Finger Lakes
Caroline, New York
Caroline is a town in Tompkins County, in New York's Finger Lakes region, home to about 3,300 people as of the 2020 census.
In New York the practical answer turns on the exact address — the school district, any village lines, and how the parcel is assessed all shape the tax bill. The snapshot and official links below are the place to start.
- Type
- Town
- County
- Tompkins
- Region
- Finger Lakes
- Population (2020)
- 3,334
Local Almanac
Notes in and around Caroline
Short, sourced notes tied to this place, its county, or nearby communities.
This place · Home & Property
Tompkins Private Wells Start With Setbacks and a DEC-Registered Driller
Tompkins County’s private-well page gives siting guidance and says to use a DEC-registered well driller.
Read this note ->This place · History & Culture
Caroline's History Room Opens a Local Door
Caroline’s History Room and Old Town Hall restoration keep rural schoolhouse, records, genealogy, and civic memory in one local doorway.
Read this note ->This place · The Outdoors
Shindagin Hollow Has Recreation Rules Beneath the Trail Reputation
Shindagin Hollow supports many uses, but DEC also notes target shooting is prohibited and primitive camping has distance rules.
Read this note ->This place · The Outdoors
Shindagin Hollow Puts Caroline on a Big-Woods Map
Shindagin Hollow State Forest spans Caroline and Candor, giving the southern Tompkins edge a large public-forest identity.
Read this note ->This place · The Outdoors
Hammond Hill Is Dryden’s Family-Scale Trail Grid
Hammond Hill State Forest gives Dryden and Caroline a multi-use public trail system with a strong local stewardship flavor.
Read this note ->Nearby · History & Culture
Dryden Runs Along the Rail Trail
Dryden's rail trail turns an old railroad corridor into a town link among hamlets, Cornell, Ithaca, and open land.
Read this note ->Nearby · The Outdoors
Dryden Reads Like a Rail-Trail Town
Dryden gets a practical and visual spine from a rail trail that ties village, hamlet, and town edges together.
Read this note ->Nearby · The Outdoors
Danby's State Forest Makes the Town Feel Like Working Woods
Danby State Forest gives the town a working-woods identity with trails, wildlife habitat, timber, hunting, skiing, and rustic camping.
Read this note ->Nearby · Home & Property
Tompkins septic work needs the OWTS permit page before construction
Tompkins County says new or repaired onsite wastewater systems need a county permit before construction work begins.
Read this note ->Property tax snapshot
Roughly $24–$27 per $1,000
Combined full-value rate — county + town/city + school district, per $1,000 of market value (FY2025). On a $300,000 home that's about $7,227–$8,067 a year before the STAR break.
A planning estimate, not a bill. Your exact rate depends on your school district and any village. Confirm with the assessor.
Statewide links
Statewide starting points.
Good to know
- • Your assessed value usually isn't your market value — ask for the equalization rate.
- • Register for STAR; new applicants generally receive a credit instead of an automatic exemption on the bill.
- • Outside the cities, check the well, the septic, and the FEMA flood map before you buy.
Nearby
Nearby places
Tax rates: NYS Dept of Taxation & Finance (ORPTS), Real Property Tax Rates and Levy Data by Municipality, data.ny.gov dataset iq85-sdzs. (FY2025). Population: U.S. Census 2020. Reviewed June 2026. Source data ->
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