Property tax in Erie County, New York
In Erie County, the property tax bill comes from your town's Town Clerk and Tax Collector, or the city treasurer in Lackawanna and the City of Tonawanda; in the City of Buffalo, the Erie County Department of Real Property Tax Services collects the county tax. The 2027 town and county taxes bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due February 15, 2027. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Erie County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Erie County, New York is $4,622 a year, which is about 1.98% of the county's median home value of $233,800. That effective rate is lower than the typical New York county (2.04%) 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 Erie County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from your town's Town Clerk and Tax Collector, or the city treasurer in Lackawanna and the City of Tonawanda; in the City of Buffalo, the Erie County Department of Real Property Tax Services collects the county tax. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, your town or city assessor (each of Erie County's 25 towns and 3 cities assesses its own properties), 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.
Most Erie County homeowners get more than one property tax bill. The town and county tax comes on one bill from the town clerk and tax collector in January (mid-February in some smaller towns). School taxes come on a separate bill in mid-September, usually from the same town office, due without penalty by October 15 (for 2026, Thursday, October 15, 2026). Village residents also get a village tax bill, generally due in July. In the City of Buffalo, Erie County collects the county tax itself, due February 15, and the City of Buffalo bills city taxes separately, due July 31 and December 31. Erie County does not assess homes: each town and city assessor sets values, takes exemption applications and hears the first appeal. In the towns, exemption applications are due March 1, the taxable status date; in the City of Buffalo the date is December 1. The county's online payment site takes current county taxes only for City of Buffalo properties, plus past-due county taxes anywhere in the county; everyone else pays the current bill to the town or city. Online card payments on the county site carry a bank convenience fee, and electronic checks cost $2 up to $5,000 and $5 above.
When are property taxes due in Erie County?
For the 2027 town and county taxes (bills mailed January to February 2027) bill, Erie County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due February 15, 2027 and the last March 15, 2027. In towns of the first class and the cities, penalties start the day after the due date: 1.5% through the end of February, rising 1.5% every half month to 7.5% for the second half of April. From May 1 interest of 1.5% a month is added on the first of each month, which town offices describe as 18.78% in all by the November tax sale. In towns of the second class, 7.5% is added from March 16, then the same monthly interest from May 1. Your bill prints the exact penalty dates. Town offices collect unpaid bills through June 30; after that the taxes must be paid to Erie County, which sells unpaid taxes and can foreclose.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Town and county bill, in towns of the first class, the City of Buffalo and the cities of Lackawanna and Tonawanda | February 15, 2027 | The Erie County Tax Act sets February 15 as the last day to pay without penalty in these places; bills go out in January. February 15, 2027 is a Monday and Washington's Birthday, a legal holiday in New York, and the Tax Act lets taxes due on a Sunday or legal holiday be paid on the next business day without penalty, so a payment on Tuesday, February 16, 2027 should carry no penalty. In 2026, when February 15 fell on a Sunday before the holiday, the Town of Lancaster set the last day as February 17. Your bill prints the exact date. Clarence and Lancaster are among the towns on this schedule. Partial payments are accepted. Some towns mail bills only to owners who do not pay through escrow. |
| Town and county bill, in towns of the second class | March 15, 2027 | Newstead and Concord are among the smaller towns on this schedule, with bills mailed in mid-February. The Tax Act lets these towns add a 1.5% collection fee even to an on-time payment unless the town board waives it; Newstead and Concord both say their bills are due without penalty through March 15. Your bill says whether your town charges the fee. March 15, 2027 is a Monday. If the last day falls on a Sunday or legal holiday, the Tax Act moves it to the next business day. |
From Erie County's published schedule, checked September 23, 2026. The county had not posted a calendar labeled for this cycle when we checked, so these dates come from state law and the county's standing schedule; the date on your bill is the one that binds you.
Estimate the property tax on a home in Erie County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Erie County's average effective rate of 1.98% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $4,629 / year
Property tax in Erie County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $4,622 |
| Median home value | $233,800 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.98% |
| Typical New York county rate | 2.04% |
| 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 Erie County compare in New York?
Among New York's 62 counties, Erie County has the 37th highest effective property-tax rate: 36 rank higher and 25 rank lower. That is near the middle for New York. Nationally, it ranks 94th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every New York county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Erie County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Erie County's 269,652 owner-occupied homes, 67.1% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 77.6% pay at least $2,000, and 5.8% pay under $800. Another 4.4% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 15,746 | 5.8% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 19,495 | 7.2% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 13,053 | 4.8% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 28,431 | 10.5% |
| $3,000 or more | 180,949 | 67.1% |
| No property tax paid | 11,978 | 4.4% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $4,915 and owners without one pay $4,205. 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 Erie County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $4,622 is about 4.9% of the median income of Erie County homeowner households, $94,544 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 65.8% of Erie 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 Erie County?
Yes. The median bill went from $3,891 in 2015-2019 to $4,622 in 2020-2024, a 18.8% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 52.4%, from $153,400 to $233,800. 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 Erie County
Erie County borders 5 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cattaraugus County, NY | 2.64% | $2,991 | $113,100 |
| Genesee County, NY | 2.41% | $4,113 | $170,500 |
| Chautauqua County, NY | 2.27% | $2,901 | $127,900 |
| Wyoming County, NY | 2.25% | $3,650 | $162,300 |
| Niagara County, NY | 2.19% | $4,155 | $189,800 |
| Erie County, NY (this county) | 1.98% | $4,622 | $233,800 |
How is a home assessed in Erie County?
New York sets the assessment rules and Erie County applies them. How New York assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Erie County?
Not as a flat dollar amount. New York's main owner-occupancy benefit is STAR, which reduces school taxes for owners with income up to $500,000 (STAR credit) or $250,000 (STAR exemption). That is the New York rule, and it applies in Erie County. New York's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the New York programs, Erie County runs its own:
- Volunteer firefighter and ambulance worker exemption: A 10% exemption from Erie County property tax for an enrolled, certified member of a volunteer fire company or volunteer ambulance service with at least two years of service, on a primary residence inside the area that company serves. Volunteers with 20 years of service keep it for life, as can the unremarried spouse of a qualifying volunteer who dies after 20 years or in the line of duty. The certificate of eligibility, with a letter from the fire company or ambulance service, is filed with the local assessor. Apply by March 1.
- Cold War veterans exemption from county tax: Erie County grants the Cold War veterans exemption on county taxes for a veteran who served on active duty between September 2, 1945 and December 26, 1991 and was discharged under honorable conditions (or the spouse or unremarried surviving spouse), on a primary residence: 15% of assessed value plus an added amount for a service-connected disability, each subject to county dollar caps. It does not apply to school taxes or to a veteran receiving the alternative or eligible funds veterans exemption, and since a 2017 county law it lasts as long as the veteran owns the home. Apply to the town or city assessor (by December 1 in the City of Buffalo). Apply by March 1.
- Partial exemption for persons with disabilities and limited incomes: Erie County has adopted, by local law, the state-authorized partial exemption from county property tax for homeowners with disabilities whose incomes are limited. The exemption is a share of assessed value, up to half, that shrinks as income rises. Apply to the town or city assessor (by December 1 in the City of Buffalo). Apply by March 1.
How to appeal your Erie County property assessment
In Erie County you appeal to the Your town's or city's Board of Assessment Review. The deadline: In the towns, file a written complaint (state Form RP-524) with the assessor or the Board of Assessment Review by Grievance Day, the fourth Tuesday in May (May 25, 2027 for the 2027 roll). The tentative roll is filed May 1 and the final roll July 1. After the Board rules, a homeowner can file for Small Claims Assessment Review or a tax certiorari case within 30 days of the final roll's filing. The cities set their own dates: in the City of Buffalo, assessments are challenged from December 1 to December 31. In Lackawanna and the City of Tonawanda, check with the city assessor. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How New York's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
New York rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the New York 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 Erie 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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New York income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what New York actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Erie County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Erie County, New York: 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.