Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District Orange County · FY 2026–27

Rates effective July 1, 2026 (FY 2026–27) · Verified July 3, 2026

$0.9434

combined rate per $100

county $0.6805 + district $0.1150 + schools $0.1479

$3,774

per year on a $400,000 home

$314 per month

316

parcels in this district

The Greater Chapel Hill fire service district covers unincorporated land ringing the town, and nearly every parcel in it also sits inside the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools district — so the real bill here is county plus fire plus the school-district tax, well above the fire levy alone. It is a clear case of why an unincorporated address near Chapel Hill is not as cheap as the fire rate suggests.

Estimated annual tax in Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District

Assessed home valueAnnual taxPer month
$250,000$2,359$197
$400,000$3,774$314
$600,000$5,660$472

At the combined $0.9434 rate per $100 of assessed value. Excludes flat fees (e.g. solid waste) and any special assessments.

How Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District compares

Combined rate most parcels in each district pay, all Orange County fire districts, FY 2026–27

Frequently asked questions

What is the Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District tax rate for FY 2026–27?

$0.1150 per $100 of assessed value, on top of Orange County's $0.6805 — and most parcels here also pay the Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools levy ($0.1479) — bringing the combined rate most parcels pay to $0.9434. Each levy appears as its own line on the county tax bill.

How much does the Greater Chapel Hill Fire Service District levy add to a typical bill?

On a $400,000 property, the district levy itself is $460 of the $3,774 annual total.

Why do unincorporated properties pay a fire-district tax?

Outside city limits, fire protection is funded by a dedicated service-district levy rather than a municipal budget. The district boundary — not distance to a station — determines which rate applies to a parcel.

Sources: Adopted FY2026-27 budget ordinance ORD-2026-014 (packet pp. 11-21; tax levy pp. 15-16) (retrieved 2026-07-03) · County news release corroborating the adopted 68.05-cent county rate (retrieved 2026-07-03) · FY2025-26 rate-code table (code->levy map; 2026 sheet not yet posted) (retrieved 2026-07-03) · NCPTS bill portal — 8 rate codes verified against real FY2025-26 bills (retrieved 2026-07-03)