Property tax in Highland County, Ohio
In Highland County, the property tax bill comes from the Highland County Treasurer. Every due date for the 2025 payable 2026 bill has passed, and the county had not posted the next cycle's dates when we checked. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Highland County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Highland County, Ohio is $1,533 a year, which is about 0.91% of the county's median home value of $168,900. That effective rate is lower than the typical Ohio county (1.05%) 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 Highland County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Highland County Treasurer. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Highland County Auditor, 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 Highland County Auditor sets the value and the Highland County Treasurer in Hillsboro sends the bill and collects it. Ohio bills a year in arrears: 2025 taxes are paid in two halves during 2026, and the dates for 2026 taxes, due in 2027, had not been posted when this was checked. The Board of Revision is made up of the Auditor, the Treasurer and the President of the Board of Commissioners. Online and phone payments go through the Treasurer's payment processor, which charges its own fee.
When are property taxes due in Highland County?
Every due date for the 2025 payable 2026 bill has passed, and Highland County had not posted the next cycle's dates when we checked on September 23, 2026. If that bill is still unpaid, the late-payment rules below apply to it. Counties usually repeat the schedule, but confirm the new dates on your next bill. For the 2025 payable 2026 bill, Highland County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due March 13, 2026 and the last August 7, 2026. Ohio law adds a 10% penalty to a half left unpaid after its due date, cut in half to 5% if the full amount is paid within 10 days after the due date. Taxes still unpaid after the second-half due date become delinquent, and interest is charged starting the first day of the following month.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First half | March 13, 2026 (passed) | You may pay the whole year's tax by the first-half date. |
| Second half | August 7, 2026 (passed) |
From Highland 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 Highland County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Highland County's average effective rate of 0.91% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,537 / year
Property tax in Highland County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,533 |
| Median home value | $168,900 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.91% |
| Typical Ohio county rate | 1.05% |
| 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 Highland County compare in Ohio?
Among Ohio's 88 counties, Highland County has the 77th highest effective property-tax rate: 76 rank higher and 11 rank lower. That places it among the least taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 1330th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Ohio county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Highland County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Highland County's 12,588 owner-occupied homes, 12% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 33% pay at least $2,000, and 18.8% pay under $800. Another 2.3% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 2,367 | 18.8% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 3,638 | 28.9% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 2,143 | 17% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 2,641 | 21% |
| $3,000 or more | 1,508 | 12% |
| No property tax paid | 291 | 2.3% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $1,635 and owners without one pay $1,399. 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 Highland County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,533 is about 2.1% of the median income of Highland County homeowner households, $73,260 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 74.3% of Highland 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 Highland County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,302 in 2015-2019 to $1,533 in 2020-2024, a 17.7% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 43.9%, from $117,400 to $168,900. 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 Highland County
Highland County borders 6 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ross County, OH | 1% | $1,708 | $171,500 |
| Fayette County, OH | 0.94% | $1,601 | $170,700 |
| Clinton County, OH | 0.93% | $1,962 | $211,900 |
| Highland County, OH (this county) | 0.91% | $1,533 | $168,900 |
| Adams County, OH | 0.83% | $1,356 | $164,200 |
| Pike County, OH | 0.83% | $1,355 | $163,800 |
| Brown County, OH | 0.82% | $1,600 | $196,200 |
How is a home assessed in Highland County?
Ohio assesses homes at 35% of market value in every county, Highland County included. How Ohio assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Highland County?
No. Ohio has no universal homestead exemption; relief is targeted to seniors, the disabled and disabled veterans. That is the Ohio rule, and it applies in Highland County. Ohio's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Highland County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Ohio ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Highland County property assessment
In Highland County you appeal to the Highland County Board of Revision. The deadline: Under Ohio law, a complaint against the value (form DTE 1) is filed with the county auditor for the Board of Revision by March 31 of the year after the tax year you are disputing, or by the first-half due date if that is later. A complaint sent by U.S. Mail counts as filed on its U.S. Postal Service postmark; a private meter postmark does not count. Only one complaint per parcel is allowed in each three-year valuation period unless something changed, such as a sale or damage. A Board of Revision decision can be appealed to the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals, or instead to the county Court of Common Pleas, within 30 days after the decision notice is mailed. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against state law, because Highland County does not restate them on its own pages.
How Ohio's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Ohio rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Ohio 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 Highland 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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Ohio income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Ohio actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Highland County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Highland County, Ohio: 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.