Property tax in Bedford County, Virginia
In Bedford County, the property tax bill comes from the Bedford County Treasurer's Office. The 2026 bill is paid in 2 installments, and the next one is due December 5, 2026. You can look up and pay the bill on the county's own payment page. Taken from Bedford County's own pages, checked September 23, 2026.
The median property tax bill in Bedford County, Virginia is $1,285 a year, which is about 0.43% of the county's median home value of $297,400. That effective rate is lower than the typical Virginia county (0.6%) 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 Bedford County, and how do you pay it?
The bill comes from the Bedford County Treasurer's Office. The value it is based on is set by a separate office, the Bedford County Commissioner of the Revenue, 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 Commissioner of the Revenue assesses property and the Treasurer sends the bills and collects. Property in the Town of Bedford also owes a separate town real estate tax, billed by the town and paid at the Town Municipal Building, due June 5 and December 5 (moved to the next business day when a due date falls on a weekend or holiday); the town does not mail reminders before the due dates. If your taxes are escrowed, the bill goes to your mortgage company. Online payments run through a third-party payment portal linked from the county's real estate tax page, and card payments carry a fee.
When are property taxes due in Bedford County?
For the 2026 bill, Bedford County splits the bill into 2 payments, the first due June 5, 2026 and the last December 5, 2026. The next one due is the second half (fall bill), on December 5, 2026. An installment not paid or postmarked by its due date carries a penalty of 10% of the installment or $10, whichever is greater. Interest of 10% a year on the tax and penalty starts on the first day of the next month (July 1 for the June installment, January 1 for the December installment). Not receiving a bill does not remove the obligation to pay on time or prevent penalties and interest.
| Payment | Due | Note |
|---|---|---|
| First half (spring bill) | June 5, 2026 (passed) | Starting in 2026 the county sends two separate bills, one in the spring and one in the fall. The whole year can be paid with the spring bill, and then no fall bill is sent. A mailed payment counts as on time if postmarked by the due date. |
| Second half (fall bill) | December 5, 2026 | December 5, 2026 is a Saturday. Virginia law (Code of Virginia section 1-210) lets a payment that a local ordinance makes due on a weekend be made on the next business day, so a payment made on Monday, December 7 is on time. The county has not published a shifted date; paying by Friday, December 4 avoids any doubt. A mailed payment counts as on time if postmarked by the due date. |
From Bedford 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 Bedford County
Enter a home's market value for a ballpark at Bedford County's average effective rate of 0.43% (Census). The real bill depends on the home's assessed value, the millage where it sits and any exemptions.
Estimated property tax: $1,279 / year
Property tax in Bedford County at a glance
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Median annual property tax | $1,285 |
| Median home value | $297,400 |
| Effective tax rate | 0.43% |
| Typical Virginia county rate | 0.6% |
| 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 Bedford County compare in Virginia?
Among Virginia's 133 counties, Bedford County has the 128th highest effective property-tax rate: 127 rank higher and 5 rank lower. That places it among the least taxed counties in the state. Nationally, it ranks 2867th of 3135 US counties by effective rate. See every Virginia county ranked.
How much do homeowners in Bedford County actually pay?
The median is only the middle bill. Across Bedford County's 28,045 owner-occupied homes, 8.7% pay $3,000 or more a year in property tax, 21.5% pay at least $2,000, and 23.4% pay under $800. Another 3.8% report paying no property tax at all, which usually means an exemption covers the whole bill.
| Annual bill | Homes | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $800 | 6,576 | 23.4% |
| $800 to $1,499 | 10,086 | 36% |
| $1,500 to $1,999 | 4,299 | 15.3% |
| $2,000 to $2,999 | 3,579 | 12.8% |
| $3,000 or more | 2,452 | 8.7% |
| No property tax paid | 1,053 | 3.8% |
Owners with a mortgage pay a median of $1,316 and owners without one pay $1,243. That is within 10% either way, so in Bedford County paying off the house does not go with a noticeably different bill. Census table B25103.
How does the Bedford County property tax bill compare with local incomes?
The median property tax bill of $1,285 is about 1.5% of the median income of Bedford County homeowner households, $86,469 a year. That compares two middles, so a retiree in a long-held home can pay a far larger share. 84.7% of Bedford 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 Bedford County?
Yes. The median bill went from $1,033 in 2015-2019 to $1,285 in 2020-2024, a 24.4% rise. Over the same span the median home value moved 47.3%, from $201,900 to $297,400. 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 Bedford County
Bedford County borders 8 counties.
| County | Effective rate | Median bill | Median home value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roanoke County, VA | 0.85% | $2,436 | $286,000 |
| Lynchburg city, VA | 0.79% | $1,804 | $229,800 |
| Botetourt County, VA | 0.64% | $1,862 | $289,200 |
| Rockbridge County, VA | 0.6% | $1,492 | $248,800 |
| Pittsylvania County, VA | 0.59% | $948 | $161,400 |
| Franklin County, VA | 0.5% | $1,196 | $240,400 |
| Amherst County, VA | 0.46% | $975 | $212,400 |
| Campbell County, VA | 0.45% | $950 | $211,600 |
| Bedford County, VA (this county) | 0.43% | $1,285 | $297,400 |
How is a home assessed in Bedford County?
Virginia assesses homes at 100% of market value in every county, Bedford County included. How Virginia assesses and reappraises homes.
Is there a homestead exemption in Bedford County?
No. Virginia has no general homestead exemption; relief is limited to the elderly and disabled, disabled veterans, and surviving spouses of service members and first responders killed in the line of duty. That is the Virginia rule, and it applies in Bedford County. Virginia's exemptions and relief programs in full.
On top of the Virginia programs, Bedford County runs its own:
- Real estate tax exemption for the elderly and disabled: For owners 65 or older or permanently and totally disabled, with total combined household income of $50,000 or less and net worth of $150,000 or less (not counting the home and up to one acre), a partial exemption on their primary residence: the county's tax page gives 100% of the tax if the tax due is $500 or less and 85% if it is between $500 and $1,000, and the county code caps the exemption at $1,000 a year. Applications must be filed in person every year. Apply by February 28 (applications accepted from January 2).
How to appeal your Bedford County property assessment
In Bedford County you appeal to the Bedford County Board of Equalization (appointed for each general reassessment). The deadline: Bedford County reassesses every four years. Notices of the new values from the 2027 reassessment go out in fall 2026, take effect January 1, 2027, and list the hearing dates and times when owners can discuss or appeal the new value. An owner still not satisfied can then appeal to the Board of Equalization, which the county appoints for each general reassessment. How to file. Checked September 23, 2026 against state law, because Bedford County does not restate them on its own pages.
How Virginia's appeal process works, including the next level if the first one turns you down.
Virginia rules from primary state sources, reviewed September 7, 2026; sources on the Virginia 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 Bedford 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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Virginia income tax
Brackets, standard deduction and what Virginia actually taxes.
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Sales tax in Bedford County
The other local tax: combined state and local rate for this county.
Sources
- Median real estate taxes paid and median home value for Bedford County, Virginia: 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.