Property tax in Jefferson County, Missouri
In Jefferson County, the property tax bill comes from the Jefferson County Collector of Revenue. The 2026 bill is due December 31, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Jefferson County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Jefferson County, Missouri is $1,906 a year, which is about 0.8% of the county's median home value of $237,200. That effective rate is higher than the typical Missouri county (0.7%) 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 Jefferson County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Jefferson County Collector of Revenue. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Jefferson 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 Jefferson County Assessor values property, but the Collector of Revenue mails one annual bill and distributes the money to every taxing body with a levy in the county. Real estate and personal property taxes share the December 31 deadline. If you get the bill and a mortgage company is supposed to pay it, the lender did not request it; call the lender and forward the bill. Online payments cost 2.5% by card (minimum $1.95) or $4.95 by e-check, plus $1.95 more by phone, and post the next business day. Some county pages still give the third Monday in June as the appeal deadline; the Board of Equalization has extended it to the second Monday in July.
When are property taxes due in Jefferson County?
For the 2026 bill, Jefferson County has one due date: December 31, 2026. One annual payment, due by December 31 whether or not a bill arrives; December 31, 2026 is a Thursday. Bills are posted online in November and mailed in mid to late November; if you have not received yours by December 1, call the Collector's office at 636-797-5406. A mailed payment counts by its postmark, so a payment postmarked after December 31 is late; check the last pickup time at your post office if you mail on the last day. Any delinquent taxes from earlier years must be paid before the current year's taxes. Taxes not paid or postmarked by December 31 become delinquent on January 1, and interest and penalties set by state law start that day. The Collector has no authority to waive or reduce them, and not receiving a bill does not excuse them. Real estate with unpaid taxes can be offered at the county's annual land tax sale, held on the fourth Monday in August.
From Jefferson 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 Jefferson County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Jefferson County's average effective rate of 0.8% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,898 / year
Property tax in Jefferson County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,906 |
| Median home value | $237,200 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.8% |
| Typical Missouri county rate | 0.7% |
| 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 Jefferson County compare in Missouri?
Among Missouri's 115 counties, Jefferson County has the 27th highest effective property-tax rate: 26 rank higher and 88 rank lower. That is on the higher side for Missouri. Nationally, it ranks 1582nd of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Missouri county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Jefferson County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Jefferson County's 72,617 owner-occupied homes, 21.6% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 44.4% pay at least $2,000, and 7.7% pay under $800. Another 4% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 5,579 | 7.7% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 18,308 | 25.2% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 13,533 | 18.6% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 16,592 | 22.8% |
| $3,000 or more | 15,716 | 21.6% |
| No property tax paid | 2,889 | 4% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $2,044 and owners without one pay $1,664. 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 Jefferson County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,906 is about 2.1% of the median income of Jefferson County homeowner households, $92,843 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 82.2% of Jefferson 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 Jefferson County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,481 in 2015-2019 to $1,906 in 2020-2024, a 28.7% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 46.6%, from $161,800 to $237,200. 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 Jefferson County
Jefferson County borders 6 counties, 1 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monroe County, IL | 1.63% | $4,588 | $282,100 |
| St. Louis County, MO | 1.2% | $3,335 | $276,800 |
| Franklin County, MO | 0.8% | $1,813 | $227,600 |
| Jefferson County, MO (this county) | 0.8% | $1,906 | $237,200 |
| St. Francois County, MO | 0.7% | $1,188 | $169,300 |
| Ste. Genevieve County, MO | 0.63% | $1,395 | $222,200 |
| Washington County, MO | 0.56% | $719 | $129,400 |
How is a home assessed in Jefferson County?
Missouri assesses homes at 19% of market value in every county, Jefferson County included. How Missouri assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Jefferson County?
No. Missouri has no general homestead exemption; relief comes through the income-tested Property Tax Credit and the county-option senior freeze. That is the Missouri rule, and it applies in Jefferson County. Missouri's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the Missouri programs, Jefferson County runs its own:
- Jefferson County Real Property Tax Credit for Seniors: Under county ordinance 24-0132, a homeowner who is 62 or older on January 1, owns and lives in the home, is liable for its real estate tax and is current on county real estate taxes can get a yearly credit equal to the amount the home's tax has risen above its tax in the base year they first qualified. It is a credit, not a freeze: some levies, such as the state Blind Pension Fund and voter-approved bond levies, are excluded, and new construction can raise the bill. New applicants apply from March 1 to June 30 with proof of age, residency and ownership; approved credits renew automatically. Apply by June 30.
How to appeal your Jefferson County property assessment
In Jefferson County you appeal to the Jefferson County Board of Equalization (appeals are filed with the County Clerk as secretary of the Board). The deadline: Talk to the Assessor's office first. If you cannot reach agreement, call the County Clerk at 636-797-5486 and mail the completed Board of Equalization appeal form. The usual deadline is the third Monday in June, but the Board has extended it to the second Monday in July, and appeals postmarked by that day are accepted (July 13, 2026 for the 2026 assessment, now passed). The Board usually mails its decision by certified letter within five business days of the hearing. A further appeal to the Missouri State Tax Commission is due by September 30 or 30 days after the Board's decision, whichever is later. If a State Tax Commission appeal is pending, you must still pay the full tax by December 31 with a letter saying you are paying under protest; simply writing protest on the check does not preserve your rights. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Missouri's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Missouri rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Missouri 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 Jefferson 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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Missouri income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Missouri actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Jefferson County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Jefferson County, Missouri: 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.