Property tax in Lancaster County, Nebraska
In Lancaster County, the property tax bill comes from the Lancaster County Treasurer. The Tax year 2026 bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due March 31, 2027. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Lancaster County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Lancaster County, Nebraska is $4,204 a year, which is about 1.53% of the county's median home value of $275,200. That effective rate is higher than the typical Nebraska county (1.27%) 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 Lancaster County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Lancaster County Treasurer. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Lancaster County Assessor/Register of Deeds, 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 Lancaster County Assessor/Register of Deeds values homes and mails change-of-value notices by June 1, but the Lancaster County Treasurer sends the bill and takes the payment. One statement covers the county, the city or village, the school district and the other local taxing districts. Statements are mailed in December and should arrive by mid-December; not receiving one does not excuse late payment, so call the Treasurer at 402-441-7425 for a duplicate. Nebraska counties with more than 100,000 people, Lancaster among them, use earlier delinquency dates (April 1 and August 1) than the May 1 and September 1 used in smaller counties. The Treasurer warns that a USPS postmark may now show the date mail was processed rather than the date it was dropped off, so pay online, mail early, or ask for a hand postmark at a post office counter. The online payment and bill lookup is hosted on the City of Lincoln's website, which the county shares.
When are property taxes due in Lancaster County?
For the Tax year 2026 bill, Lancaster County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due March 31, 2027 and the last July 31, 2027. Interest of 14% a year runs on each unpaid half from the day it becomes delinquent (April 1 for the first half, August 1 for the second) until paid. Real estate taxes still unpaid are advertised the following February and offered at public tax sale on the first Monday in March.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First half (last day to pay without interest) | March 31, 2027 | State law makes the whole year's tax due December 31, 2026, but lets it be paid in two halves without interest. The first half becomes delinquent on April 1, 2027, so March 31 is the last day to pay it without interest. You may pay the full year at once. |
| Second half (last day to pay without interest) | July 31, 2027 | The second half becomes delinquent on August 1, 2027. July 31, 2027 is a Saturday and August 1 is a Sunday; Nebraska law (Neb. Rev. Stat. 49-1203) treats a payment due on a weekend as on time if made in person or postmarked on the next business day, Monday, August 2, 2027. The county has not said how it will apply this in 2027, so paying by Friday, July 30 is the safe choice. |
From Lancaster 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 Lancaster County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Lancaster County's average effective rate of 1.53% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $4,211 / year
Property tax in Lancaster County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $4,204 |
| Median home value | $275,200 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.53% |
| Typical Nebraska county rate | 1.27% |
| 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 Lancaster County compare in Nebraska?
Among Nebraska's 93 counties, Lancaster County has the 7th highest effective property-tax rate: 6 rank higher and 86 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 310th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Nebraska county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Lancaster County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Lancaster County's 79,065 owner-occupied homes, 71.5% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 86.1% pay at least $2,000, and 3% pay under $800. Another 3.8% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 2,350 | 3% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 2,613 | 3.3% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 3,039 | 3.8% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 11,505 | 14.6% |
| $3,000 or more | 56,539 | 71.5% |
| No property tax paid | 3,019 | 3.8% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $4,187 and owners without one pay $4,234. That is within 10% either way, so in Lancaster County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.
How does the Lancaster County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $4,204 is about 4.1% of the median income of Lancaster County homeowner households, $103,689 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 58.9% of Lancaster 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 Lancaster County?
Yes. The median bill went from $3,191 in 2015-2019 to $4,204 in 2020-2024, a 31.7% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 55.1%, from $177,400 to $275,200. 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 Lancaster County
Lancaster County borders 8 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lancaster County, NE (this county) | 1.53% | $4,204 | $275,200 |
| Cass County, NE | 1.43% | $3,652 | $254,900 |
| Gage County, NE | 1.41% | $2,447 | $174,000 |
| Saline County, NE | 1.35% | $2,663 | $197,400 |
| Otoe County, NE | 1.33% | $2,691 | $201,600 |
| Johnson County, NE | 1.32% | $2,052 | $155,500 |
| Saunders County, NE | 1.3% | $3,531 | $271,700 |
| Seward County, NE | 1.18% | $2,850 | $241,300 |
| Butler County, NE | 1.11% | $2,044 | $184,200 |
How is a home assessed in Lancaster County?
Nebraska assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Lancaster County included. How Nebraska assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Lancaster County?
Only for some owners. Nebraska's homestead exemption is limited to owners 65 and older, disabled owners and veterans; every owner gets two credits printed on the county statement. That is the Nebraska rule, and it applies in Lancaster County. Nebraska's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Lancaster County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Nebraska ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Lancaster County property assessment
In Lancaster County you appeal to the Lancaster County Board of Equalization (protests are filed with the Lancaster County Clerk). The deadline: A valuation protest may be filed from June 1 to June 30 each year; online filings are accepted until 11:59 p.m. on June 30, mailed forms must be postmarked by June 30, and if June 30 falls on a weekend the deadline moves to the next business day. There is no charge, and each parcel needs its own protest. The Board's final value can then be appealed to the state Tax Equalization and Review Commission (TERC); the county's 2026 deadline for that was September 10, which state law allows only when the county extends its protest hearings (otherwise it is August 24), so check the date on your final value notice. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Nebraska's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Nebraska rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Nebraska page.
Work out your own numbers
-
How much house can I afford?
Your income, debts and down payment against the 28/36 rule lenders actually use, with Lancaster County's tax rate to hand.
-
Mortgage calculator
Monthly payment with principal, interest, tax and insurance, plus what an extra payment saves you.
-
Nebraska income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Nebraska actually taxes.
-
Sales tax in Lancaster County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Lancaster County, Nebraska: 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.