Jackson County, Alabama Property Tax Rates and Exemptions

Property tax in Jackson County, Alabama is calculated by taking 10% of your home’s fair market value and multiplying it by the local millage rate, which starts at 24 mills in unincorporated parts of the county and runs higher inside city limits. Bills are due October 1 and become delinquent after December 31, when 7% annual interest starts accruing. A $150,000 home outside any municipality owes roughly $360 a year before exemptions; the same home inside Scottsboro owes closer to $1,088.

How Your Tax Bill Is Calculated

Alabama taxes an owner-occupied home at 10% of its fair market value. That 10% figure is the assessed value, and it is what the millage rate is applied to.¹ A mill equals one-tenth of a cent, so a 24-mill rate works out to $0.024 for every dollar of assessed value.

For a home the county values at $150,000:

Assessed value: $150,000 × 10% = $15,000
Tax at 24 mills: $15,000 × 0.024 = $360 per year

If your home sits inside a municipality, the combined rate is higher and the bill goes up proportionally.

Millage Rates by Location

Every parcel in Jackson County pays three base levies that add up to 24 mills:

State of Alabama: 6.5 mills
Jackson County general fund: 7.5 mills
County-wide school fund: 10 mills

Municipal property owners pay additional school and general fund mills on top of that base. Scottsboro adds 48.5 mills, Stevenson adds 50, and Bridgeport adds 40. Most other towns in the county add between 30 and 35 mills. Some areas also carry a hospital levy of 4 mills or a fire fund levy of 2 mills.²

Confirm which jurisdictions apply to your specific parcel before you estimate a bill. The gap between unincorporated and Scottsboro rates roughly triples the tax on an identical home.

Exemptions That Reduce or Erase Your Bill

Several exemptions apply to your homestead, meaning the home you own and live in as your primary residence.

Standard Homestead Exemption

Every Alabama homeowner who owns and occupies the home as of October 1 qualifies for the basic homestead exemption, which removes all state-levied property tax.³ On a $15,000 assessed value, that saves about $97.50 a year. The county and school portions still apply.

Senior Citizens

Residents 65 and older are exempt from all state property tax on the homestead regardless of income. If your adjusted gross income is under $12,000, you also qualify for an exemption from county property taxes, including school district levies, on up to $5,000 in assessed value.⁴

Seniors meeting that income threshold can also claim the principal residence exemption, which eliminates all property tax from every taxing authority on the home and up to 160 adjacent acres.⁵ For many retirees in Jackson County, this means paying zero property tax.

Permanent Disability and Blindness

If you are permanently and totally disabled, you qualify for the same full exemption as low-income seniors regardless of age or income. The principal residence and up to 160 acres are exempt from all state, county, and municipal property taxes.⁵ Residents who are legally blind receive the same treatment regardless of age or retirement status.³

Veterans

Veterans drawing a disability pension from the armed services are automatically granted a certificate of permanent and total disability by the Alabama Department of Revenue, which simplifies the application.⁵ Veterans who acquired their home through a VA Specially Adapted Housing Grant receive a full property tax exemption regardless of the home’s value.

Applying for an Exemption

Apply between October 1 and December 31 to have the exemption count toward the current tax year. Applications submitted outside that window are still accepted, but the exemption will not take effect until the following year.⁴

File with the Jackson County Revenue Commissioner’s office in Scottsboro. Bring a valid photo ID. Depending on which exemption you’re claiming, you may also need your most recent state or federal tax return to verify income, proof of age for the senior exemption, physician certification for a disability claim, or documentation of your VA disability pension or Specially Adapted Housing Grant.

When and How to Pay

Property is assessed based on ownership and status as of October 1 each year. The resulting bill is due October 1 of the following year and becomes delinquent after December 31.⁶ That gives you an October-through-December payment window.

Jackson County accepts payment three ways:

In person at the Revenue Commissioner’s office in the Jackson County Courthouse in Scottsboro, by cash, check, or money order.
By mail to Jeff Arnold, Jackson County Revenue Commissioner, P.O. Box 307, Scottsboro, Alabama 35768.
Online by credit or debit card through the county’s portal. A convenience fee applies.²

If you haven’t received a notice, you can look up your parcel on the Revenue Commissioner’s online portal by name or address. Verify that the owner name, boundaries, and assessed value match your records before paying. Errors are far easier to correct before payment than after.

What Happens If You Don’t Pay

Unpaid taxes begin accruing interest on January 1. For the 2026 tax year, Alabama charges 7% annual interest on delinquent property taxes, a rate that is recalculated quarterly.⁷

If the bill stays unpaid, the county eventually sells a tax lien on the property at auction. Once that lien is sold, the interest rate jumps to 12% per year. You have three years from the date of sale to redeem the property by paying all back taxes, interest, fees, and penalties to the probate court.⁸ Miss that window and the lien holder can file a foreclosure action in circuit court to take ownership.

A few hundred dollars in unpaid tax can grow quickly once 12% interest and legal fees compound. If paying is a problem, applying for exemptions or calling the Revenue Commissioner’s office before December 31 beats letting the bill go delinquent.

If a Mortgage Servicer Pays Your Taxes

If you have a mortgage, your lender probably collects property tax through an escrow account built into your monthly payment. Federal law requires the servicer to pay those taxes on or before the deadline to avoid a penalty, as long as your mortgage payment isn’t more than 30 days overdue.⁹

Even with escrow, you remain legally responsible for making sure the taxes get paid, because the tax lien attaches to your property, not your lender’s. Loan transfers are the most common moment for a payment to fall through the cracks, so check your parcel on the county portal around the due date each year. If the servicer misses the payment and penalties accrue, you can demand the servicer cover them.

When your assessed value drops or an exemption cuts your bill, the escrow account can end up with a surplus. If that surplus is $50 or more, your servicer must refund it within 30 days of completing their annual escrow analysis. Surpluses under $50 can be credited toward next year’s escrow instead.⁹

Appealing an Assessment You Think Is Too High

If the county’s valuation looks wrong, you can challenge it before the Jackson County Board of Equalization, which hears complaints about assessment fairness at periods set by law. You don’t need a lawyer, but bring evidence: recent appraisals, comparable sales, or documentation of defects that reduce value.

If the board rules against you, you have 30 days to appeal to the circuit court. That appeal requires filing a notice with both the board’s secretary and the circuit court clerk, posting a cost bond, and either paying the assessed taxes before they go delinquent or filing a supersedeas bond. The Revenue Commissioner’s office notes that to preserve the right of appeal, taxes must be paid by December 31 or a bond filed in double the amount due.²

1
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 40-8-1 – Classification of Property; Assessment Rate
2
Jackson County, Alabama. Office of the Revenue Commissioner
3
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code Title 40 Revenue and Taxation 40-9-19 – Homesteads
4
Alabama Administrative Code. Alabama Administrative Code 810-4-1-.23 – Homestead And Principal Residence Exemptions From Property Tax
5
Alabama Legislature. Alabama Code 40-9-21 – Principal Residences and 160 Acres
6
Alabama Department of Revenue. When Are My Property Taxes Due?
7
Alabama Department of Revenue. Quarterly Interest Rates
8
Alabama Department of Revenue. Do I Have the Option to Redeem My Tax Delinquent Property?
9
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1024.17 Escrow Accounts