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Property Tax Guide
Who 'does' my property tax and who do I pay?
The Assessor of Property inventories and assesses all real property according to state law and presents the property owner with both an appraisal of the value of the property (buildings and land), and an assessment of how much property tax the owner will pay. The Assessor of Property does not accept tax payments but only 'assesses' the property value. Taxes are actually paid to the the Shelby County Trustee and you can pay your taxes online by going to the Trustee's web site.
How do I calculate my taxes?
All property owners in Shelby County pay the county property tax. The Assessor of Property's web site has a searchable index of property and information for finding out the process of property appraiseal.
For property owners that live in an incorporated municipality, Bartlett, Germantown, Collierville, Millington, Memphis, Lakeland, and Arlington, a separate municipal property tax is paid in addition to the county property tax rate. This process can be confusing but can be broken down into parts.
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QUICK FACTS
Shelby County is the largest county in the State of Tennessee (735 sq. miles) and one of the top ten largest counties in the U.S. Shelby County has over 350,000 parcels of land, each one is reappraised every four years, which is called a 'reappraisal year.' | |
The first part is the actual tax rate. Let's say a municipality has a tax rate of $1.00. What does that mean? You send them $1.00 each year? Unfortunately not. In Tennessee, residential property is assessed at 25% of the appraised value. So if a house is appraised at $100,000, the assessment will be $25,000. So you have to pay $25,000 per year? Fortunately not. In this case where the tax rate is $1.00, you will pay $1.00 per $100.00 of the assessed value of the property. So, divide the assessment by 100 and your property tax that you actually pay is $250. Shelby County an each municipality have separate tax rates, they are as follows:
Shelby County Property Tax Rate - $4.06 (City of Memphis residents pay $4.02)
Property Tax Rates for the Municipalities:
- Arlington - $1.00
- Bartlett - $1.49
- Collierville - $1.18
- Germantown - $1.425
- Lakeland - No tax notices mailed.
- Memphis - $3.1957
- Millington - $1.23
Property Classification
Property classification is based on use. A residential home is classified as "residential". A shopping mall would be classified as "commercial". This is important because the tax rates are different; 40% for commercial and 25% for residential. Make sure you understand your property classification. Here are the property classifications recognized by the State of Tennessee
Residential - 25%. All single family residences, owner-occupied duplexes, and condominiums are classified as residential.
Commercial and Industrial - 40%. All property used, or held for use, for commercial, mining, industrial, manufacturing, trade, professional, club (public or private), nonexempt lodge, business, or similar purpose, is classified as industrial and commercial. Additionally, all real property which is used, or held for use, for dwelling purposes that contains two or more rental units falls under this classification.
Farm - 25%. Farm property includes all real property which is used for, or held for use, in agriculture, including but not limited to, growing crops, pastures, orchards, nurseries, plants, trees, timber, raising livestock or poultry, or the production of raw dairy products, and acreage used for recreational purposes by clubs.
Exempt - 0%. Religious, scientific, educational, charitable and non-profit organizations must apply to obtain exempt status. The State Board of Equalization reviews all applications in order to determine if the property qualifies for an exemption. Most government-owned properties are automatically exempt from taxation. Exempt applications are available in the Assessor's Office, but must be mailed to the SBoE when completed.
How do I know when to pay? Where do I go to pay?
The Assessor of Property follows a calendar that the trustee and municipalities also follow for sending out property notices. Here are the most important dates on the calendar for the property owner. The county schedule as well as the municipalities are listed in the table below.
| Taxes For: |
Notice Issued on: |
Delinquent on: |
| Shelby County |
September |
March 1 |
| Arlington |
December |
March 1 |
| Bartlett |
November |
March 1 |
| Collierville |
November |
March 1 |
| Germantown |
November |
March 1 |
| Lakeland |
no notices |
no notices |
| Memphis |
June |
September 1 |
| Millington |
October |
March 1 |
The Assessor of Property has made this very simple by providing a tax bill calculator.You can calculate your property taxes by clicking here.
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