Property tax in York County, South Carolina
In York County, the property tax bill comes from the York County Tax Collection (County Treasurer). The 2026 bill is due January 15, 2027. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from York County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in York County, South Carolina is $1,740 a year, which is about 0.48% of the county's median home value of $361,300. That effective rate is lower than the typical South Carolina county (0.51%) and lower 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 York County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the York County Tax Collection (County Treasurer). The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the York County Assessor, 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.
Three county offices share the work: the Assessor values real estate and grants the 4% owner-occupied (legal residence) rate, the Auditor calculates the bills, applies penalties and handles the homestead exemption, and Tax Collection collects. If your home is your legal residence, apply to the Assessor for the 4% rate; without it the home is taxed at 6%. For homes inside a city or town, the city tax is on the same county bill and the county collects it. The bill goes to the owner of record on January 1, so a buyer who closed during the year may get a bill in the seller's name. Card payments online, by phone or in person carry a convenience fee; e-check payments online and by phone are free.
When are property taxes due in York County?
For the 2026 bill, York County has one due date: January 15, 2027. Real estate taxes are payable from September 30 through January 15 of the following year without a penalty. January 15, 2027 is a Friday. Mailed payments are processed by their postmark date. The county cannot accept partial payments. Owners of property without a mortgage escrow whose current bill is paid by January 15 can apply, from December 1 to January 15, to prepay the next year's real estate tax in six payments; this is an option, not the regular due date. Under state law, tax not paid by January 15 (or within 30 days after the bill was mailed, if that is later) gets a 3% penalty, another 7% if still unpaid on February 2, and another 5% if still unpaid on March 17, when collection costs are added and the property moves toward the delinquent tax sale. York County advertises delinquent properties for three weeks and holds its tax sale in October or November.
From York 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 York County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at York County's average effective rate of 0.48% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,734 / year
Property tax in York County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,740 |
| Median home value | $361,300 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.48% |
| Typical South Carolina county rate | 0.51% |
| 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 York County compare in South Carolina?
Among South Carolina's 46 counties, York County has the 28th highest effective property-tax rate: 27 rank higher and 18 rank lower. That is on the lower side for South Carolina. Nationally, it ranks 2701st of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every South Carolina county ranked.
How much do homeowners in York County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across York County's 84,806 owner-occupied homes, 22.1% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 40.5% pay at least $2,000, and 17.3% pay under $800. Another 3.9% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 14,668 | 17.3% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 20,247 | 23.9% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 12,167 | 14.3% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 15,639 | 18.4% |
| $3,000 or more | 18,774 | 22.1% |
| No property tax paid | 3,311 | 3.9% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $1,934 and owners without one pay $1,276. 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 York County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,740 is about 1.6% of the median income of York County homeowner households, $106,235 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 74.5% of York 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 York County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,207 in 2015-2019 to $1,740 in 2020-2024, a 44.2% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 79.7%, from $201,100 to $361,300. 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 York County
York County borders 7 counties, 3 of them across the state line.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gaston County, NC | 0.75% | $1,982 | $266,000 |
| Mecklenburg County, NC | 0.71% | $2,890 | $406,800 |
| Cleveland County, NC | 0.64% | $1,286 | $200,000 |
| Chester County, SC | 0.56% | $890 | $158,300 |
| Union County, SC | 0.56% | $579 | $103,600 |
| Lancaster County, SC | 0.5% | $1,657 | $329,900 |
| York County, SC (this county) | 0.48% | $1,740 | $361,300 |
| Cherokee County, SC | 0.43% | $614 | $142,000 |
How is a home assessed in York County?
South Carolina assesses homes at 4% of market value in every county, York County included. How South Carolina assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in York County?
Not as a dollar amount. South Carolina owner-occupants get a 4% assessment ratio instead of 6% plus an exemption from school operating millage; apply for the 4% ratio with the county assessor. That is the South Carolina rule, and it applies in York County. South Carolina's exemptions and relief programs in full.
York County does not add relief programs of its own beyond the South Carolina ones (checked September 23, 2026).
How to appeal your York County property assessment
In York County you appeal to the York County Assessor (written appeal), then the York County Board of Assessment Appeals. The deadline: In a year you receive an assessment notice, appeal to the Assessor in writing within 90 days after the notice is mailed. In a year with no notice, you may appeal in writing at any time; an appeal filed on or before January 15 counts for that tax year, and one filed later counts for the next year. If a conference with the Assessor does not settle it, you have 30 days after the conference to file a written protest, then 30 days after the Assessor's written response to give the Assessor written notice that you are appealing to the Board of Assessment Appeals. These windows are set by state law. The county's form is not required, but the appeal must be in writing and should name the tax map number and give your estimate of value. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against the official appeal rules.
How South Carolina's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
South Carolina rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the South Carolina 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 York 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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South Carolina income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what South Carolina actually taxes.
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Sales tax in York County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for York County, South Carolina: 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.