You just had to come look at this page, didn’t you. Well, you are going to be glad you did! Rutherford County has some of the lowest tax rates in western North Carolina. For the properties we offer, the only tax due each year is county property tax. That is it. No city tax, no school tax, no impact fees, or any other tax on your land.

Property tax is based on assessed value at a fixed rate, plus a few more cents for the fire departments. When the property is improved (i.e. someone builds a house), the taxes go up because the assessed value rises, but the base stays the same. The rate for the county is .62/100 (62¢ for every $100 of value), plus .07/100 for the fire department. In other words, if the assessor says your property has a tax value of $100,000, then your taxes will be $690 per year.

Since we have been asked these questions many times, we’ll address them here. The only Homestead Exclusion currently offered by Rutherford County is for persons age 65 or older, a permanent resident of NC, and having an income that does not exceed $26,500. There are state income taxes, if you live here full time, which rise and fall with your income. The sales tax in Rutherford County is 7% on nonfood items, and 2% on food (sorry, alcohol is taxed as nonfood).

We find the rates to be reasonable, and lower than many areas that we’ve heard about especially from folks that live in Florida and the northeast. Come take a look at this beautiful area. It won’t cost you an arm and a leg.