Property tax in Berks County, Pennsylvania
In Berks County, the property tax bill comes from your township or borough's elected tax collector (the Berks County Treasurer collects instead in Reading and the other districts it lists). Every due date for the 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 Berks County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Berks County, Pennsylvania is $4,239 a year, which is about 1.65% of the county's median home value of $257,300. That effective rate is higher than the typical Pennsylvania 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 Berks County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from your township or borough's elected tax collector (the Berks County Treasurer collects instead in Reading and the other districts it lists). The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Berks County Assessment Office, 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 Berks County homeowners get at least two property tax bills. The county and municipal real estate taxes come on one bill, collected by your township or borough's elected tax collector; the County Treasurer is the collector for the City of Reading and a few other districts (Adamstown, Caernarvon, New Morgan, Shillington, Sinking Spring, Union and West Reading). Your school district tax comes on a separate bill. If you did not receive your county bill, ask your district tax collector for a copy. The county's online payment site works only for the districts it lists, accepts only payment in full, adds a processor's service fee, and cannot be used for school or delinquent taxes. The Treasurer does not accept cash. The county has warned that there is no age-based or senior form that freezes or eliminates property taxes, despite claims circulating online.
When are property taxes due in Berks County?
Every due date for the 2026 bill has passed, and Berks 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 2026 bill, Berks County has one due date: June 30, 2026. 2026 county bills were mailed with a March 1, 2026 bill date. Paying the whole bill from March 1 through April 30 earns a 2% discount; from May 1 through June 30 the face amount is due. The county describes these periods for its bills in its annual financial report, and state law sets them as two months at discount and two more at face from the bill date; the dates printed on your bill are the ones that count. From July 1 a 10% penalty is added. The Treasurer's 2026 notice says the penalty period runs through December 31, 2026. Taxes still unpaid after that pass to the county Tax Claim Bureau, which collects delinquent county, municipal and school taxes.
From Berks 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 Berks County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Berks County's average effective rate of 1.65% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $4,245 / year
Property tax in Berks County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $4,239 |
| Median home value | $257,300 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.65% |
| Typical Pennsylvania 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 Berks County compare in Pennsylvania?
Among Pennsylvania's 67 counties, Berks County has the 3rd highest effective property-tax rate: 2 rank higher and 64 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 229th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Pennsylvania county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Berks County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Berks County's 116,334 owner-occupied homes, 68.8% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 80.3% pay at least $2,000, and 4.3% pay under $800. Another 1.8% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 5,014 | 4.3% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 9,020 | 7.8% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 6,861 | 5.9% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 13,321 | 11.5% |
| $3,000 or more | 80,009 | 68.8% |
| No property tax paid | 2,109 | 1.8% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $4,438 and owners without one pay $3,906. 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 Berks County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $4,239 is about 4.4% of the median income of Berks County homeowner households, $97,214 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 71.3% of Berks 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 Berks County?
Yes. The median bill went from $3,739 in 2015-2019 to $4,239 in 2020-2024, a 13.4% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 44%, from $178,700 to $257,300. 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 Berks County
Berks County borders 6 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berks County, PA (this county) | 1.65% | $4,239 | $257,300 |
| Lehigh County, PA | 1.55% | $4,651 | $300,400 |
| Schuylkill County, PA | 1.4% | $2,140 | $153,000 |
| Lebanon County, PA | 1.37% | $3,310 | $242,000 |
| Montgomery County, PA | 1.35% | $5,875 | $436,700 |
| Lancaster County, PA | 1.32% | $3,975 | $301,100 |
| Chester County, PA | 1.3% | $6,308 | $485,600 |
How is a home assessed in Berks County?
Pennsylvania sets the assessment rules and Berks County applies them. How Pennsylvania assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Berks County?
Yes, but the amount varies. Pennsylvania's Homestead and Farmstead Exclusion lowers a home's assessed value for school tax, and each school district sets its own exclusion each year. That is the Pennsylvania rule, and it applies in Berks County. Pennsylvania's exemptions and relief programs in full.
Berks County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the Pennsylvania ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your Berks County property assessment
In Berks County you appeal to the Berks County Board of Assessment Appeals. The deadline: An annual appeal, effective for the following tax year, must be filed between June 15 and August 1 and received by the Assessment Office by 5:00 p.m.; an appeal mailed earlier but received late is rejected. If August 1 falls on a weekend, the deadline is 5:00 p.m. on the next business day, so for the next cycle it is Monday, August 2, 2027. An appeal of a change in assessment must be filed within 40 calendar days of the mailing date on the notice. The non-refundable filing fee is $50 for a residential or farm property ($25 for a mobile home), by check payable to the County of Berks; forms cannot be emailed or faxed. Hearings are held in person. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How Pennsylvania's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Pennsylvania rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Pennsylvania 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 Berks 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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Pennsylvania income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Pennsylvania actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Berks County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Berks County, Pennsylvania: 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.