayette County, IA	1.3%	$1,782	$136,800
Clayton County, IA (this county)	1.29%	$2,181	$168,500
Allamakee County, IA	1.27%	$2,190	$172,300
Dubuque County, IA	1.23%	$2,919	$237,300
Winneshiek County, IA	1.12%	$2,894	$259,200

How is a home assessed in Clayton County?

Iowa sets the assessment rules and Clayton County applies them. How Iowa assesses and reappraises homes.

Is there a homestead exemption in Clayton County?

Yes. From the 2026 assessment year Iowa exempts 10% of a homestead's taxable value, never less than $5,500 or more than $20,000. File form 54-028 with your assessor by July 1. That is the Iowa rule, and it applies in Clayton County. Iowa's exemptions and relief programs in full.

When are property taxes due in Clayton County?

Iowa bills for a fiscal year running July 1 to June 30 and you pay the county treasurer in two halves, the first by September 30 and the second by March 31. The statute technically says pay before September 1 and March 1, but nothing goes delinquent and no interest accrues until October 1 and April 1, which is why counties advertise the end of September and March as the real deadlines. If the last day lands on a weekend you have until the second business day of the following month.

Iowa splits the bill into 2 installments. That is the Iowa rule. Clayton County issues and collects the bill, so the dates printed on your statement are the ones that bind you.

How to appeal your Clayton County property assessment

You contest the assessed value with the your local board of review, then the Property Assessment Appeal Board or district court. The filing deadline is typically April 30, with protests accepted from April 2 onward. That is the Iowa rule; Clayton County sets the exact dates and forms. The Iowa appeal process step by step.

Iowa rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Iowa page.

Work out your own numbers

Sources

Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Clayton County, Iowa: 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.