Property Tax in Chittenden County, Vermont
The median real estate tax bill in Chittenden County, Vermont is $6,527 per year, and the median home is worth $404,500. Both figures are the US Census Bureau's survey medians for owner-occupied households (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What the Chittenden County numbers mean
A median is the middle household: half of owner-occupied households in Chittenden County pay more than $6,527, and half pay less. Your own bill is set by your home's assessed value, the exemptions you qualify for, and the local taxing districts your property sits in — so individual bills vary widely around the median.
Dividing the median tax by the median home value gives a derived effective rate of 1.61% for Chittenden County. It is an estimate built from two survey medians, not the county's official rate, but it is a fair way to compare the local tax burden with other counties where home values are very different.
Chittenden County by the numbers
| Measure | Chittenden County | Vermont | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $6,527 | $4,956 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $404,500 | $290,500 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 1.61% | 1.71% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $544 | $413 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Chittenden County at a glance
- Median tax rank in Vermont: #1 of 14 counties
- Median home value rank in Vermont: #1 of 14
- Population rank in Vermont: #1 of 14 (168,831 residents)
- Population density rank: #1 of 14 (314 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in Vermont: #12 of 14 (536 sq mi, 5.8% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $544; per $1,000 of home value: $1.61
How Chittenden County compares
The median tax bill in Chittenden County is about 32% higher than the state median ($4,956 for Vermont) and about 120% higher than the US median ($2,969 nationally). By median taxes paid, the county ranks #1 out of 14 Vermont counties with published Census data — 0 counties in the state have a higher median bill.
Comparisons cut both ways: a county can have a modest rate but high bills because homes are expensive, or a high rate but modest bills because homes are cheaper. Chittenden County's derived rate of 1.61% sits above the derived US figure of 0.98%.
Some extra context for Chittenden County: the median bill works out to about $544 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $1,614 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 168,831 people — the #1 most populous county in Vermont, spread over 536 square miles, a density of about 314 people per square mile. Its median home value, $404,500, ranks #1 among the state's 14 counties with data.
Nationally, Chittenden County's median bill of $6,527 ranks #60 of 3133 counties with published data — inside the top 2% of counties by tax paid. The county accounts for about 26.2% of Vermont's population, its median home value is about 39% above the state median, and at the derived rate the median home would hand over roughly 16.14% of its value in tax across a decade. Within the state, the distance from Chittenden County to the most expensive county, Chittenden County ($6,527), is $0 a year.
Counties nearest Chittenden County in the Vermont ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Addison County, VT | $5,649 | $333,700 | 1.69% |
| Washington County, VT | $5,491 | $293,900 | 1.87% |
Chittenden County and its population peers
Population is a useful lens on these figures, so the table below sets Chittenden County beside the counties closest to it in population anywhere in the country — communities of a similar scale operating under different state and local tax systems. Ranked by median tax paid within this peer group of 9, Chittenden County's $6,527 bill is the highest.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Davidson County, NC | 171,063 | $1,262 | $200,100 | 0.63% |
| McLean County, IL | 170,882 | $4,503 | $198,300 | 2.27% |
| Kent County, RI | 170,658 | $4,903 | $333,900 | 1.47% |
| Kenton County, KY | 169,817 | $2,284 | $227,500 | 1.00% |
| Pueblo County, CO | 168,726 | $1,382 | $271,800 | 0.51% |
| Charles County, MD | 168,710 | $4,179 | $402,300 | 1.04% |
| Greene County, OH | 168,531 | $4,021 | $238,000 | 1.69% |
| Kenosha County, WI | 168,413 | $4,180 | $247,800 | 1.69% |
The closest population match is Pueblo County, Colorado (168,726 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $1,382 on a median home value of $271,800 — $5,145 more than Chittenden County pays.
Inside Vermont itself, the counties closest to Chittenden County in population are Rutland County (60,484 residents, median tax $4,057 on a median value of $218,400); Washington County (59,958 residents, median tax $5,491 on a median value of $293,900). Same state, same broad tax framework — yet the median bills still differ, because assessed values and the mix of county, municipal and school-district rates are set locally.
How the tax is worked out
The bill is built in stages. First the assessor puts a market value on the property. Exemptions — a homestead exemption above all — then reduce the taxable amount. Finally the combined local rate is applied. To see the scale: at the county's derived rate of 1.61%, each $100,000 of value corresponds to about $1,614 of tax a year, and a $400,000 home to roughly $6,456. Real bills use the official assessment and district rates, not this derived figure, so treat the example as a sense of scale only.
Illustrative bills in Chittenden County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 1.61% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Chittenden County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 1.71% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $2,421 | $202 |
| $250,000 | $4,035 | $336 |
| $350,000 | $5,649 | $471 |
| $500,000 | $8,070 | $672 |
| $750,000 | $12,105 | $1,009 |
Illustration only: real bills are computed from the assessed value, exemptions, and the combined rates of the property's actual taxing districts.
Checking your assessment in Chittenden County
Believe your assessment is too high? The practical order of attack is: obtain your record card and audit it line by line; collect comparable recent sales in Chittenden County; ask the assessor's office to correct anything plainly wrong; and, if the value still seems off, lodge a formal appeal ahead of the deadline printed on your assessment notice. Windows are short — often 30 to 90 days — and late appeals are usually rejected outright, however strong the case.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Chittenden County, Vermont?
The median real estate tax paid in Chittenden County, Vermont is $6,527 per year, on a median home value of $404,500 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Chittenden County, Vermont?
On a derived basis, 1.61%: the county's median tax bill of $6,527 divided by its median home value of $404,500. Because it is calculated from two survey medians, read it as a comparison estimate rather than an official rate.
How does Chittenden County compare with the rest of Vermont?
Chittenden County ranks #1 of 14 Vermont counties with published data by median taxes paid. Its median bill of $6,527 is about 32% higher than the Vermont median of $4,956.
How are property taxes calculated in Chittenden County, Vermont?
Three steps produce the bill: an assessment of market value by the local assessor, a reduction for exemptions you qualify for (a homestead exemption is the common one), and multiplication by the combined rates of the county, municipality, school district and any special districts covering the property. The median result in Chittenden County is $6,527 of tax on a $404,500 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Chittenden County, Vermont?
Yes. Request your property record card from the Chittenden County assessor's office and check it for errors, then compare your assessed value with recent sales of similar homes. If it still looks too high, file a formal appeal with the local review board named on your assessment notice before the deadline printed on the notice — windows are short, often 30 to 90 days.