Property tax in Des Moines County, Iowa

By Brent Chudoba, editor Updated September 23, 2026

The median property tax bill in Des Moines County, Iowa is $2,058 a year, which is about 1.51% of the county's median home value of $136,500. That effective rate is higher 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 Des Moines County

Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Des Moines County's average effective rate of 1.51% (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: $2,061 / year

Property tax in Des Moines County at a glance

Des Moines County, Iowa property tax (Census ACS, reviewed September 23, 2026)
Measure	Value
Median annual property tax	$2,058
Median home value	$136,500
Effective tax rate	1.51%
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 Des Moines County compare in Iowa?

Among Iowa's 99 counties, Des Moines County has the 12th highest effective property-tax rate: 11 rank higher and 87 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 328th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Iowa county ranked.

How much do homeowners in Des Moines County actually pay?

The median is only the middle bill. Across Des Moines County's 12,823 owner-occupied homes, 28.3% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 49.6% pay at least $2,000, and 9.2% pay under $800. Another 3.3% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.

Annual property tax paid by Des Moines County homeowners (Census ACS 2020-2024)
Annual bill	Homes	Share
Under $800	1,175	9.2%
$800 to $1,499	2,639	20.6%
$1,500 to $1,999	2,226	17.4%
$2,000 to $2,999	2,734	21.3%
$3,000 or more	3,623	28.3%
No property tax paid	426	3.3%

Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,225 and owners without one pay $1,898. 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 Des Moines County property tax bill compare with local incomes?

The median property tax bill of $2,058 is about 2.7% of the median income of Des Moines County homeowner households, $76,825 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 74.6% of Des Moines 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 Des Moines County?

Yes. The median bill went from $1,784 in 2015-2019 to $2,058 in 2020-2024, a 15.4% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 25.8%, from $108,500 to $136,500. 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 Des Moines County

Des Moines County borders 5 counties, 2 of them across the state line.

Des Moines County and its neighbors, highest effective rate first (Census ACS 2020-2024)
County	Effective rate	Median bill	Median home value
Mercer County, IL	1.96%	$2,878	$146,700
Henderson County, IL	1.58%	$1,651	$104,400
Henry County, IA	1.56%	$2,559	$164,300
Des Moines County, IA (this county)	1.51%	$2,058	$136,500
Lee County, IA	1.38%	$1,955	$141,400
Louisa County, IA	1.17%	$1,751	$150,100

How is a home assessed in Des Moines County?

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

Is there a homestead exemption in Des Moines 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 Des Moines County. Iowa's exemptions and relief programs in full.

When are property taxes due in Des Moines 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. Des Moines County issues and collects the bill, so the dates printed on your statement are the ones that bind you.

How to appeal your Des Moines 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; Des Moines 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 Des Moines 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.