If you're under contract in Carrington Lakes this month, your closing falls before year-end. Alabama property taxes came due October 1 and become delinquent after December 31. Carrington Lakes is part of Trussville, so the city rate is the same on every lot, and the gate, lakes and Residents' Club are the same too. The county the parcel sits in is the variable.
Trussville's city limits run into both Jefferson County and St. Clair County. The City of Trussville's own property tax page lists a total of 62.1 mills on the Jefferson side and 43 mills on the St. Clair side. Carrington Lakes sits on that line.
Where the county line meets Carrington Lakes
Carrington Lakes is a 1,560-acre master-planned community built by J. Harris Development. In 2008, AL.com reported that the Village at Overlook, the community's garden-home section built around a 22-acre lake, "along with several other sections of Carrington Lakes, is within St. Clair County."
City records show the line is real and still matters. In December 2016, Trussville's City Council took up a ten-acre tract "entirely surrounded by Carrington Lakes" that the original developer had never secured. According to the council minutes, that tract stayed in unincorporated St. Clair County when the rest of the development was annexed. Because it lay in St. Clair County, bringing it into the city required action by the Alabama Legislature. By June 2019, The Trussville Tribune reported that the tract had been annexed. Developer Black Orchid Equity LLC wanted garden homes there, near the existing garden homes on Highlands Drive and Overlook Drive. The Planning and Zoning minutes from that month place the tract east of Lakeview Trace and north of Overlook Way.
Each parcel's county is recorded at the parcel level, on the county's own assessment records.
The two millage stacks, line by line
The Alabama Department of Revenue's October 2025 millage schedule breaks down both totals.
| Levy | Jefferson County side | St. Clair County side | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| State of Alabama | 6.5 mills | 6.5 mills | 0 |
| County | 13.5 mills | 11.0 mills, including 2.0 for fire protection | 2.5 mills |
| School | 30.1 mills | 13.5 mills, Trussville attendance zone | 16.6 mills |
| City of Trussville | 12.0 mills | 12.0 mills | 0 |
| Total | 62.1 mills | 43 mills | 19.1 mills |
The city and state rows are identical, so the whole gap comes from the county and school rows. The school row accounts for 16.6 of the 19.1 mills. On the Jefferson side that school millage is a county-wide 8.2 plus a district levy of 21.9. On the St. Clair side it is a county-wide 10.5 plus 3.0 for the Trussville attendance zones. The same schedule notes a $5 storm water fee on Class III property in Jefferson County, which applies in most districts.
These rates are current. Jefferson County's millage table for tax year 2026 still lists Trussville at a total of 6.21, the same 62.1 mills written as a percentage.
What 19.1 mills costs at October's median
Mills only become dollars after Alabama's assessment step. According to the Alabama Department of Revenue, single-family owner-occupied homes fall in Class III and are assessed at 10% of appraised value. Tax is that assessed value multiplied by the millage, where one mill equals $0.001.
Greater Alabama MLS reported a median sale price of $420,000 for Trussville in October 2026, up 0.4% from September, on 27 sold listings. Here is that home on both sides of the line, before any exemptions:
- Appraised value of $420,000 times 10% gives an assessed value of $42,000.
- On the Jefferson side, $42,000 times 0.0621 comes to $2,608.20 a year.
- On the St. Clair side, $42,000 times 0.043 comes to $1,806.00 a year.
- The gap is $802.20 a year, or about $191 for every $100,000 of appraised value.
Two homes with the same list price, behind the same gate, carry different holding costs, and the difference repeats every year you own the home. When you compare two Carrington Lakes listings, the tax line belongs in the monthly payment math next to the HOA dues.
Exemptions don't close much of the gap. Jefferson County's homestead guidance says an owner-occupant under 65 gets an exemption of up to $4,000 in assessed value on state taxes and up to $2,000 on county taxes, "both excluding all school and municipal taxes." The school row, where 16.6 of the 19.1 mills sit, falls outside that standard exemption on the Jefferson side. Separate homestead treatment applies to qualifying owners 65 and older, owners who are permanently and totally disabled, and owners who are blind. St. Clair County's Revenue Commission FAQ lists its own homestead categories, H1 through H4, for primary residences.
Why the school line hasn't moved
Since the school millage drives most of the gap, the 2024 vote explains why it has held. That August, Trussville voters decided on a 12.9-mill property tax increase for Trussville City Schools. WBRC reported that it worked out to about $129 a year per $100,000 of property value. The money would have paid for a new elementary school, improvements to the middle school and a new wing at the high school.
ABC 33/40 reported that the measure failed, 3,085 to 2,234. Afterward, Mayor Buddy Choat said, "These are three projects we've got to find a way to get funding for pretty soon and in the near future."
So today's 62.1 and 43 totals reflect a decision voters made two years ago. The city has said those projects still need funding. If you're buying a home you plan to hold for years, the school millage is the number most likely to change.
The year-end calendar for a Carrington Lakes closing
Alabama collects property taxes in arrears, and the deadlines cluster at the end of the year. A Carrington Lakes closing that lands between now and New Year's runs into these dates:
- October 1: Property taxes are due statewide.
- After December 31: Unpaid property taxes become delinquent.
- December 31, Jefferson County side: Changes in ownership, mailing address or property description must be reported to the Tax Assessor by this date. The county also says the homestead exemption is claimed at the time of assessment.
- December 31, St. Clair County side: The Revenue Commission's FAQ says owners who protest a valuation must pay their taxes by December 31, or file a bond in Circuit Court for double the taxes due, to keep the right to appeal to Circuit Court.
The counties run separate offices, portals and exemption forms. Knowing which county holds your parcel decides which agency gets the paperwork, and that matters well before closing.
Quick answers
Do all Carrington Lakes homes pay the St. Clair rate? No. AL.com placed the Village at Overlook and several other sections in St. Clair County, and city records confirm at least one annexed St. Clair tract inside the community. Each parcel's county is shown on the county's assessment record.
Does the Trussville city tax change across the line? No. Trussville levies 12 mills on both sides, according to the City of Trussville.
Where does the St. Clair side's fire millage go? St. Clair County's 11 county mills include 2 mills for fire protection. Jefferson County's 13.5 county mills cover general fund, road, bridge and sewer levies.
This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Confirm your own exemptions, deadlines and tax amounts with the county office or a tax professional.
If you're weighing two Carrington Lakes homes, or getting ready to list one, Billy Brodie will pull the parcel's county, run the tax line against the price and put both numbers in front of you before you make an offer or set a list price. Get Your Free Home Valuation and see your home's numbers.
