Albemarle County Tax Rates: Deadlines, Appeals, and Relief

Albemarle County, Virginia charges a real estate tax of $0.894 per $100 of assessed value and a personal property tax of $4.28 per $100 of assessed value. Businesses pay a license tax on gross receipts above $100,000, and consumers pay a 9% transient occupancy tax on short-term lodging and a 6% food and beverage tax on prepared meals. Property tax bills come in two installments, due June 25 and December 5.¹²

Current Rates at a Glance

The Board of Supervisors sets these rates each year during the budget process. For the current fiscal year:

Real estate (residential, commercial, and land): $0.894 per $100 of assessed value
Personal property (vehicles, motorcycles, boats, trailers, aircraft, campers): $4.28 per $100 of assessed value
Business tangible personal property (furniture, fixtures, equipment): $4.28 per $100
Machinery and tools: $4.28 per $100
Transient occupancy tax: 9% of the room charge on stays under 30 consecutive days
Daily short-term rental tax: 1%
Food and beverage tax: 6% on prepared meals and drinks

Business license (BPOL) rates vary by classification and apply per dollar of gross receipts over $100,000. Financial, real estate, and professional services sit at the top of the scale; wholesalers pay the least. The county’s tax rates page lists every classification.¹

How the Real Estate Tax Works

The real estate tax applies to all land and permanent structures in the county unless a specific legal exemption applies. It is the county’s largest local revenue source.³

Albemarle reappraises every property annually at 100% of fair market value, as required by the Code of Virginia. The assessment date is January 1, so whatever your property is worth on that date sets your tax bill for the year. Reassessment notices for 2026 were mailed on January 23, 2026.³

If you have a mortgage, your lender is likely paying the tax out of an escrow account. When the county raises your assessment, the lender raises the escrow to cover it. Compare the reassessment notice against your escrow statement each year so any mismatch surfaces early.

How the Personal Property Tax Works

The $4.28 per $100 personal property rate applies to motor vehicles, motorcycles, boats, trailers, mobile homes, aircraft, campers, and utility trailers kept in the county.⁴ On a percentage basis, it bites harder than real estate.

The county values cars and motorcycles using the JD Power (formerly NADA) pricing guide at clean trade-in value as of January 1. Mobile homes are valued from historical data and appraisal guides. Trailers, boats, motor homes, and aircraft are assessed at a percentage of purchase price.⁴ Virginia law requires that automobiles be valued through a recognized pricing guide, applied uniformly across each classification.⁵

Virginia’s Personal Property Tax Relief Act reduces the tax on qualifying vehicles through a state reimbursement to the county. Relief applies to the first $20,000 of assessed value on each qualifying vehicle; any value above $20,000 is taxed at the full rate. Active-duty military members receive full state-funded relief on the first $20,000 of value for qualifying leased vehicles.⁶

When you move a vehicle into Albemarle, report it with the VIN and the date it arrived. If you plan to argue for a lower value, hold on to purchase invoices and mileage records.

Business Taxes

Businesses operating in the county face three main obligations: the BPOL license tax, the tax on business tangible personal property, and, where applicable, the machinery and tools tax.

Every business must register with the Office of Revenue Administration and hold a business license. The BPOL tax kicks in when gross receipts exceed $100,000 and is calculated on the prior calendar year’s actual gross receipts. Rates run higher for professional services and financial firms than for retailers or contractors.⁷¹

All equipment, furniture, fixtures, machinery, and tools in use as of January 1 must be reported. The rate is $4.28 per $100 of assessed value, matching the vehicle rate. The return and payment for business tangible personal property and machinery and tools are due by May 1.⁸

Lodging and Meals Taxes

Any business renting lodging for fewer than 30 consecutive days must collect the 9% transient occupancy tax from guests and remit it to the county. This covers hotels, bed-and-breakfasts, travel campgrounds, and homeowners renting through platforms such as Airbnb or VRBO.⁹ A 1% daily short-term rental tax applies on top of that.¹

The 6% food and beverage tax applies to prepared meals and drinks sold by restaurants and other dining establishments.¹⁰ Groceries and unprepared food are not subject to it.

Payment Deadlines and How to Pay

Property tax bills split in two:

First half due: June 25
Second half due: December 5

If either date falls on a weekend, the deadline moves to the next business day. Both installments cover real estate, personal property, machinery and tools, mobile homes, and public service property.²

You can pay online through the county’s portal, which handles personal property, real estate, and business taxes through separate links. Mailed checks go to 401 McIntire Road in Charlottesville, and a secure drop box sits outside the County Office Building. The Office of Revenue Administration answers questions at 434-296-5851 or payments@albemarle.org.²

Business tangible personal property and machinery and tools filings have their own May 1 deadline.⁸

What a Late Filing Costs

Virginia caps the penalty on a late local tax return at 10% of the tax owed or $10, whichever is greater. The penalty can never exceed the tax due on that return.¹¹

Filing a fraudulent return or willfully refusing to file is criminal. When the tax involved exceeds $1,000, the offense is a Class 1 misdemeanor, punishable by up to 12 months in jail, a fine of up to $2,500, or both. Where the tax at stake is $1,000 or less, the charge drops to a Class 3 misdemeanor.¹²¹³

Relief for Elderly and Disabled Homeowners

Albemarle offers real estate tax relief for residents who are at least 65 or permanently and totally disabled. You must hold title as of January 1, the property cannot be used for business, and your household must fall inside the income and net worth limits:¹⁴

Maximum combined income from all sources: $100,650
Maximum total net worth including spouse and co-owners: $321,000

The relief amount scales with income:

$0 to $50,325: 100% relief
$50,326 to $75,488: 75% relief
$75,489 to $100,650: 50% relief

¹⁴

On a $400,000 assessed value at the current rate, the annual bill is $3,576. Full relief wipes it out. The 50% tier still saves close to $1,800 a year.

Challenging an Assessment

The rate is one input; the assessed value is the other. If you think the county’s number is too high, there are two tracks, and you can run them in parallel.

The first is a review by the County Assessor. For the 2026 tax year, the request deadline was March 2, 2026. Forms are on the Assessor’s website or available by contacting the office.³

The second is an appeal to the Board of Equalization. For 2026, that filing deadline was March 30, or 30 days after the Assessor’s written response to your review, whichever came later. You can file with the Board while the Assessor review is still pending. A mailed appeal has to arrive by the deadline; a timely postmark alone will not save it. The Board must resolve all reassessment appeals by September 1 of the assessment year.³

1
Albemarle County, VA. Tax Rates
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Albemarle County. Pay Taxes
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Albemarle County, VA. Real Estate Tax Assessments and E-Statements
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Albemarle County. Personal Property Taxes and Fees
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-3503 – General Classification of Tangible Personal Property
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Virginia Code Commission. Personal Property Tax Relief
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Albemarle County, VA. Existing Businesses
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Albemarle County, VA. Business Tangible Personal Property and Machinery and Tools
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Albemarle County, VA. Transient Occupancy Tax
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Albemarle County, VA. Food and Beverage
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-3916 – Counties, Cities, and Towns May Provide Dates for Filing Returns and Set Penalties, Interest, Etc
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 58.1-3916.1 – Criminal Penalties for Failure to File Returns; False Statements
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Virginia Code Commission. Virginia Code 18.2-11 – Punishment for Conviction of Misdemeanor
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Albemarle County. Real Estate Tax Relief