Franklin County Property Taxes: How Your Bill Is Calculated

The five-step formula behind every Franklin County tax bill

1. Appraised value. The Auditor sets the market value of your land and buildings as of January 1. See how property values are set.
2. Assessed value = 35% of appraised value. Ohio taxes real estate on 35% of its appraised value.
3. Multiply by the effective tax rate. Rates are expressed in mills: one mill is $1 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value. Your rate depends on your taxing district.
4. Subtract credits. Rollback credits (the nonbusiness and owner occupancy credits), the Homestead Exemption and, in some districts, the new Inflation Cap Credit.
5. Add special assessments. Charges tied to specific services or improvements on your parcel. The total is billed in two halves.

Example: from appraised to assessed value

Take a home appraised at $300,000. Its assessed value is $300,000 × 35% = $105,000. The tax before credits is $105,000 × (effective rate in mills ÷ 1,000). Effective rates differ by district and are published by the Auditor each year, so we don’t plug in a sample rate here: use your own bill or the tax rates to find yours.

That is how property tax is calculated across Ohio; Franklin County real estate taxes use the same steps, and only the rates and credits vary by district and property type.

Who does what in Franklin County property taxes

The practical rule: questions about value or credits go to the Auditor (614-525-4663); questions about bills and payments go to the Treasurer (614-525-3438).

For property tax records, you’ll use both offices: the Auditor’s property search for values, credits and where your taxes go, and the Treasurer’s search for amounts owed and payments.

Taxes are paid a year behind

Ohio real estate taxes are billed in arrears. Values are set as of January 1 of a tax year, and the taxes for that year are paid the following year. The Treasurer’s FAQ notes that taxes can only be paid once they’re assessed.

This is why a sale’s closing statement usually includes a tax proration: the seller owes taxes for time they owned the home that won’t be billed until later.

Full rates, effective rates and why they differ

Every taxing district in Franklin County has two rates:

Three kinds of levies behave differently:

• Most voted levies are held to their approved dollar amount through reduction factors.
• Inside millage is the small amount of unvoted millage allowed without a vote. It historically grew with values; House Bill 335 now limits that growth to inflation in reappraisal and update years, starting in tax year 2026.
• School districts at the “20-mill floor” can’t have their effective current-expense rate reduced below 20 mills, so their collections grow with values. House Bill 186 created an Inflation Cap Credit to limit that growth to inflation.

Our tax rates shows where to find your district’s rates and how to read the Auditor’s rate sheets.

Credits that reduce your bill

Credits are subtracted after the tax is calculated. Some are automatic; others require an application.

An important limit: the rollback credits apply only to certain levies. New and replacement levies approved at elections in or after November 2013 don’t receive them. The Auditor’s Tax Reduction Programs page states the owner occupancy reduction applies only to levies passed in or before the November 2013 general election.

Does the Inflation Cap Credit help in Franklin County?

Only a little. The credit applies in school districts at the 20-mill floor. According to reporting in the Columbus Dispatch based on the Auditor’s office, only four such districts serve parts of Franklin County, and each reaches only a small portion of it: Jonathan Alder, Madison-Plains, Licking Heights and Teays Valley. Most Franklin County districts collect above the floor.

The 2025–2026 Ohio property tax reforms

Governor Mike DeWine signed a package of property tax bills on December 19, 2025. They took effect in March 2026. Here’s what each does:

Separately, a citizen-initiated constitutional amendment to abolish Ohio property taxes did not qualify for the November 3, 2026 ballot, according to the Ohio Capital Journal (June 9, 2026).

Why two similar houses pay different property taxes

Neighbors comparing bills are often surprised. Five things explain nearly every difference:

How the credits apply: owner-occupied vs. rental

The rollback credits are percentages of the tax from qualifying levies, meaning levies approved before November 2013 and their renewals. Suppose, purely as an illustration, that $2,000 of a home’s annual tax comes from qualifying levies. Here’s how the House Bill 186 schedule treats that $2,000:

The $2,000 figure is hypothetical; your own amount depends on your levies and value. New levies approved in or after November 2013 don’t get these credits at all.

A tax year from start to finish

1. January 1: the tax lien date. Values, and eligibility for owner-based credits, are fixed as of this date.
2. During the year: the Auditor reviews changed parcels. In update and reappraisal years, tentative values come out in June and are reviewed over the summer.
3. November: voters decide levies that will apply to future bills.
4. Mid-December: the state sends the year’s tax rates to the Auditor.
5. December 31: last day for Homestead and owner occupancy applications for the year.
6. Following year: the Treasurer bills the tax year in two halves (February 28 and July 20 in 2026), and the Board of Revision accepts complaints through March 31.

Property taxes when you buy or sell

• At closing: because taxes are paid a year behind, buyer and seller usually settle unbilled taxes through a proration on the closing statement.
• Credits don’t transfer: the seller’s Homestead and owner occupancy credit end with their ownership. A buyer who lives in the home should apply for the owner occupancy credit.
• Escrow: if your lender pays taxes from escrow, check that it has the right parcel and due dates.
• Split or combined parcels: bills can stay in the old configuration until the next tax year.

See the property transfers for the closing process and conveyance fees.

If taxes go unpaid

Unpaid real estate taxes follow a predictable path, and acting early keeps options open:

1. Penalties: 5% if paid within ten days after the due date, then 10%.
2. Interest: delinquent taxes accrue interest under Ohio law.
3. Payment plans: the Treasurer offers delinquent tax payment plans to get current.
4. Collection actions: long-delinquent parcels can be foreclosed for taxes.
5. Forfeiture: parcels that don’t sell at tax foreclosure sales can be forfeited to the state and offered at the Auditor’s forfeited land sale.

If you’re struggling, contact the Franklin County Treasurer first, then check whether Homestead or the owner occupancy credit can lower future bills.

Why Ohio limits tax growth: reduction factors in brief

Ohio’s reduction factors date to House Bill 920, passed in 1976. The idea is simple: when voters approve a levy, they approve roughly a fixed amount of money, not an ever-growing share of rising values. So when reappraisal pushes values up, the state reduces the effective rate on those levies so they raise about the same amount, except for new construction. That’s why the Auditor stresses that a value increase doesn’t translate into an equal tax increase.

The exceptions are where recent law has focused. Unvoted inside millage and school levies at the 20-mill floor did grow with values; the 2025 reforms now cap that growth at inflation. The Auditor publishes each district’s rates on its Property Tax Rates page.

What your property taxes pay for

A property tax bill is a bundle of levies, each approved for a specific purpose. Depending on your tax district, your bill can include levies for:

• Your school district, usually the largest share, for operations and, where voters approved them, bonds for buildings;
• Your city, village or township, for services such as police, fire and roads;
• Countywide services, such as programs for children, seniors and people with disabilities, and mental health services;
• Libraries, parks and other public bodies that serve your area.

Your parcel’s Tax Distribution tab lists the exact levies and how much of your bill each one receives. It’s the most accurate answer to “where does my money go?”

Why a bill changes from one year to the next

property tax myths

Property taxes for landlords and businesses

• Rentals don’t receive the owner occupancy credit, and their 10% nonbusiness credit phases out: 7.5% for tax year 2026, 5% for 2027, 2.5% for 2028 and 0% for 2029.
• Commercial and industrial property is taxed at Class II effective rates and doesn’t receive the residential rollbacks.
• Value appeals at the Board of Revision are the main lever for owners who believe a value is too high; attorneys are strongly recommended for entity-owned property.
• Rental registration is required for residential rentals, with a $150 fine per property per tax year for non-compliance.

Owner-occupied home vs. rental vs. commercial: side by side

Credits apply to qualifying levies only. See the tax relief for every program.

property tax glossary

The Ohio Department of Taxation’s real property pages explain these terms from the state’s perspective.

What happens to your payment after you pay

Your payment goes to the Treasurer, but it doesn’t stay with the county. After each collection period, the Auditor’s fiscal staff settle the collections and distribute the money to every taxing body on the tax list: school districts, cities and villages, townships, libraries, parks and county agencies, each according to its levies. That’s why the Tax Distribution tab on your parcel can show exactly how your bill is divided.

Questions to ask before voting on a levy

• Is it a new levy or a renewal? A renewal continues an existing levy; a new one adds cost.
• How many mills, and for how many years?
• What will it cost on my home? Use the Auditor’s Levy Estimator, or roughly $35 per mill per $100,000 of appraised value.
• What will the money pay for, according to the taxing body?
• Will it receive rollback credits? Levies approved in or after November 2013 don’t.

See the estimator for step-by-step instructions.

Special assessments on your bill

Special assessments are charges for a specific benefit or service tied to your parcel rather than a general tax. Depending on where you live, they can include items such as street lighting, drainage or ditch maintenance, or charges a city certifies to the tax bill. They aren’t reduced by rollbacks or Homestead. The Tax tab on your property record lists each assessment by name; questions about a particular assessment go to the agency that certified it.

Where your tax dollars go

Your bill is split among every taxing body in your district: the school district, city or township, county, library, parks, and agencies such as mental health or children’s services. To see your exact split, open your record in the property search and click the Tax Distribution tab. The Treasurer’s FAQ points taxpayers to the same tab.

Due dates, penalties and payment

The Franklin County Treasurer moved its due dates in 2026 to give taxpayers more time and align with other Ohio counties.

You can pay online, by phone, by mail or in person, or spread payments monthly through the Treasurer’s Budget Payment Program. Details are in the tax bill lookup and payment. If your mortgage company pays through escrow, the Treasurer suggests confirming your escrow account reflects the correct dates.

Levies and the November 3, 2026 election

New and renewal levies are the most direct way your tax bill changes outside a reappraisal. Before you vote, the Auditor’s Levy Estimator shows current levies on your parcel and estimates what a proposed levy would cost you. Our tax and levy estimator explains how to use it and how to read its results.

How to lower your property tax bill

• Apply for the owner occupancy credit if you live in your home (by December 31).
• Check Homestead Exemption eligibility if you’re 65 or older, disabled, or a surviving spouse.
• Challenge a value that’s too high at the Board of Revision by March 31, 2027 for tax year 2026.
• Correct factual errors on your record with the Auditor’s appraisal staff.
• File for a damaged property reduction (DTE 26) after a fire or storm.
• Enroll qualifying farmland in CAUV.

The property tax relief compares every program.

Manufactured and mobile homes

Manufactured and mobile homes can be taxed differently from real property, with their own forms: DTE 1M for value complaints, DTE 49 for damage, DTE 56 for the owner occupancy reduction, and DTE 55 to elect to have a home taxed like real property. The Auditor’s Manufactured Homes counter is on the 20th floor (8 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays).

A five-minute check of your property tax situation

1. Open your parcel in the property search and confirm the owner, address and tax district.
2. Scan the building details for obvious errors.
3. Check the Tax tab for the owner occupancy credit (if you live there) and Homestead (if eligible).
4. Open Tax Distribution to see which levies drive your bill.
5. Confirm payment status in the Treasurer’s search and note the next due date.
6. Put deadlines on your calendar: December 31 for credits, March 31 for value complaints.

Keep last year’s bill beside this year’s. Comparing them line by line (value, gross tax, each credit and each special assessment) shows exactly which piece changed, and that tells you whether to call the Auditor about a value or credit, the Treasurer about a payment, or neither.

What to expect on bills paid in 2027

Bills paid in 2027 will be the first to use the 2026 update’s values. For owner-occupied homes, the combined rollback credit rises to 13.2%; for rentals, the nonbusiness credit falls to 7.5%. Reduction factors will reset for the new values, and inside millage growth is capped at inflation for the first time in an update year. Levies approved on November 3, 2026 may add to bills. The Treasurer will publish the 2027 due dates on its Collection Dates page. Check your first 2027 bill against your expectations using the estimator.

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