Farmland and its buildings in Bell County averaged $2,647 an acre in the 2022 Census of Agriculture: the 10th cheapest of the 120 counties in Kentucky, 46% below the Kentucky average in the same census ($4,929).
In the 2017 census it was $1,990 an acre, so the average has risen 33% in five years.
| Farmland and buildings, an acre, 2022 | $2,647 |
|---|---|
| The same, 2017 | $1,990 +33% |
| Farms counted, 2022 | 77 (110 in 2017) |
| Average farm | 267 acres |
| Share of the county that is farmland | 8.9% |
| Median value of an owner-occupied home | $89,000 ± $6,214 |
The farm figure is land and buildings together, averaged over every farm in the county, from the largest ranch to the smallest holding. It is for comparing one county with another, not a price for any parcel: a few acres with road frontage usually costs more an acre than the average, not less.
Source: USDA, 2022 Census of Agriculture, Kentucky county data, Table 8; Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, table B25077
Living here: tax, internet and hazards
Homeowners in Bell County paid a median $723 a year in property tax, about 0.8% of the median home value. What a particular parcel pays depends on its exemptions and on whether it is taxed as farmland: see how Kentucky taxes farmland, and ask the county assessor what the parcel paid last year.
65.6% of the 9,939 households here pay for cable, fiber or DSL internet. That is what people subscribe to, not what reaches a given road: the FCC's broadband map shows what is offered at an address, and it is worth checking before you count on working from home.
| Hazard | FEMA risk rating |
|---|---|
| Inland flooding | Relatively Moderate |
| Coastal flooding | Does not occur here |
| Wildfire | Relatively Low |
| Tornado | Relatively Low |
| Hail | Relatively Low |
| Drought | Very Low |
| Hurricane | Very Low |
FEMA rates none of these as a relatively high risk here. Its ratings compare counties across the country and weigh how much property there is to lose, so a thinly settled county can rate low even where the hazard itself is common. For a particular parcel, look it up on FEMA's flood maps before you buy.
Source: Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, table B25103; Census Bureau, ACS 2020–2024, table B28002; FEMA, National Risk Index, December 2025
For sale now
In September 2026, 66 homes were listed for sale in Bell County on Realtor.com, at a median asking price of $186,200. The Census median above, $89,000, counts every owner-occupied home and not only those for sale, and it averages 2020 to 2024.
| Homes listed for sale | 66 |
|---|---|
| New listings in the month | 18 |
| Median asking price | $186,200 |
| Median asking price a square foot | $112 |
| Median days on the market | 76 |
Houses listed on one website, at the price asked: not land, and not what anything sold for.
Source: Realtor.com, Residential listings data, monthly inventory by county, September 2026
Next door
The counties that share a border with Bell County, cheapest farmland first.
| county | Farmland an acre | Median home |
|---|---|---|
| Leslie County | $1,450 | $69,000 |
| Harlan County | $2,816 | $73,700 |
| Clay County | $2,956 | $90,700 |
| Whitley County | $2,970 | $131,800 |
| Knox County | $3,690 | $118,700 |
Buying land here: the Kentucky rules
Unpaid tax bills are sold as certificates at 12 percent, and a farm nobody farms keeps its farm tax only until it is sold.
Each links to the Kentucky guide, where every fact cites the statute or agency page it came from.