Property tax in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania
In Lehigh County, the property tax bill comes from the Lehigh County Fiscal Office. 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 Lehigh County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania is $4,651 a year, which is about 1.55% of the county's median home value of $300,400. 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 Lehigh County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Lehigh County Fiscal Office. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Lehigh County Office of Assessment, 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.
In Lehigh County the county tax comes on its own bill from the county Fiscal Office in Allentown, not from your local tax collector. Your city, borough or township tax and your school district tax come on separate bills, each with its own discount, face and penalty dates. The county bill can be paid by mail, in person in Room 119 of the Government Center, at the secured drop box there, or online through Collector Solutions, which charges 2.25% for cards and $1.00 for an eCheck; online payments must be for the full bill. Delinquent taxes are paid to Elite Revenue Solutions, the Tax Claim Bureau's agent, in Room 120 of the Government Center.
When are property taxes due in Lehigh County?
Every due date for the 2026 bill has passed, and Lehigh 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, Lehigh County has one due date: July 31, 2026. The 2026 county bill is dated April 1, 2026. Paying the whole bill by May 31 earned a 2% discount, and the face amount is due June 1 through July 31. The bill also offers three installments, due May 31, July 31 and September 30, 2026; the first must be paid by May 31 to use them, and a late installment has a 10% penalty added. May 31, 2026 was a Sunday and the county has not said whether a payment on the next business day counted, so the last weekday before it was Friday, May 29. July 31, 2026 is a Friday and September 30, 2026 is a Wednesday. A 10% penalty is added to a bill paid from August 1 through December 31. County taxes unpaid by December 31 become delinquent and pass to the Lehigh County Tax Claim Bureau, whose agent, Elite Revenue Solutions, collects delinquent county, municipal and school taxes. A property can be sold at an upset tax sale starting in September of the second year after the tax was due.
From Lehigh 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 Lehigh County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Lehigh County's average effective rate of 1.55% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $4,656 / year
Property tax in Lehigh County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $4,651 |
| Median home value | $300,400 |
| Effective tax rate | 1.55% |
| 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 Lehigh County compare in Pennsylvania?
Among Pennsylvania's 67 counties, Lehigh County has the 8th highest effective property-tax rate: 7 rank higher and 59 rank lower. That places it among the most heavily taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 298th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Pennsylvania county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Lehigh County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Lehigh County's 94,675 owner-occupied homes, 75.7% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 83.7% pay at least $2,000, and 4.8% pay under $800. Another 2.1% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 4,549 | 4.8% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 5,158 | 5.4% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 3,758 | 4% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 7,586 | 8% |
| $3,000 or more | 71,683 | 75.7% |
| No property tax paid | 1,941 | 2.1% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $4,688 and owners without one pay $4,581. That is within 10% either way, so in Lehigh County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.
How does the Lehigh County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $4,651 is about 4.5% of the median income of Lehigh County homeowner households, $104,116 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 65.6% of Lehigh 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 Lehigh County?
Yes. The median bill went from $3,918 in 2015-2019 to $4,651 in 2020-2024, a 18.7% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 44.3%, from $208,200 to $300,400. 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 Lehigh County
Lehigh County borders 6 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Berks County, PA | 1.65% | $4,239 | $257,300 |
| Lehigh County, PA (this county) | 1.55% | $4,651 | $300,400 |
| Northampton County, PA | 1.52% | $4,700 | $308,600 |
| Carbon County, PA | 1.46% | $3,088 | $211,400 |
| Schuylkill County, PA | 1.4% | $2,140 | $153,000 |
| Montgomery County, PA | 1.35% | $5,875 | $436,700 |
| Bucks County, PA | 1.31% | $5,826 | $445,700 |
How is a home assessed in Lehigh County?
Pennsylvania sets the assessment rules and Lehigh County applies them. How Pennsylvania assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Lehigh 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 Lehigh County. Pennsylvania's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the Pennsylvania programs, Lehigh County runs its own:
- American Heroes Grant: Lehigh County refunds the full county real estate tax on the homestead or farmstead of a service member of any branch who is the taxpayer and was deployed for at least four months, for each tax year from 2007 through 2026 that includes part of the deployment. The county tax must be paid first, and a copy of the deployment papers goes with the application to the Office of Assessment.
- Volunteer firefighter tax credit: Lehigh County gives a $150 credit against county real estate tax to each qualifying active volunteer member of a participating fire company in the county. The county does not post how to apply on its own site, so ask your fire company.
How to appeal your Lehigh County property assessment
In Lehigh County you appeal to the Lehigh County Board of Assessment Appeals. The deadline: An annual appeal must be received by the Assessment Office on or before August 1, and any change applies to the next tax year. A postmark or a fax is not accepted as proof of timely filing, so the original signed appeal must arrive by the deadline. August 1, 2027 is a Sunday and the county has not said whether a weekend deadline moves, so the last weekday before it is Friday, July 30, 2027. If you receive a Change of Assessment Notice, the appeal is due by the date printed on that notice, with no filing fee. The non-refundable filing fee for an annual appeal is $50 per parcel for residential property, by check or money order payable to the County of Lehigh. 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 Lehigh 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 Lehigh County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Lehigh 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.