Berea, KY · Updated Oct 2026

What a Berea home costs each year

Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.

Suggestions as you type come from Google; the lookup uses free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.

Example · a Berea house

$7,878a year · $657 a month

Starts at the typical market value, $199,900; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.

A Berea house at the typical market value ($199,900) costs about $7,900 a year: $2,570 property tax and charges, $1,100 water and sewer, $210 trash, $2,640 electricity and gas, $1,360 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.

Rates checked Oct 29, 2026. Insurance: what you enter, or a typical premium until you do. Sources are listed at the bottom.

Ways to pay less

One change saves this house about $773 a year:

Bring water use down to 2 units
$773 a year
Above 2 units a month, Berea Municipal Utilities charges $9.20 a unit instead of $0.00.
How: Most of the top tier is outdoor watering: fix leaks and water less often in summer.

Worth checking

Seniors 65+ or totally disabled: homestead exemption$49,100 off assessed value
Homeowners who are at least 65, or who are classified as totally disabled and meet the other requirements, can take $49,100 (the 2025-2026 amount) off the assessed value of their home.
How: File a homestead application with the PVA of the county where the home is (for Richmond, the Madison County PVA).
Pay the City of Berea tax bill by Nov 30, 2026 for 2% off2% discount
The City of Berea gives a 2% discount if the city property tax is paid or postmarked by November 30, 2026.
How: Pay the city bill online, by mail, at the drop box or at City Hall, 212 Chestnut Street.

Money dates

Nov 30, 2026in 26 daysThe City of Berea's 2% discount ends: it applies if the city tax is paid or postmarked by November 30, 2026.
Dec 31, 2026in 57 daysThe City of Berea tax face amount is due if paid or postmarked by December 31, 2026; after that, a 10% penalty plus 10% interest per annum applies.
Jan 1in 58 daysHomestead exemption eligibility is set as of January 1: you must be in the home on that date.

Who serves this house

Water: Berea Municipal Utilities; Residential water, effective July 8 2026: the first 1496 gallons are $12.00, then $0.006885 a gallon.
Property tax: 1.29% of value; 2026 tax year, Madison County
Garbage: Waste Connections; Contracted by the City of Berea for solid waste
Sewer: Berea Municipal Utilities; Sanitary sewer service to 6,150 customers
Electricity: Berea Municipal Utilities; Serves roughly 5,320 homes and businesses in the Berea area
Gas: Delta Natural Gas; Has an office at 129 Glades Road, Berea

Pay or manage your bills

Your water

Source: BMU uses water from four reservoirs within the Berea College Forest’s watersheds.
Customers: BMU serves nearly 4,200 meters in its service area and provides water to 5,450 meters in the Southern Madison Water District.

How these numbers are made

Property tax: 2026 rates for a home inside Berea, 128.6 cents per $100: state 10.3, Madison County Fiscal Court 6.3, Berea Independent Schools 87.8 (the rate staff proposed for 2026-27; adoption not confirmed, the 2025-26 rate was 86.7), EMS 4.2, health department 4.7, library 4.6, extension 1.8 and City of Berea 8.9. The EMS, health, library and extension rates are as presented to the Fiscal Court on September 8, 2026 (quoted in dollars per $100, so 0.042 is 4.2 cents). The $49,100 homestead exemption is for owners 65 and older or totally disabled, so it is a tip, not taken off the typical bill. Madison County taxes are paid at the Sheriff's office; the city bill is separate.
The starting value is the Census ACS 2020-2024 median value of owner-occupied homes in Berea, $199,900; your PVA assessment may differ. We found no assessor median.
Water and sewer: Berea Municipal Utilities residential rates effective July 8 2026, billed per gallon (shown per 1,000 gallons); the first 1,496 gallons are covered by the $12.00 water and $10.50 sewer base charges. Typical use is not published, so the page starts at its default. Houses served by Southern Madison Water District pay the same listed rates.
Garbage: Waste Connections' $17.20 a month is the 2024 bid price, paid in four quarterly payments, before the optional $5.15 recycling tote; the city posts no current residential price list, so your bill may differ.
Electricity: BMU residential single-phase $22.50 service charge and $0.0890 per kWh; a Power Cost Adjustment that varies monthly is not included. Typical use is EIA's 2024 average for the City of Berea Municipal Utility (57,571 MWh over 4,722 residential customers). Gas: Delta's rate of $12.7480 + $0.96008 pipe replacement per Mcf (1.037 therms per ccf, 10 ccf per Mcf) and a $29.95 customer charge plus $0.30 assistance fee; typical use is EIA's Kentucky residential average. The 3% utility tax is the Berea Independent Schools rate in the state's 2025-26 table; whether it appears on a given BMU bill was not confirmed.
Insurance is the 2022 Kentucky statewide average HO-3 premium (NAIC via Triple-I), about four years old; replace it with your own premium.
Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.

Sources

How Berea compares

A typical Berea house against the 32 Kentucky cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.

Per year	Berea	Median	Where it falls
Property tax rate	1.29%	1.28%	higher than 17 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover
Water	$577	$535	higher than 22 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover
Sewer and utility-bill fees	$522	$745	lower than 27 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover
Trash	$206	$216	lower than 14 of the other 22 Kentucky cities we cover
Electricity and gas	$2,644	$2,612	higher than 17 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover
Home insurance	$1,359	$1,359	lower than 1 of the other 29 Kentucky cities we cover
Total	$7,878	$8,208	lower than 20 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover

Cities bill differently (some put trash on the tax bill, some cover more services), so a higher number isn't necessarily worse. The property tax rate is compared instead of dollars because house values differ.

Questions to ask your candidates

Each one starts from a number above. Any candidate can answer them.

1. Sewer and utility-bill fees

The fact: Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here come to about $522 a year, lower than 27 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover. Some cities bill sewer on the property tax bill instead, which is not counted here.

Ask: "Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here cost about $522 a year, lower than 27 of the other 31 Kentucky cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"

See who is running in your city →

Common questions about Berea house costs

What is the property tax rate in Berea?

About 1.29% of the value before exemptions a year (2026 tax year, Madison County), plus flat charges on the same bill.

How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Berea?

About $6,430 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions.

How much is the water bill in Berea?

About $92 a month for water and sewer at typical use (7,000 gallons a month) on Berea Municipal Utilities.

How much does trash pickup cost in Berea?

$17 a month for a house.

Can seniors lower their property tax or bills in Berea?

Yes. Seniors 65+ or totally disabled: homestead exemption: Homeowners who are at least 65, or who are classified as totally disabled and meet the other requirements, can take $49,100 (the 2025-2026 amount) off the assessed value of their home.

How much does a house in Berea cost to run each year?

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