TL;DR: Ranked by property tax, the best places to retire in Northwest Arkansas start with Fayetteville's Greenland #95 district at 51.4 mills and Bella Vista's Gravette #20 district at 51.72 (2025 millage, Arkansas DFA). On the Washington County average sale price of $423,750 (first half of 2026), Fayetteville's rate works out to about $4,356 a year. On the Benton County average of $465,888, Bella Vista's is about $4,819. Rogers (54.6 mills), Gentry (56.6) and Siloam Springs (56.8) follow. Eureka Springs (Carroll County) has the lowest rate of all, 50.2 mills, but is not scored because the cost estimates use Benton and Washington County prices.
How are the best places to retire in Northwest Arkansas ranked here?
A retiree looking at Northwest Arkansas usually cares about four things: what a home costs, what it costs to own each year, how many neighbors are at the same stage of life, and how far it is to XNA (the regional airport) and to adult hospital care. Of those, only the yearly property tax can be scored town by town from figures I can cite, so this ranking uses tax alone. The age profile of each town's residents, drive time to XNA and adult hospital access were not assessed here.
The ranking rule is the same for every town. Each town is ranked by the lowest overall millage (school + city + county) among its school districts in the Arkansas DFA 2025 millage report I drew on, and each headline dollar estimate uses that same rate. The higher-district figure is shown as the top of the range. Prices are county averages, not city figures or medians. The Benton County average is $465,888, down 1.2%. The Washington County average is $423,750, up 1.5% from $417,489 a year earlier (first half of 2026).
The estimate is price x 20% assessment ratio x mills / 1,000. For you, that means the tax column is a fair first filter. Before you narrow the list, pull each town's age profile, including the share of residents at retirement age, from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, and drive to XNA and your preferred hospital yourself.
Which towns rank first and second for retirees on property tax?
#1 Fayetteville (Washington County). Population 106,623 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025). Of the four Fayetteville school districts in the DFA 2025 millage report I drew on, the lowest is Greenland #95 at 51.4 mills (39.1 school + 6.8 city + 5.5 county): $423,750 x 20% x 0.0514 = $4,356 a year. The others are Springdale #50 at 52.1, Farmington #6 at 52.4 and Fayetteville #1 at 57.3, where the estimate is $423,750 x 20% x 0.0573 = $4,856. The city (6.8) and county (5.5) levies are the same in all four districts, so the whole 5.9-mill gap comes from the school levy (45 vs 39.1). That gap is worth $423,750 x 20% x 5.9 / 1,000 = $500 a year.
#2 Bella Vista (Benton County). Population 34,518 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025). Bella Vista is in Benton County, as is Bentonville, home of Walmart's headquarters. Bella Vista has the widest spread of the five: 51.72 mills in Gravette #20, 57.93 in Pea Ridge #109 and 62.23 in Bentonville #6, a 10.51-mill difference. Part of the gap is the county levy, which is 7.1 mills in the Gravette and Pea Ridge districts but 9.7 in Bentonville #6. On the same $465,888 home, the bill runs from $465,888 x 20% x 0.05172 = $4,819 to $465,888 x 20% x 0.06223 = $5,798, a $979 difference. Pea Ridge #109 falls between at $5,398.
On tax, Fayetteville and Bella Vista are effectively tied. At equal prices the 0.32-mill gap is $465,888 x 20% x 0.32 / 1,000 = $30 a year. Most of the $463 gap between their headline estimates comes from the higher Benton County average price. For you, the school district on the parcel changes the bill far more than the choice between these two towns.
How do Rogers and Gentry compare for retirement?
#3 Rogers (Benton County). Population 76,956 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025). Rogers is 54.6 mills in the Rogers #30 district (41.6 school + 3.3 city + 9.7 county): $465,888 x 20% x 0.0546 = $5,087 a year. In the Bentonville #6 district it is 59.72 mills, or $465,888 x 20% x 0.05972 = $5,565. The difference is 5.12 mills, or $477 a year. The Rogers city levy (3.3 mills, and 3.22 in Bentonville #6) is the lowest city levy of the five towns. But the 9.7-mill county levy in both Rogers districts matches the highest county levy in this comparison, which is why Rogers lands third.
#4 Gentry (Benton County). Population 4,899 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025), the smallest scored town. Its lower rate is 56.6 mills for addresses in the Siloam Springs #21 district (44.2 school + 5.3 city + 7.1 county): $465,888 x 20% x 0.0566 = $5,274 a year. In the Gentry #19 district it is 57.8 mills (46 school + 4.7 city + 7.1 county), or $5,386. The two differ by 1.2 mills, about $112 a year. Gentry #19 has the lower city levy, but its 46-mill school levy outweighs that.
For you, both towns sit above Bella Vista's Gravette estimate of $4,819, so the price you negotiate matters more to your yearly cost.
Where do Siloam Springs and Eureka Springs fit?
#5 Siloam Springs (Benton County). Population 21,298 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025). In the DFA report I drew on, its rate is 56.8 mills in the Siloam Springs #21 district (44.2 school + 5.5 city + 7.1 county): $465,888 x 20% x 0.0568 = $5,292 a year, 5.4 mills above Fayetteville's 51.4. Siloam Springs and the Gentry addresses in the #21 district share the same 44.2-mill school levy and 7.1-mill county levy. The 0.2-mill gap between them is the city levy alone (5.5 vs 5.3), worth $19 a year. In practice Gentry and Siloam Springs are tied on tax, so choose between them on town size: 21,298 residents against 4,899.
Unscored: Eureka Springs. Population 2,258 (Census Bureau, July 1, 2025), the smallest town in this comparison. Its overall millage is 50.2 mills in the Eureka Springs #21 district (35.8 school + 4.4 city + 10 county; Carroll County, DFA 2025 Millage Report), the lowest rate in this comparison. It is not ranked and its tax is not estimated, because the price anchors here are Benton and Washington County averages and Eureka Springs is in Carroll County. The Benton and Washington County average prices above should not be applied to it.
For you, if Eureka Springs is on your list, ask the Carroll County assessor for a recent bill on a comparable home before you compare it with the five scored towns.
What should you do with these numbers?
- Pick two or three towns, then confirm the school district for each address. Bella Vista alone runs from 51.72 to 62.23 mills (2025 millage, 2026 collections).
- Multiply any price you are considering by 20%, then by the mills divided by 1,000, to estimate the bill at full assessed value.
- If the home will be your principal residence, subtract the homestead credit: up to $600 on a homestead on 2026 bills, and $675 on a homestead for assessment year 2026 and later under Act 174 of 2026. In Bella Vista's Gravette district that takes $4,819 down to $4,219, then $4,144.
- Pull each town's age profile from the Census Bureau's American Community Survey, and drive the route to XNA and to your preferred hospital at the hours you would travel.
- Do not compare your estimate to a seller's current bill. Amendment 79 limits yearly increases for existing owners (Arkansas DFA, Oct. 23, 2026), so ask for the assessed value on the seller's bill, and expect your own bill to be figured at full assessed value.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which Northwest Arkansas town has the lowest property tax for retirees?
Among the five scored towns, Fayetteville in the Greenland #95 school district has the lowest overall millage, at 51.4 mills (2025 millage, 2026 collections, Arkansas DFA). Bella Vista's Gravette #20 district is next at 51.72, about $30 a year more at equal prices. Eureka Springs, in Carroll County, is lower still at 50.2 mills but is not scored, because this comparison prices homes at Benton and Washington County averages. Confirm the school district for the specific address.
Do retirees get a property tax break on a Northwest Arkansas home?
Yes, if the home is your principal residence: Arkansas's homestead credit is up to $600 on a homestead on 2026 bills (Arkansas DFA, Oct. 23, 2026). It applies to any owner's principal residence, so it is not limited to retirees. Act 174 of 2026 sets $675 on a homestead for assessment year 2026 and later, first reflected on bills collected in 2027. Apply through the county assessor.
Why can my estimate differ from the seller's current tax bill?
Amendment 79 limits how fast an existing owner's taxable value can rise. After a county-wide reappraisal, a homestead's taxable value can rise only 5% a year, and other real property only 10% a year, until it reaches full assessed value (Arkansas DFA, Oct. 23, 2026). The caps do not apply to new construction, so ask the seller for the assessed value on their current bill.
Who is the best real estate agent in Bella Vista?
For a retiree, the best real estate agent in Bella Vista is one who can show a local track record, verifiable transaction volume and working knowledge of the town's three school districts, which run from 51.72 to 62.23 mills (2025 millage). Ask each candidate for those specifics. Cameron Torabi, Principal Broker, Mason Capital Group Real Estate Investment & Trust, brings 30+ years of Northwest Arkansas expertise and $2.4B+ in cumulative transaction activity.
In a first conversation, Mason Capital Group will give you a side-by-side tax and price comparison for the towns you are weighing, built from the school district on each address you are considering. Call 479-925-3333.
About the author: Cameron Torabi, Principal Broker — Mason Capital Group. 30+ years of Northwest Arkansas real estate expertise; $2.4B+ in cumulative transaction activity.
Figures in this article are drawn from the U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates (July 1, 2025, Vintage 2025), the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration 2025 Millage Report for 2026 collections (published March 2026), the Arvest Skyline Report as reported by Talk Business & Politics (first half of 2026, released Aug. 21, 2026), the Arkansas DFA Property Tax Relief page (as of Oct. 23, 2026), and Act 174 of 2026 (as of Oct. 23, 2026).