Property Tax in James City County, Virginia

What the James City County numbers mean

A median is the middle household: half of owner-occupied households in James City County pay more than $2,786, 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 0.67% for James City 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.

The key figures for James City County

For context, the Virginia medians are $2,686 of tax on $360,700 of value, and the US medians are $2,969 on $303,400. *Derived figures are estimates from Census medians, not official rates.

James City County at a glance

• Median tax rank in Virginia: #21 of 133 counties
• Median home value rank in Virginia: #17 of 133
• Population rank in Virginia: #26 of 133 (80,046 residents)
• Population density rank: #45 of 133 (563 people per square mile)
• Land area rank in Virginia: #93 of 133 (142 sq mi, 0.4% of the combined county land area)
• Median tax as a monthly figure: $232; per $1,000 of home value: $0.67

How James City County compares

Of the 133 Virginia counties with published data, 20 have a higher median property tax bill than James City County's $2,786, putting the county at #21 in the state. Its bill is about 4% higher than the state median of $2,686 and about 6% lower than the national median of $2,969.

Rates and values pull in opposite directions: an expensive housing market can produce big bills at ordinary rates. Here the derived rate is 0.67%, versus 0.98% derived nationally, and the median home value ranks #17 within Virginia.

Some extra context for James City County: the median bill works out to about $232 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $665 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 80,046 people — the #26 most populous county in Virginia, spread over 142 square miles, a density of about 563 people per square mile. Its median home value, $419,200, ranks #17 among the state's 133 counties with data.

Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 531 record a higher median tax bill than James City County — it sits in the top 17% nationally. The county holds roughly 0.9% of Virginia's people. Its homes are worth more than the state norm (median $419,200 versus $360,700), and a decade at the derived rate of 0.67% adds up to about 6.65% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Buchanan County, medians $404 — $2,382 less than James City County per year.

Counties nearest James City County in the Virginia ranking

James City County and its population peers

Population is a useful lens on these figures, so the table below sets James City 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, James City County's $2,786 bill is #2 of 9.

The closest population match is Umatilla County, Oregon (80,087 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $2,534 on a median home value of $256,100 — $252 more than James City County pays.

James City County's nearest population neighbours within Virginia are Rockingham County (84,739 residents, median tax $1,532 on a median value of $287,900); Bedford County (80,254 residents, median tax $1,265 on a median value of $276,600); Lynchburg city (79,255 residents, median tax $1,778 on a median value of $211,800); Augusta County (77,713 residents, median tax $1,379 on a median value of $281,400). Comparing them is a reminder that even inside one state's rules, the bill follows local home values and local district rates more than anything decided at the state level.

How the tax is worked out

As an illustration of the arithmetic: at James City County's derived rate of 0.67%, a home valued at $400,000 would carry a tax bill of roughly $2,660 a year. That is only an illustration using the derived rate — a real bill is computed from the property's assessed value, its exemptions, and the combined rates of its specific taxing districts, so it can be higher or lower.

The usual sequence is: the local assessor values the property; exemptions are applied; the taxable value is multiplied by the combined local rates; and the county bills and collects the tax, distributing it to the schools, municipalities and districts that levied it.

Illustrative bills in James City County at the derived rate

The derived rate of 0.67% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for James City County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 0.74% and the US figure of 0.98%:

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 James City County

Most successful appeals are won on facts, not arguments. Start with the property record card held by the James City County assessor: wrong square footage, an extra room, or a missing homestead exemption are common and fixable. Next, line your assessed value up against recent sales of genuinely similar homes nearby. Many disputes end at an informal conversation with the assessor's office; if yours does not, file the formal appeal with the review board named on your notice before its deadline, evidence attached, and keep paying the bill in the meantime so penalties do not build up.

More Virginia counties

• Bedford County, VA — $1,265
• Lynchburg city, VA — $1,778
• Augusta County, VA — $1,379
• Rockingham County, VA — $1,532
• Fauquier County, VA — $4,185
• York County, VA — $2,676

Frequently asked questions