Hornell NY Property Taxes: Assessments, Rates & Due Dates

Last reviewed: October 9, 2026. General information only, not tax or legal advice. Rates, exemptions, and deadlines change every year. Confirm current figures with the City of Hornell Assessor and Chamberlain, Steuben County Real Property Tax Service, or the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance before you rely on them.

If you’re buying in Hornell, the property tax line on a listing is only a starting point. A house inside the city gets three separate tax bills every year, from the city, from Steuben County, and from the school district. Each bill is calculated from the same assessment but uses a different tax rate, comes due in a different month, and can be reduced by different exemptions. This guide explains how the pieces fit together, using the figures the City of Hornell publishes, and where to check the numbers for a specific property.

This guide is about properties inside the City of Hornell. If you’re looking in North Hornell, the Town of Hornellsville, Canisteo, Arkport, or elsewhere in Steuben County, the same state rules apply, but a different assessor and tax collector handle your property. Those are covered near the end.

The short version

Your assessment is set by the City Assessor. It’s the starting number for all three bills.
Hornell’s assessments aren’t at full market value. The state equalization rate tells you how assessments relate to market value. Steuben County’s published table lists the City of Hornell at 85.00 for the 2026 tax levy.
City residents pay a city tax (due in May), a school tax (due in October), and a county tax (due in January). All three are collected at City Hall by the Chamberlain’s office.
Rates are published per $1,000 of assessed value. The Chamberlain lists 2026 county and city rates of about 7.37 and 11.72, and a 2025 school rate of about 15.61.
Exemptions such as STAR, senior, veterans, and disability exemptions reduce the taxable assessment for some bills but not others. Most new homeowners get STAR as a state credit, not a local exemption.
If you think your assessment is too high, the City’s grievance process runs in late February and early March, by appointment.

Step 1: The assessment

Every parcel in the city has an assessed value on the City of Hornell assessment roll. The City Assessor’s page lays out the yearly calendar:

January 1: taxable status date. The condition and ownership of the property as of this date drive the assessment, and it’s the last day to file all exemptions.
February 15: tentative roll. New assessment changes appear on the tentative roll, which you can inspect at City Hall. For 2026, the city also scheduled several sessions where the assessor sat with the tentative roll, including an evening and a Saturday session.
Early March: grievance proceedings. For 2026, grievance proceedings before the Board of Assessment Review were held March 3, by appointment only, with appointments requested by February 25.
April 15: final roll.

Steuben County posts both the tentative and final assessment rolls for every city and town, including the City of Hornell, as PDFs. You can look up any parcel’s assessment before you make an offer, and you should. The listing’s tax figure reflects the current owner’s exemptions, which may not carry over to you.

Step 2: Why the assessment isn’t the market value

New York lets each assessing unit choose its level of assessment, so many cities and towns don’t assess at 100% of market value. To compare across municipalities, and to divide county and school taxes fairly, the state sets an equalization rate for each one. Steuben County’s table of equalization rates for the 2026 tax levy (dated October 28, 2025) lists the City of Hornell at 85.00. The Town of Hornellsville is at 100.00 and Canisteo is at 80.00.

Here’s how to read that. At an 85% equalization rate, the state’s estimate is that Hornell assessments, on average, sit at about 85% of market value. To estimate the full value implied by an assessment, divide by the rate. An assessment of $85,000 divided by 0.85 implies a full value of about $100,000. It works in reverse, too. If you pay $100,000 for a home that’s assessed at $95,000, that assessment implies a full value of about $112,000. That’s a sign to look more closely, and possibly a grievance argument.

Equalization rates change from year to year, and the rate is an average for the whole city. Individual properties can be assessed above or below it. The county’s equalization rates page links to an explainer and to past rates.

Step 3: Three bills, three rates, three due dates

The City Chamberlain’s office issues and collects city, school, and county taxes for city residents, and publishes the schedule:

City tax: becomes a lien April 1, mailed May 1, due by May 31 without penalty.
School tax: becomes a lien July 1, mailed October 1, due by October 31 without penalty.
County tax: mailed January 1, due by January 31 without penalty.

Because the bills are spread across the year, a closing in, say, August means the seller has paid the city tax, the school tax hasn’t been billed yet, and the county tax was paid in January. Your attorney will prorate each one at closing. It’s worth knowing which bills are coming soon after you move in, especially if you won’t have a mortgage escrow account.

The published rates

The Chamberlain posts tax rates per $1,000 of assessed valuation going back many years. The most recent figures listed when we reviewed the page:

2026 county: 7.374653
2026 city: 11.716326 (down from 13.450090 in 2025)
2025 school: 15.605240 (the page didn’t yet list a 2026 school rate)

A worked example (illustration only)

To see how the rates combine, take a hypothetical city home assessed at $100,000 with no exemptions. Multiply the assessment by each rate and divide by 1,000:

County (2026): $100,000 × 7.374653 ÷ 1,000 ≈ $737
City (2026): $100,000 × 11.716326 ÷ 1,000 ≈ $1,172
School (2025 rate): $100,000 × 15.605240 ÷ 1,000 ≈ $1,561

That’s roughly $3,470 a year before exemptions. This is arithmetic using the published rates, not a quote for any real property. Your actual bills depend on the parcel’s assessment, which exemptions apply, and the rates in effect when each bill is issued. Water, sewer, and garbage charges are billed separately (see below).

Step 4: Exemptions, and which bill they reduce

The City Assessor’s page groups exemptions by the bill they apply to. A few that matter to most households:

STAR (school tax). STAR reduces school taxes for owner-occupied primary residences. The Assessor’s page lists the Basic and Enhanced STAR exemptions, but since 2016 New York has handled new enrollees differently. If you buy a home now, you generally register with the New York State Department of Taxation and Finance and receive STAR as a credit check, rather than as an exemption on your bill. Register as soon as the house is your primary residence. Our sister site has a full STAR guide, and the state’s STAR pages are the official source.
Senior citizens (RPTL 467). Hornell lists separate senior exemptions for city, county, and school taxes, each with its own income limit. The city version is described as a 50% reduction off city tax for owner-occupants 65 or older under the income limit. Check the current limits on the Assessor’s page. They differ by bill and change over time.
Veterans’ exemptions apply to city and county taxes. The Assessor’s page directs veterans to their local veterans’ counselor for applications.
Low-income disability (RPTL 459) is listed for county taxes, with income and documentation requirements.
Residential capital improvements (RPTL 421-f). The city lists an exemption for new residential construction between $3,000 and $50,000 that phases out over eight years. If you’re planning a renovation, ask the assessor whether your project qualifies and when to apply.

Remember the January 1 taxable status date. It’s the last day to file exemptions for the coming roll. If you close in the fall, talk to the Assessor’s office about what you can file before January 1.

Step 5: If you think the assessment is wrong

The first stop is an informal conversation with the City Assessor, ideally while the tentative roll is open in February. If that doesn’t resolve it, you can file a formal grievance with the Board of Assessment Review using form RP-524. The City links the form from its Assessor page, and for 2026 hearings were by appointment only.

A grievance is about value, not about tax rates. The strongest evidence is usually recent sales of comparable homes, an appraisal, or proof of the property’s condition (for example, a contractor’s estimate for a failing foundation). If the Board denies your grievance, New York offers further review, including Small Claims Assessment Review for many owner-occupied homes. Those deadlines are short. The state Tax Department’s contesting your assessment page explains the process.

Water, sewer, and garbage are separate bills

Taxes aren’t the only fixed costs City Hall bills. The Chamberlain’s page also lists the rates it charges:

Water: residential units in the city are not metered. Each unit is charged $178.00 twice a year, plus a $9.50 surcharge and a $14.50 Chesapeake Bay Watershed surcharge on each bill. Bills are issued in April (due April 30) and around September 2 (due October 31).
Solid waste: billed once a year, mailed July 1 and due July 31, at $105.00 per unit. That includes recycling pickup.
North Hornell and Town of Hornellsville water customers are metered and billed quarterly at different rates.

For a two-family house, these charges are per unit, which matters if you’re buying a duplex to live in one side and rent the other. The Chamberlain also offers an official tax search ($10 per parcel) covering current and delinquent city, school, and county taxes plus water and solid waste charges. Your attorney may order one before closing.

Outside the city: towns and villages around Hornell

Hornell is a city surrounded by the Town of Hornellsville, and many “Hornell” mailing addresses are actually in the town or in the Village of North Hornell. Outside the city:

The town assessor, not the City Assessor, sets your assessment. Steuben County publishes a list of every city and town assessor with hours and contact details.
Town, county, and school taxes are generally collected by the town tax collector, and the schedule differs from the city’s.
Your school district depends on the address, not the town name. Check the district on the parcel’s tax bill or the assessment roll before you assume.
Equalization rates differ. Hornellsville is listed at 100.00 for the 2026 levy, so assessments there should, on average, be close to market value.

Steuben County’s Real Property Tax Service is a good starting point for anything that isn’t city-specific: tax maps, assessment rolls, equalization rates, and county tax information.

A pre-offer property tax checklist

Find the parcel on the current Steuben County assessment roll and note the assessed value.
Divide by the equalization rate to see the full value that assessment implies, and compare it to your offer.
Ask for the actual city, school, and county bills, and note which exemptions the seller has. You may not qualify for the same ones.
Estimate your own bills using the Chamberlain’s published rates, then add water, sewer, and solid waste charges.
Plan to register for the STAR credit right after closing if it will be your primary residence.
Put the January (county), May (city), and October (school) due dates on your calendar if you’re not escrowing.

Official sources

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