What a Fort Thomas house pays
Property tax, water, trash and energy from public rates. Look up your address to make it yours, and see how to pay less.
Sent only to free public map services to find who serves it. Not stored unless you save your house.
Starts at the typical market value, $335,000; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.
- Property tax$5,209
1.555% of $335,000
- Electricity and gas$2,919
889.1 kWh a month $1,563 · 53.51 therms $1,356
- Water and sewer$1,280
5.3476 units (CCF) a month on Northern Kentucky Water District: water $45, sewer $58, sd1 stormwater fee (one eru for a single-family home) $4 a month
- Trash$264
Residential curbside (trash and recycling), $22 a month
- Home insurance$1,359
Typical premium $1,359
A Fort Thomas house at the typical market value ($335,000) pays about $11,000 a year: $5,210 property tax and charges, $1,280 water and sewer, $260 trash, $2,920 electricity and gas, $1,360 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.
Rates checked Oct 22, 2026. Insurance: what you enter, or a typical premium until you do. Sources are listed at the bottom.
Ways to pay less
Nothing here applies to every house automatically. These are worth checking:
Seniors 65+: homestead exemption$49,100 off assessed value
Owners 65 or older who own, maintain and reside at the property can apply to the Campbell County PVA. The value of the exemption for the 2025-2026 assessment years is $49,100, deducted from the assessed value; once you apply, you need not apply again.
How: Apply at the Campbell County PVA; the City of Fort Thomas recommends applying before paying your tax bill.
Totally disabled owners: disability exemption$49,100 off assessed value
Owners who are 100% disabled, own, maintain and reside at the property and provide proof of disability benefits can apply to the Campbell County PVA. Only one exemption per residential unit is allowed.
How: Follow the application process on the Campbell County PVA exemptions page.
Low income: SD1 Customer Assistance Program20% off sewer bills
SD1 customers at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines (200% for customers 65 or older) with a usage factor of 2 or 3 on a recent SD1 bill can get a 20% discount on residential sanitary sewer bills.
How: Contact the Brighton Center at 859-491-8303, ext. 2378.
Money dates
- Oct 31, 2026in 8 daysFort Thomas real estate taxes are due.
Who serves this house
- Water
- Northern Kentucky Water District
- Northern Kentucky Water District's normal billing cycle is quarterly (except for subdistrict accounts): a quarterly service charge by meter size plus a charge per cubic foot of water
- Property tax
- 1.56% of value
- 2026 tax year, Campbell County
- Garbage
- City of Fort Thomas
- Curbside trash and recycling charge of $264 a year in 2026, levied on property owners
- Sewer
- Sanitation District No. 1 (SD1)
- Monthly base rate with the first 2 HCF, plus a charge per HCF above that
- Electricity
- Duke Energy Kentucky
- Rate RS residential service
- Schools
- Fort Thomas Independent Schools
- Adopted a 90.2 cent real property tax rate for 2026-27
Your water
- Source
- NKWD's Fort Thomas and Memorial Parkway treatment plants draw water from the Ohio River; the Taylor Mill plant's source is the Licking River.
- Lead
- In 2024 tap testing (the most recent required), 0 of 51 sites were above the 15 ppb lead action level; 90% of taps tested were below 2 ppb.
Other KY cities
What a Louisville house paysWhat a Independence house paysWhat a Lexington house paysWhat a Georgetown house paysWhat a Shelbyville house paysWhat a Bowling Green house paysWhat a Covington house paysWhat a Erlanger house paysWhat a Mount Washington house paysWhat a St. Matthews house paysWhat a Elizabethtown house paysWhat a Richmond house paysWhat a Versailles house paysWhat a Bardstown house paysWhat a Lyndon house paysWhat a Shepherdsville house paysWhat a Alexandria house pays
How these numbers are made
- Property tax: the 2026 state rate (10.3 cents per $100), Campbell County (15.2 cents), Fort Thomas Independent Schools (90.2 cents) and the City of Fort Thomas (28.8 cents), plus the 2025 rates for extension (2.6), health (2.2), library (5.9) and soil conservation (0.3), on the value you enter. The starting value is the Census median value of owner-occupied homes, $335,000; Fort Thomas was reassessed for 2026, so your PVA assessment may differ. The $49,100 homestead exemption is only for owners 65 and older or disabled, so it is a tip, not taken off the typical bill. Fort Thomas has its own fire department funded in the city rate, so no fire district rate is added.
- Trash: the city's 2026 residential curbside charge of $264 a year ($22 a month) is levied with the city tax bill and counted once, here as monthly. Commercial and container rates are not used.
- Water: Northern Kentucky Water District rates on quarterly billing: $45.20 a quarter for a 5/8-inch meter (about $15.07 a month), $5.52 per CCF for the first 15 CCF a month and $5.13 above that, using the NKWD average quarterly bill of 12,000 gallons (about 5.3 CCF a month). Subdistrict surcharges are not included.
- Sewer and stormwater: SD1 from July 1, 2026, a $40.00 base (first 2 HCF) plus the $5.00 environmental surcharge a month and $4.00 per HCF above 2 HCF, applied to the water use you enter (SD1 actually uses winter usage), plus the $3.70 monthly stormwater fee for one ERU.
- Electricity: Duke Energy Kentucky Rate RS from September 1, 2026 ($14.75 a month, $0.128121 per kWh) plus the October 2026 fuel adjustment clause of $0.001811 per kWh. The environmental surcharge, demand side management and profit sharing riders are not included because their current residential values were not sourced. A 2% franchise fee on gross receipts is in the city franchise ordinance but is not shown as a bill line here. Starting use is Duke Energy Kentucky's 2024 residential average from EIA (about 889 kWh a month).
- Gas: Duke Energy Kentucky Rate RS from September 1, 2026, $20.00 plus the $0.30 Home Energy Assistance charge a month and $1.51209 per CCF plus the $0.27 pipeline modernization and $0.014440 demand side management charges, converted to therms at 1.037 therms per CCF; the gas cost adjustment changes during the year. Starting use is the Kentucky 2025 residential average from EIA. Insurance is the 2022 Kentucky average HO-3 premium (NAIC data via Triple-I), the latest year that page publishes; it is a statewide average, not a quote for your home. A school utility gross receipts tax (up to 3% under KRS 160.613) may apply in Fort Thomas Independent Schools but its rate was not sourced, so it is not added.
- Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.
- psc.ky.gov Tariff.pdf
- web.archive.org Water-Quality-Report---2025-PDF?bidId=
- www.sd1.org SD1-Rates-and-Fees-PDF
- www.sd1.org Understanding-Your-Bill
- www.sd1.org Stormwater-Co-Permittee-Partners
- www.eia.gov ng_cons_sum_dcu_SKY_a.htm
- www.eia.gov ng_cons_num_dcu_SKY_a.htm
- www.iii.org facts-statistics-homeowners-and-renters-
- psc.ky.gov Case_No._2026-00189_GCA_Tariffs_09-26.pd
- psc.ky.gov Tariff.pdf
- psc.ky.gov Tariffs_DEK_E_Case_2025-00342_Base_Fuel_
- fortthomasky.org Ordinance-O-12-2025-25.26-Waste-Fee-Ordi
- portal.ksba.org Meeting.aspx?AgencyTypeID=&PublicAgencyI
- fortthomasky.org Ordinance-O-13-2025-Tax-Rate.pdf
- fortthomasky.org
- www.wbko.com
- linknky.com
- be-nky.com Campbell-County-Tax-Rates-2025-1.pdf
- amyhoustonteam.com every-rate-on-your-fort-thomas-tax-bill-
- pva.campbellcountykentucky.com exemptions
- api.censusreporter.org acs2024_5yr?table_ids=B25077&geo_ids=160
- www.duke-energy.com electric-fuel-adjustments
- fortthomasky.org Ordinance-O-01-2026-Electric-Franchise.p
- www.eia.gov table_6.pdf
- fortthomasky.org Ordinance-O-02-2026-Natural-Gas-Franchis
- revenue.ky.gov homestead-exemption.aspx
- fortthomasky.org
- www.sd1.org Customer-Assistance-Program
- campbellcountysheriffky.org
How Fort Thomas compares
A typical Fort Thomas house against the 11 Kentucky cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.
| Per year | Fort Thomas | Median | Where it falls |
|---|---|---|---|
| Property tax rate | 1.55% | 1.32% | higher than 9 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover |
| Water | $535 | $535 | higher than 4 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover |
| Sewer and utility-bill fees | $745 | $745 | lower than 5 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover |
| Trash | $264 | $235 | higher than 4 of the other 5 Kentucky cities we cover |
| Electricity and gas | $2,919 | $2,751 | higher than 7 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover |
| Home insurance | $1,359 | $1,359 | in the middle of 10 other Kentucky cities we cover |
| Total | $11,032 | $8,812 | higher than 10 of the other 10 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. Property tax rate
The fact: Fort Thomas's property tax rate is 1.55%, higher than 9 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover. The rate adds up every agency on the bill, not only the city.
Ask: "Property tax in Fort Thomas is 1.55%, higher than 9 of the other 10 Kentucky cities we cover. What should that money pay for first, and would you change anything about how it is set?"
2. Trash
The fact: Trash pickup here costs about $264 a year for the standard cart, higher than 4 of the other 5 Kentucky cities we cover. Where trash is billed through the tax bill or a separate hauler, it is not counted here.
Ask: "Trash pickup here costs about $264 a year for the standard cart, higher than 4 of the other 5 Kentucky cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything about the service or the price?"
Common questions about Fort Thomas house costs
What is the property tax rate in Fort Thomas?
About 1.56% of the value before exemptions a year (2026 tax year, Campbell County), plus flat charges on the same bill.
How much is property tax on a $500,000 house in Fort Thomas?
About $7,775 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions.
How much is the water bill in Fort Thomas?
About $107 a month for water and sewer at typical use (5.3476 units, or 4,000 gallons a month) on Northern Kentucky Water District.
How much does trash pickup cost in Fort Thomas?
$22 a month for a house.
Can seniors lower their property tax or bills in Fort Thomas?
Yes. Seniors 65+: homestead exemption: Owners 65 or older who own, maintain and reside at the property can apply to the Campbell County PVA. The value of the exemption for the 2025-2026 assessment years is $49,100, deducted from the assessed value; once you apply, you need not apply again.
Where can I get help paying utility bills in Fort Thomas?
Low income: SD1 Customer Assistance Program: SD1 customers at or below 150% of the federal poverty guidelines (200% for customers 65 or older) with a usage factor of 2 or 3 on a recent SD1 bill can get a 20% discount on residential sanitary sewer bills. Contact the Brighton Center at 859-491-8303, ext. 2378.
How much does a house in Fort Thomas cost to run each year?
A Fort Thomas house at the typical market value ($335,000) pays about $11,000 a year: $5,210 property tax and charges, $1,280 water and sewer, $260 trash, $2,920 electricity and gas, $1,360 home insurance. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.