Property tax rates to rise in 4 of NC’s 5 biggest counties

Months before North Carolina voters decide whether to limit growth in local property tax levies, four of the state’s five most populous counties have raised their property tax rates for the 2026-27 fiscal year, which begins July 1, 2026. Only Mecklenburg County balanced its budget without a rate increase.

County managers across the five counties cited many of the same fiscal pressures: rising costs, school funding needs, public safety demands, slower revenue growth, and uncertainty over state and federal funding. 

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Different counties, different approaches 

In Wake and Forsyth counties, managers recommended smaller rate increases largely to offset declining or slower-growing revenues. 

In a recommended budget for Fiscal Year 2027, Wake County manager David Ellis wrote that raising the county’s property tax rate by two cents “subsidizes areas where funding continues to fall short,” particularly for the county’s public schools, community college, and pre-K program. He claimed Wake’s rate could drop from 53.71 cents to 30 cents “if the state did its part.” 

Meanwhile, Forsyth County commissioners approved a 1.88-cent increase to offset declining local sales tax revenues and federal and state transfers. County manager Shontell Robinson noted in the FY2027 recommended budget that local sales tax revenues came in below expectations for the third year in a row, encouraging commissioners to further diversify the county’s tax base. 

Guilford and Durham counties approved larger increases to offset revenue pressures while also expanding or maintaining county services. 

In Guilford County, commissioners approved a 5.90-cent increase after state lawmakers blocked the county from using new 2026 property values to set its FY 2027 rate. The county is instead using values from 2022.  

County manager Victor Isler recommended the increase to offset a $7.5 million reduction in federal and state funding; address rising inflation; add seven new positions across the Sheriff’s Office, Emergency Management, and Public Health; and continue investing in the county’s public schools and community college. 

In Durham County, county manager Claudia Hager cited limited revenue-raising options and the need to maintain financial stability while expanding services. In the county’s 20206-2027 recommended budget Hager recommended a rate increase to fund additional support for Durham Public Schools, expanded pre-K programs, and a new 24/7 EMS ambulance unit. 

Mecklenburg County manager Mike Bryant said he “chose to think differently” and avoided what he said could have been a 2.24-cent property tax rate increase. 

“I am proud to share that I have utilized all tools at my disposal and made the necessary adjustments in our investment practices without compromising our services, having to propose raising property taxes, or even implementing employee layoffs,” Bryant said during his budget presentation to county commissioners. 

County commissioners unanimously adopted Bryant’s proposal. 

A ballot fight looms 

The county budget decisions come just months before North Carolina voters consider a constitutional amendment requiring the General Assembly to enact laws limiting future growth in local property tax levies.

State Rep. Erin Paré, R-Wake, is one of the primary sponsors of House Bill 1089, which put the amendment on the ballot. 

Paré was unavailable for comment; however, she wrote on X in March, “It’s time for reform. Levy limits that incorporate population and inflation growth place needed guardrails on property tax growth, and are a necessary first step to bring relief, predictability, and accountability to property taxes.” 

Rep. Maria Cervania, D-Wake, a former Wake County commissioner, said county leaders are making budget decisions based on present financial realities rather than speculation about future elections. 

“State law requires counties and municipalities to pass balanced budgets that provide basic governmental services such as public safety and infrastructure prior to June 30 of each fiscal year,” Cervania said in a statement to Carolina Journal. “This is done in light of current community needs, the financial constraints of the locality, and the uncertainty of state funding without a budget.” 

Cervania added that property tax rates and levies approved during her tenure as a county commissioner were either held flat or increased at rates below inflation. 

What could a levy limit change?

Property tax levy limits cap the growth of total property tax revenue, typically tying allowed increases to inflation and population growth. 

Supporters argue that North Carolina’s recent property tax trends show why such limits are needed. They say local governments have relied too heavily on rising property tax collections, especially in fast-growing counties where higher property values can generate large revenue increases even without large rate hikes. 

A recent analysis by Joseph Harris, fiscal policy analyst for the John Locke Foundation, found that property tax revenue in the state’s 10 largest counties exceeded inflation plus population growth by more than $2.6 billion over the past decade. 

Harris compared actual county property tax revenue from FY 2016 through FY 2026 with a hypothetical levy limit tied to inflation and population growth. 

Wake and Durham counties, both of which raised property tax rates for FY 2027, were among the counties Harris said collected “substantially more in property taxes per resident than would have been the case under the levy limit.” 

Wake’s property tax collections grew 103% during the period, compared with 63% under the benchmark. Durham’s grew 82%, compared with 54% under the benchmark. 

By contrast, Mecklenburg County, the only one of the state’s five most populous counties that did not raise its property tax rate for FY 2027, “kept property tax revenue growth close to, or below, the benchmark, reflecting comparatively strong fiscal discipline,” Harris wrote. 

In Carolina Journal’s March 2026 poll, 76.8% of North Carolinians said property taxes are a burden and 73.2% said they would support an amendment to the North Carolina Constitution requiring limits on property tax increases by local governments. Only 11.9% said they would oppose it. 

Ellis, the Wake County manager, warned that a levy limit would force Wake County to cut services. Those reductions, he said, “could look like reducing operating hours, scaling back program investments, and cutting funding for education.” 

Property tax rates are set for FY 2027.  The constitutional amendment will be on the ballot in November. 

“Property tax rates to rise in 4 of NC’s 5 biggest counties” was originally published on www.carolinajournal.com.