Property Tax in Roanoke County, Virginia
Homeowners in Roanoke County, Virginia pay a median of $2,340 a year in real estate taxes, on a median home value of $267,300. Those are the Census Bureau's published medians for the county (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023) — the typical bill and the typical home value for owner-occupied households.
What the Roanoke County numbers mean
Read the two medians together: $2,340 is the middle tax bill among owner-occupied households in Roanoke County, and $267,300 is the middle home value. Neither figure describes a specific property — together they describe the typical homeowner's situation in the county.
The derived effective rate for Roanoke County is 0.88% (median tax ÷ median value). Treat it as an estimate for comparison only: it comes from survey medians of different households, not from the county's rate schedule.
Roanoke County by the numbers
| Measure | Roanoke County | Virginia | United States |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median real estate taxes paid | $2,340 | $2,686 | $2,969 |
| Median home value | $267,300 | $360,700 | $303,400 |
| Derived effective rate* | 0.88% | 0.74% | 0.98% |
| Median tax per month | $195 | $224 | $247 |
*Estimate derived from Census medians (tax ÷ value), not an official rate.
Roanoke County at a glance
- Median tax rank in Virginia: #36 of 133 counties
- Median home value rank in Virginia: #61 of 133
- Population rank in Virginia: #21 of 133 (96,793 residents)
- Population density rank: #47 of 133 (386 people per square mile)
- Land area rank in Virginia: #79 of 133 (250 sq mi, 0.6% of the combined county land area)
- Median tax as a monthly figure: $195; per $1,000 of home value: $0.88
How Roanoke County compares
Of the 133 Virginia counties with published data, 35 have a higher median property tax bill than Roanoke County's $2,340, putting the county at #36 in the state. Its bill is about 13% lower than the state median of $2,686 and about 21% 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 0.88%, versus 0.98% derived nationally, and the median home value ranks #61 within Virginia.
Some extra context for Roanoke County: the median bill works out to about $195 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $875 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 96,793 people — the #21 most populous county in Virginia, spread over 250 square miles, a density of about 386 people per square mile. Its median home value, $267,300, ranks #61 among the state's 133 counties with data.
Nationally, Roanoke County's median bill of $2,340 ranks #810 of 3133 counties with published data — inside the top 26% of counties by tax paid. The county accounts for about 1.1% of Virginia's population, its median home value is about 26% below the state median, and at the derived rate the median home would hand over roughly 8.75% of its value in tax across a decade. Within the state, the distance from Roanoke County to the most expensive county, Falls Church city ($10,001), is $7,661 a year.
Counties nearest Roanoke County in the Virginia ranking
| County | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|
| Isle of Wight County, VA | $2,399 | $333,600 | 0.72% |
| Lexington city, VA | $2,378 | $275,300 | 0.86% |
| Williamsburg city, VA | $2,265 | $393,200 | 0.58% |
| Spotsylvania County, VA | $2,263 | $375,000 | 0.60% |
Roanoke County and its population peers
Counties of a similar size can tax very differently. The table below shows the counties closest to Roanoke County in population across the United States, with their median bills and home values. Within the group of 9, Roanoke County ($2,340) ranks #6 of 9 by median tax paid.
| County | Population | Median tax paid | Median home value | Derived rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin County, WA | 97,676 | $2,638 | $345,700 | 0.76% |
| Ashtabula County, OH | 97,343 | $1,890 | $149,600 | 1.26% |
| Portsmouth city, VA | 97,299 | $2,452 | $229,400 | 1.07% |
| Rogers County, OK | 97,235 | $1,739 | $222,200 | 0.78% |
| Lafourche Parish, LA | 96,670 | $951 | $190,800 | 0.50% |
| Suffolk city, VA | 96,638 | $3,073 | $329,600 | 0.93% |
| Benton County, OR | 96,359 | $4,713 | $481,700 | 0.98% |
| Northeastern Connecticut Planning Region, CT | 95,829 | $4,340 | $281,300 | 1.54% |
The closest population match is Lafourche Parish, Louisiana (96,670 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $951 on a median home value of $190,800 — $1,389 more than Roanoke County pays.
Staying within Virginia, the counties nearest Roanoke County by population are Roanoke city (98,677 residents, median tax $1,828 on a median value of $180,500); Portsmouth city (97,299 residents, median tax $2,452 on a median value of $229,400); Suffolk city (96,638 residents, median tax $3,073 on a median value of $329,600); Frederick County (93,355 residents, median tax $1,807 on a median value of $355,000). The spread in their median bills — all under the same state framework — shows how much of the property tax burden is decided county by county and district by district.
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 0.88%, each $100,000 of value corresponds to about $875 of tax a year, and a $400,000 home to roughly $3,500. 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 Roanoke County at the derived rate
The derived rate of 0.88% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Roanoke County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 0.74% and the US figure of 0.98%:
| Home value | Illustrative tax / year | Per month |
|---|---|---|
| $150,000 | $1,312 | $109 |
| $250,000 | $2,188 | $182 |
| $350,000 | $3,062 | $255 |
| $500,000 | $4,375 | $365 |
| $750,000 | $6,562 | $547 |
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 Roanoke County
Most successful appeals are won on facts, not arguments. Start with the property record card held by the Roanoke 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.
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Frequently asked questions
What is the median property tax in Roanoke County, Virginia?
The median real estate tax paid in Roanoke County, Virginia is $2,340 per year, on a median home value of $267,300 (US Census Bureau, American Community Survey (ACS) 5-year estimates, 2023).
What is the effective property tax rate in Roanoke County, Virginia?
The derived effective rate is 0.88% — the median bill ($2,340) expressed as a share of the median home value ($267,300). No authority sets a rate this way; it exists to make counties with different home prices comparable.
How does Roanoke County compare with the rest of Virginia?
Roanoke County ranks #36 of 133 Virginia counties with published data by median taxes paid. Its median bill of $2,340 is about 13% lower than the Virginia median of $2,686.
How are property taxes calculated in Roanoke County, Virginia?
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 Roanoke County is $2,340 of tax on a $267,300 median home value.
Can I appeal my property tax assessment in Roanoke County, Virginia?
Yes. Request your property record card from the Roanoke 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.