Sell My Land in Hickman County TN - What Landowners Need to Know
Key Takeaways
- Tennessee assesses vacant land at 25% of appraised value: All real property in Tennessee—residential and vacant alike—falls under a uniform 25% assessment ratio set by state law, but farm and forest land enrolled in the Greenbelt program is assessed on its current-use value instead, substantially lowering the tax bill
- Hickman County's county property tax rate is $2.57 per $100 of assessed value: Per the Tennessee Comptroller's 2024 rate schedule, the county rate is $2.57, yielding a median effective rate of approximately 0.58%—a median annual bill near $393, well below the national median of roughly 1.02%, according to Ownwell
- Population grew slowly from 24,690 in 2010 to 24,925 in 2020 and an estimated 26,219 by 2025: On the far southwestern edge of the Nashville metro, Hickman County has added residents at a modest, steady pace while remaining a rural, farm-and-timber county, according to U.S. Census Bureau data
How Can You Sell Land in Hickman County Tennessee?
Selling land in Hickman County, Tennessee is shaped by three forces: a state property tax system that taxes all real property at 25% of appraised value, a realty transfer tax of $0.37 per $100 of consideration, and the Agricultural, Forest and Open Space Land Act—the "Greenbelt Law"—that offers significant tax relief for qualifying farm, forest, and open space land. When Greenbelt-enrolled property is sold, the buyer or seller may face rollback taxes stretching back three to five years, depending on the land's classification.
Hickman County sits in the heart of Middle Tennessee on the Western Highland Rim, bordered by Williamson, Maury, Lewis, Perry, Humphreys, and Dickson counties. The landscape is a patchwork of hardwood-timbered ridges and hollows cut by the Duck River and the Piney River, opening into cattle pastures and hay ground in the bottomlands. Centerville serves as the county seat, roughly 54 miles southwest of Nashville by way of State Route 100. Once iron-furnace country, much of the county's rural land today is managed woodland, grazing pasture, and small family farms.
For landowners considering a sale, this guide walks through the county's carrying costs, the closing process, how Hickman County stacks up against its neighbors, and your practical options for exiting a parcel. For the statewide picture first, see our Tennessee land selling guide.
What Are the Tax Costs of Holding Land in Hickman County?
Tennessee uses a uniform 25% assessment ratio for all real property categories, which differs from states like Mississippi that apply separate ratios to owner-occupied versus vacant land. The assessed value equals 25% of the county assessor's appraised value. Tax rates are then applied to that assessed figure.
Per the Tennessee Comptroller's 2024 rate schedule, the Hickman County property tax rate is $2.57 per $100 of assessed value. Because only a quarter of appraised value is taxed, the resulting median effective property tax rate across the county is approximately 0.58%, based on data from Ownwell—a median annual bill near $393, comfortably below the national median of roughly 1.02%.
For a parcel with an appraised value of $100,000, the assessed value is $25,000. At the county rate of $2.57 per $100 assessed, the annual county tax would be approximately $642. That figure is modest relative to the land's value but adds up year after year for timbered or pasture ground producing little or no income.
The Greenbelt Program: Lower Taxes, Deferred Liability
Tennessee's Greenbelt Law—formally the Agricultural, Forest and Open Space Land Act of 1976—allows qualifying land to be assessed on its current-use value rather than fair market value. To qualify:
- Agricultural land: At least 15 acres of actual farm use, or as few as 10 acres if the farm produces $1,500 or more in annual gross farm income
- Forest land: At least 15 acres of managed timber
- Open space land: Requires a written agreement with a state or local government
The tax savings can be substantial on Hickman County's mix of pasture and hardwood ridge, where market value often exceeds agricultural productivity—and both farm and forest enrollment are common on the county's tracts. However, when Greenbelt land is sold or converted to a non-qualifying use, the new or former owner owes rollback taxes—the difference between taxes actually paid and taxes that would have been owed at full assessment—for up to three years on agricultural and forest land or five years on open space land, according to the UT County Technical Assistance Service. Rollback taxes can be a surprise cost for buyers unaware of the existing classification, so always verify Greenbelt status before closing.
Hickman County's Assessor of Property is Randy Jenkins, located at 114 N. Central Avenue, Suite 106, Centerville, TN 37033, phone (931) 729-2169.
If you're carrying land with delinquent taxes, see our guide on how to sell land with back taxes.
What Closing Requirements and Zoning Rules Apply in Hickman County?
Tennessee does not require an attorney to be present at real estate closings—transactions may be handled by title companies or closing agents. In practice, many rural land closings in Middle Tennessee are completed by title companies or real estate attorneys acting as closing agents. The deed is recorded with the Hickman County Register of Deeds, Angie Luckett, at 114 N. Central Avenue, Suite 104, Centerville, TN 37033, phone (931) 729-4882.
Tennessee's Realty Transfer Tax
Tennessee charges a realty transfer tax of $0.37 per $100 of consideration (the purchase price, or the fair market value if higher), per Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409, according to the UT County Technical Assistance Service. On a $50,000 land sale, that's $185 in transfer tax. Certain transfers are exempt—including transfers between spouses, certain corporate reorganizations, and gifts—but arm's-length land sales to third parties are fully taxable.
The tax is generally paid at closing and recorded alongside the deed. No separate county transfer tax applies in Hickman County.
Zoning and Land Use
Hickman County is a largely rural county with limited municipal zoning outside Centerville. Much of the unincorporated county is not governed by a comprehensive zoning ordinance, and land use is driven more by terrain and access than by zoning districts. Building permits and septic (subsurface sewage disposal) approvals are handled through county and state authorities, and any home site on rural acreage will require a site soil evaluation before a permit is issued. Buyers and sellers should contact Hickman County's planning or building authorities to confirm specific requirements for their parcel's location.
The Western Highland Rim location means many parcels have terrain constraints—steep timbered ridges, narrow hollows, seasonal streams, and floodplain along the Duck and Piney rivers—that may affect buildability regardless of zoning classification. Just as important, legal road access is not guaranteed: many interior wooded tracts are reached only by old farm lanes, logging roads, easements across neighboring property, or no recorded access at all. Buyers interested in development or even reliable entry should confirm a legal access route and obtain a soil and site evaluation before purchase.
If your parcel is reached only by crossing someone else's land, our guide on how to sell landlocked land explains your options. And if you've inherited the property and are unsure about title, our guide on how to sell inherited land walks through the process.
How Does Hickman County Compare to Neighboring Tennessee Counties?
Hickman County's population of roughly 26,219 (2025 estimate) reflects slow, steady growth from 24,925 at the 2020 census and 24,690 in 2010. The county sits on the Western Highland Rim southwest of Nashville, with State Route 100 and State Route 48 threading through Centerville and the Duck River valley. Its neighbors range from tiny, deeply rural Perry and Lewis counties to fast-growing Maury County, anchored by Columbia and Spring Hill.
| Factor | Hickman County | Lewis County | Perry County | Maury County |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Population (latest est.) | ~26,219 | ~13,000 | ~8,900 | ~108,000 |
| Population trend | Slow, steady growth | Stable | Stable | Rapid growth |
| Effective tax rate | ~0.58% | ~0.50% | ~0.58% | ~0.48% |
| Distance to Nashville | ~54 mi | ~85 mi | ~90 mi | ~45 mi |
| Key economic driver | Agriculture, timber, small manufacturing, Nashville-area commuting | Agriculture, timber, small manufacturing | Agriculture, Tennessee River recreation | Auto manufacturing, rapid suburban growth |
| Closing attorney required | No | No | No | No |
Hickman County's economy rests on agriculture, timber, and a modest manufacturing and services base, with a growing share of residents commuting toward the Nashville and Williamson County job market. Unlike neighboring Maury County—where the General Motors Spring Hill plant and suburban expansion have driven rapid population growth—Hickman remains rural in character, and its land market moves at a slower, more local pace than the metro counties to the east.
A Highland Rim Farm-and-Timber County
Hickman County lies on the Western Highland Rim, a belt of forested ridges and fertile valleys wrapping the Central Basin of Middle Tennessee. The county was iron-furnace country in the nineteenth century, and much of the land that was once cut for charcoal has long since returned to mixed hardwood forest. Today that timber sits alongside working cattle pasture and hay ground in the river bottoms. That mix matters at sale time: a single tract may combine merchantable timber on the ridges, grazing or hay ground in the flats, and floodplain along a creek—each valued differently by different buyers, and each worth documenting before you list.
Agricultural and Timber Land
Hickman County's USDA 2022 Census of Agriculture data is published in the NASS county profile for Hickman County (FIPS 47081), which counts 651 farms across roughly 140,776 acres, an average of 216 acres per farm. Woodland is the single largest land-in-farms use at about 52,664 acres, ahead of cropland (46,553 acres) and pastureland (36,068 acres), and forage—hay and haylage—is the county's top crop by acreage at nearly 19,893 acres. Nearly all of the county's farms are family operations. Those figures capture the county's character: a working landscape of family-scale cattle, hay, and hardwood timber rather than large commodity row-crop operations.
If your tract is timbered, our guides on selling timberland and selling hunting land cover what recreational and timber buyers look for. For the full picture of what drives land values, our land valuation guide explains the factors assessors and buyers weigh.
What Are Your Options for Selling Land in Hickman County?
Hickman County landowners often sit with the same set of facts: farm or timber ground that may have been in the family for generations, a Greenbelt classification that kept holding costs low for years, and a thin, slow-moving local market for rural acreage. Add the frictions common to Highland Rim land—old farm-lane access, mixed ridge-and-bottom terrain, floodplain along the Duck and Piney rivers, and sometimes uncertain boundaries—and a given parcel can sit unsold for a long time. If you own the land from out of state, those frictions multiply; our guide on selling land as an out-of-state owner covers the extra steps.
Before listing or accepting any offer, take these steps. Verify your deed and legal description through the Hickman County Register of Deeds (Angie Luckett, 931-729-4882). Confirm the property's Greenbelt status and calculate potential rollback tax liability with the Hickman County Assessor (Randy Jenkins, 931-729-2169). Confirm there is a legal, recorded access route to the parcel. If the land has merchantable timber, a timber cruise from a registered forester will quantify the standing value. Check for any delinquent tax balance through the Hickman County Trustee (Lisa Hellmann, 931-729-3486).
Sellers have several paths. Listing with a land-specialist agent gives exposure to farm, timber, and recreational buyers across Middle Tennessee, but agent commissions of 5–6% plus the $0.37/$100 transfer tax reduce your net proceeds—and access or terrain issues can stall a listing for months. (Our guide on whether you need a realtor to sell land weighs that trade-off.) Online platforms—LandWatch, Lands of America—reach buyers hunting for rural and off-grid land within an hour of Nashville. For landowners who want a firm number fast, without months of showings and uncertain closing timelines, Jerez Land provides a direct cash offer for your land. Each offer is parcel-specific and made in writing; as the buyer, we absorb the carrying costs, marketing, terrain risk, and resale timeline—so the number you see is one number, with no commissions and a closing timeline measured in weeks, not months.
A direct cash sale will not be the highest theoretical price a perfectly marketed parcel might eventually fetch. What it offers instead is certainty and speed on land that is otherwise hard to move. If you need to understand the paperwork involved before you commit to any path, our blog covers what to expect at each stage.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I sell vacant land in Hickman County TN?
Confirm your legal description and any existing Greenbelt enrollment with the Hickman County Assessor (931-729-2169) and verify clean title and legal access through the Register of Deeds (931-729-4882). Tennessee does not require an attorney at closing—a title company or closing agent can handle the transaction. You can list with a local agent, use online platforms like LandWatch, or request a direct cash offer from a land buyer like Jerez Land.
I inherited 60 acres near Centerville but live out of state — can I sell without visiting?
Yes. Tennessee land can be sold entirely remotely: a title company or closing agent handles the paperwork, and closing documents can be signed before a notary in your home state or by mail, since no attorney is required at a Tennessee closing. First confirm the deed and legal description with the Hickman County Register of Deeds (931-729-4882) and check for any Greenbelt rollback or delinquent-tax balance. Many out-of-state heirs choose a direct cash buyer to avoid managing showings and repairs from a distance.
My Hickman County land is enrolled in Greenbelt — what happens when I sell?
Tennessee's Greenbelt Law (1976) allows agricultural land (15+ acres, or 10+ acres with $1,500+ in annual farm income), forest land (15+ acres), and open space land to be assessed at current-use value rather than fair market value. When Greenbelt land is sold or disqualified, rollback taxes are owed for up to three years (agricultural/forest) or five years (open space)—covering the gap between what was paid and what full-assessment taxes would have been, according to the UT County Technical Assistance Service. Always verify Greenbelt status before closing.
I'm closing on my land sale in Tennessee — how much will the transfer tax be?
Tennessee charges $0.37 per $100 of consideration on all publicly recorded realty transfers, per Tenn. Code Ann. § 67-4-409. On a $100,000 sale, the transfer tax is $370; on a $50,000 sale, it is $185. Certain transfers—gifts, spousal transfers, corporate reorganizations—may qualify for exemptions. Hickman County does not levy an additional county-level transfer tax, and the tax is generally paid at closing.
I own timbered ridge land in Hickman County — what are my annual property taxes?
Hickman County's property tax rate is $2.57 per $100 of assessed value, per the Tennessee Comptroller's 2024 schedule, and all real property in Tennessee is assessed at 25% of appraised value. That produces a median effective rate of about 0.58%, according to Ownwell—below the national median of roughly 1.02%. Timbered acreage that qualifies for Greenbelt forest classification (15+ managed acres) is instead assessed on current-use value, which can sharply lower the annual bill.
Is Hickman County Tennessee population growing or declining?
Hickman County's population is growing slowly, rising from 24,690 at the 2010 census to 24,925 in 2020 and an estimated 26,219 by 2025, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The modest growth reflects the county's position on the far southwestern edge of the Nashville metro, where some residents commute toward the region's job market while the county itself stays rural and agricultural in character.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or professional advice. Laws and regulations vary by jurisdiction and change over time. Always consult with qualified professionals before making land purchase decisions. Jerez Land is not responsible for actions taken based on this information.