Property Tax in Ozaukee County, Wisconsin

What the Ozaukee County numbers mean

A median is the middle household: half of owner-occupied households in Ozaukee County pay more than $4,629, 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 1.25% for Ozaukee 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 Ozaukee County

For context, the Wisconsin medians are $3,746 of tax on $247,400 of value, and the US medians are $2,969 on $303,400. *Derived figures are estimates from Census medians, not official rates.

Ozaukee County at a glance

• Median tax rank in Wisconsin: #2 of 72 counties
• Median home value rank in Wisconsin: #2 of 72
• Population rank in Wisconsin: #18 of 72 (92,345 residents)
• Population density rank: #7 of 72 (396 people per square mile)
• Land area rank in Wisconsin: #71 of 72 (233 sq mi, 0.4% of the combined county land area)
• Median tax as a monthly figure: $386; per $1,000 of home value: $1.25

How Ozaukee County compares

The median tax bill in Ozaukee County is about 24% higher than the state median ($3,746 for Wisconsin) and about 56% higher than the US median ($2,969 nationally). By median taxes paid, the county ranks #2 out of 72 Wisconsin counties with published Census data — 1 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. Ozaukee County's derived rate of 1.25% sits above the derived US figure of 0.98%.

Some extra context for Ozaukee County: the median bill works out to about $386 a month, and the derived rate equals roughly $1,255 of tax per $100,000 of home value. The county is home to 92,345 people — the #18 most populous county in Wisconsin, spread over 233 square miles, a density of about 396 people per square mile. Its median home value, $368,900, ranks #2 among the state's 72 counties with data.

Zooming out: of 3133 counties nationwide with published Census figures, only 150 record a higher median tax bill than Ozaukee County — it sits in the top 5% nationally. The county holds roughly 1.6% of Wisconsin's people. Its homes are worth more than the state norm (median $368,900 versus $247,400), and a decade at the derived rate of 1.25% adds up to about 12.55% of the median home's value in tax. The cheapest county in the state, Iron County, medians $1,777 — $2,852 less than Ozaukee County per year.

Counties nearest Ozaukee County in the Wisconsin ranking

Ozaukee County and its population peers

Counties of a similar size can tax very differently. The table below shows the counties closest to Ozaukee County in population across the United States, with their median bills and home values. Within the group of 9, Ozaukee County ($4,629) ranks #2 of 9 by median tax paid.

The closest population match is Bowie County, Texas (92,321 residents), where the median real estate tax paid is $2,091 on a median home value of $161,300 — $2,538 more than Ozaukee County pays.

Ozaukee County's nearest population neighbours within Wisconsin are Fond du Lac County (104,053 residents, median tax $3,311 on a median value of $209,800); St. Croix County (94,819 residents, median tax $4,297 on a median value of $349,700); Dodge County (88,818 residents, median tax $3,395 on a median value of $218,400); Jefferson County (85,867 residents, median tax $3,988 on a median value of $253,800). 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

Think of the final bill as three ingredients: the assessed value of the property, the exemptions subtracted from it, and the combined rate of every district the property sits in. Ozaukee County's medians imply a derived rate of 1.25%; applied illustratively, a $400,000 home would owe about $5,020 a year, or around $418 a month spread evenly. Individual properties depart from the illustration in both directions.

Illustrative bills in Ozaukee County at the derived rate

The derived rate of 1.25% is only an estimate built from medians, but applying it to different home values gives a sense of scale for Ozaukee County — and a quick way to compare with the state derived rate of 1.51% 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 Ozaukee County

If your bill looks wrong, work through these steps:

1. Get your property record card from the assessor and check the basics — living area, lot size, bedrooms, condition, and any exemptions you should have.
2. Compare your assessed value with recent sale prices of similar homes in Ozaukee County.
3. Talk to the assessor's office informally first; clear errors are often fixed without a hearing.
4. If needed, file a formal appeal with the local review board before the deadline on your assessment notice, with your evidence attached.
5. Keep paying the bill as issued while the appeal runs, unless your notice says otherwise — unpaid taxes accrue penalties regardless of an appeal.

More Wisconsin counties

• St. Croix County, WI — $4,297
• Dodge County, WI — $3,395
• Jefferson County, WI — $3,988
• Manitowoc County, WI — $2,660
• Fond du Lac County, WI — $3,311
• Walworth County, WI — $3,964

Frequently asked questions