Signal Mountain, TN · Updated Oct 2026

What a Signal Mountain 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.

Example · a Signal Mountain house

$10,419a year · $868 a month

Starts at the typical market value, $544,300; your assessed value is often lower. Typical use.

Property tax$3,560
0.654% of $544,300
Flat charges on the tax bill$51
Town stormwater fee (yearly, smallest tier) $51
Electricity and gas$2,821
1216.7 kWh a month $1,857 · 45.8 therms $964
Water and sewer$2,495
7,000 gallons a month on Signal Mountain Water Utility: water $62, sewer $146 a month
TrashIncluded
Curbside garbage is funded by property taxes; no monthly fee
Home insurance$1,492
Typical premium $1,492

A Signal Mountain house at the typical market value ($544,300) pays about $10,400 a year: $3,610 property tax and charges, $2,490 water and sewer, $2,820 electricity and gas, $1,490 home insurance; trash is paid through property tax. Estimated from public rates, not anyone's actual bill.

Rates checked Oct 21, 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:

Age 70+ or disabled: backdoor garbage service
Town residents aged 70 or disabled can have household garbage picked up at the back door instead of the curb, if all members of the household meet one of the criteria. Up to four large bags a week, 75 pounds combined.
How: Ask the Town of Signal Mountain at (423) 886-2177.
Free Recycling Center
The Signal Mountain Recycling Center at 1151 Ridgeway Ave. is open to all mountain residents without charge, Monday to Saturday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. It also takes household hazardous waste and many electronics.
How: Drop off during open hours; Recycle Center phone (423) 886-4341.
Quarterly 'First Wednesday' bulky-item pickup
The Town collects bulky items on the first Wednesday of each quarter; 2027 dates are January 6, April 7, July 7 and October 6. Mattresses and freon-containing appliances are picked up for a fee.
How: Call (423) 886-2177 Ext. 2 no later than the day before pickup to be scheduled.
Appeal or lower your stormwater fee
If you disagree with how your stormwater fee was calculated, or want an adjustment for stormwater management practices on your property, you can appeal to the stormwater appeals board.
How: File a written appeal stating the grounds within 30 days of the bill that contains the stormwater fee.

Money dates

Feb 28, 20272026 Town of Signal Mountain and Hamilton County property taxes are due by the last day of February; on March 1 they become delinquent and accrue 1 1/2% interest a month.
Mar 1The Town stormwater fee is paid at Town Hall in person or by mail and becomes delinquent on March 1 of each year.
May 20Ask the Hamilton County Assessor for an informal review of your value before May 20; appeals to the County Board of Equalization are accepted through the first week of June.
15th of each monthTown water bills are due on the 15th of each month.

Who serves this house

Water: Signal Mountain Water Utility; Town of Signal Mountain water rates inside Town limits (rate change effective with the September 1, 2023 billing); the Town reads meters and bills monthly: a monthly service fee plus a charge per 1,000 gallons
Property tax: 0.65% of value; 2026 tax year, Town of Signal Mountain and Hamilton County
Garbage: Town of Signal Mountain Public Works; Curbside garbage is funded by property taxes, with no monthly fee; the Recycling Center is free for mountain residents
Sewer: Hamilton County WWTA; Sewer is billed on water use; the Town does WWTA's billing
Electricity: EPB; Base Rate Plan: $9.81 customer charge plus 9.095¢ per kWh and TVA's monthly fuel cost adjustment
Gas: Chattanooga Gas; Customer charge $36.01 a month November-April and $29.71 May-October, plus per-therm charges
Schools: Hamilton County; Of the county's $1.5157 tax rate for 2026, $0.6540 is the school fund

Pay or manage your bills

Your water

Source: All water is bought from Tennessee American Water, which draws it from the Tennessee River at its Citico Water Treatment Plant in Chattanooga.
Testing: In 2025, testing results met all state and federal drinking water requirements.
Lead: 2025 lead testing: 90th percentile below 1.0 ppb, and 0 of 20 homes sampled above the action level.
Hardness: Hardness averaged 76 ppm (4.4 grains per gallon) in 2025, which the report lists as moderately hard (61 - 120).

How these numbers are made

Water (Town of Signal Mountain Water Utility, inside Town limits, rate change effective with the September 1, 2023 billing): $6.48 monthly service fee plus $8.28 per 1,000 gallons. The Town's rates page shows no later change. The EPA water-system map shows Walden's Ridge Utility District bordering the Town system; if your water bill comes from it, its rates apply instead.
Sewer (Hamilton County WWTA, rates approved for October 1, 2026): $20.45 per 1,000 gallons of metered water plus the $8 monthly Private Service Lateral Program fee charged to gravity-sewer customers. The sewer minimum bill ($28.69 for meters under 1 inch) only matters below about 1,400 gallons a month; grinder (low-pressure) customers pay $22.50 per 1,000 gallons. Homes on septic pay no sewer charge.
Garbage is paid through property taxes with no monthly fee; the $20 a month shown for two carts is the Town's second-cart fee. The Town stormwater fee is billed once a year; we use the minimum of $51.48 (impervious area up to 3,960 sq ft); larger roofs and driveways pay $0.03575 per square foot.
Property tax: Tennessee assesses a house at 25% of its appraised value and sets rates per $100 of that assessed value. 2026 rates: Town of Signal Mountain $1.1002 and Hamilton County $1.5157 (general fund $0.8563, school fund $0.6540, district road fund $0.0054), $2.6159 in all, which is 0.654% of appraised value. The Town and the county send separate bills. Tennessee has no general homestead exemption; state relief programs are listed as tips.
The starting home value is the Census median value of owner-occupied homes in Signal Mountain ($544,300, 2020-2024), a market value; enter your appraised value from the Hamilton County Assessor (values are from the 2025 reappraisal; the next is in 2029). Home insurance is the Tennessee statewide average for 2022 (NAIC via Triple-I).
Electricity: EPB Base Rate Plan, $9.81 customer charge plus the 9.095¢ energy charge and the average of the 11 published monthly residential TVA fuel cost adjustments from December 2025 to October 2026 (2.816¢), 11.911¢ per kWh; typical use 1,217 kWh a month from EPB's 40 kWh a day household average. Gas: Chattanooga Gas R-1, the average of its winter and summer customer charges ($32.86), the 24.950¢ commodity charge, October 2026 surcharges (4.083¢) and the simple 12-month average of the purchased gas adjustment for November 2025 to October 2026 ($7.46 per dekatherm, 74.6¢ per therm), about $1.04 per therm; typical use 45.8 therms a month (EIA Tennessee residential average).
Nothing here is legal, tax or insurance advice.

Sources

How Signal Mountain compares

A typical Signal Mountain house against the 20 Tennessee cities we cover, using the same default numbers as the total above.

Per year	Signal Mountain	Median	Where it falls
Property tax rate	0.65%	0.62%	higher than 10 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover
Water	$747	$492	higher than 18 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover
Sewer and utility-bill fees	$1,748	$776	higher than 19 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover
Electricity and gas	$2,821	$2,466	higher than 16 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover
Home insurance	$1,492	$1,492	in the middle of 19 other Tennessee cities we cover
Total	$10,419	$7,240	higher than 18 of the other 19 Tennessee 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. Water

The fact: Water here costs about $747 a year at typical use, higher than 18 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover.

Ask: "Water here costs about $747 a year at typical use, higher than 18 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"

2. Sewer and utility-bill fees

The fact: Sewer and flat utility-bill charges here come to about $1,748 a year, higher than 19 of the other 19 Tennessee 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 $1,748 a year, higher than 19 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover. What drives that cost, and would you change anything?"

3. Electricity and gas

The fact: Electricity and gas for a typical house here cost about $2,821 a year, higher than 16 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover. Rates are set mostly by the utility and the state.

Ask: "Electricity and gas here cost about $2,821 a year for a typical house, higher than 16 of the other 19 Tennessee cities we cover. Which parts of that can the city influence, and what would you do about them?"

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Common questions about Signal Mountain house costs

What is the property tax rate in Signal Mountain?

About 0.65% of the value before exemptions a year (2026 tax year, Town of Signal Mountain and Hamilton County), plus flat charges on the same bill (Town stormwater fee (yearly, smallest tier) $51).

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

About $3,321 a year on $500,000 of the value before exemptions, including $51 of flat charges.

How much is the water bill in Signal Mountain?

About $208 a month for water and sewer at typical use (7,000 gallons a month) on Signal Mountain Water Utility.

How much does trash pickup cost in Signal Mountain?

Curbside garbage is funded by property taxes; no monthly fee

When is property tax due in Signal Mountain?

Feb 28, 2027: 2026 Town of Signal Mountain and Hamilton County property taxes are due by the last day of February; on March 1 they become delinquent and accrue 1 1/2% interest a month.

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

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