Orange County's 10 biggest sources of property tax
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Local governments across North Carolina will roll out detailed budget plans in the coming weeks.
Why it matters: Property taxes fund core local services, including K–12 education and public safety.
Between the lines: Given the looming uncertainty of whether North Carolina lawmakers will pass property tax limits this year, county officials may be tempted to raise taxes during spring budgeting to help guard against future restrictions.
- With that in mind, we're zooming in on the Triangle's largest property taxpayers to understand how cuts could affect local communities.
- After examining Wake and Durham counties, we now turn to Orange County.
By the numbers: Apartment owners, utility companies and life sciences firms dominated Orange County's top 10 in the fiscal year ending in 2025.
- Duke Energy: Substations account for most of the power company's Orange County land holdings. Duke Energy's thousands of acres of land put it in the top five of all Triangle counties. Total appraised value: $216 million ($1.9 million tax bill)
- Thermo Fisher Scientific: A new entrant to the top 10, the Massachusetts-based life sciences company recently completed a large manufacturing facility in Mebane, where it makes 40 million pipette tips a week. Total appraised value: $157 million ($1.4 million tax bill)
- NR Edge Property Owner LLC: The company owns Carraway Village, a growing apartment and retail community on the north side of Chapel Hill just off Interstate 40. It's a subsidiary of Northwood Ravin, a North Carolina developer with properties in multiple Southeastern states. Total appraised value: $111 million ($1.0 million tax bill)
- Chapel Hill Foundation Real Estate Holdings: UNC-Chapel Hill's foundation owns several commercial spaces on Franklin Street, but its most valuable holding (that isn't exempt from taxation — as much of the school's educational and health care facilities are) is the Granville Towers student housing complex. Total appraised value: $111 million ($1.0 million tax bill)
- MRE Propco LP: This partnership owns a single site where Medline Industries has its distribution center. Medline produces a wide variety of medical and surgical supplies. Last year, its portfolio reportedly included over 335,000 products. Total appraised value: $85 million ($734,000 tax bill)
- BIR Chapel Hill LLC: The company owns Berkshire Chapel Hill, an apartment complex with ground-floor retail on Elliott Road next to Whole Foods. A Boston real estate firm has owned it since 2017. Total appraised value: $80 million ($691,000 tax bill)
- 83 ChartleyNC Owner LLC: A new entrant to the top 10 is this LLC, which built a pair of large apartment complexes at Elliott and Ephesus Church roads in Chapel Hill. The company's investors aren't immediately clear. It's foreign-owned, per state filings. Total appraised value: $79 million ($684,000 tax bill)
- Piedmont Electric Member Corp.: The power company's headquarters and operations center is in Hillsborough. Total appraised value: $77 million ($666,000 tax bill)
- Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company: The real estate arm of the insurance giant invested in a few apartment and townhome communities around Chapel Hill in 2011. Total appraised value: $69 million ($595,000 tax bill)
- Townhouse Apartments LLC: The LLC owns Union Chapel Hill apartments, a project Dogwood Residential completed in 2020. Its ownership is also foreign and not detailed in state filings. Total appraised value: $68 million ($589,000 tax bill)
Context: Orange County has completed a reappraisal of all property since these figures were tallied.
What's next: Local budgets must be in place before the fiscal year's start on July 1.