Texas Property Tax FAQ: Complete 2026 Guide

Texas voters approved all seventeen constitutional amendments on the ballot. Five touch property tax, and two matter to most homeowners: • **Proposition 13** raised the school district homestead exemption from $100,000 to $140,000. It passed with 79% of the vote. • **Proposition 11** raised the additional exemption for owners 65 or older, or disabled, from $10,000 to $60,000 — a combined $200,000 of school exemption for a qualifying homeowner. Both applied retroactively to the 2025 tax year, so the relief has already appeared on a bill you have received. The other three were Proposition 9 (up to $125,000 of business personal property exempt), Proposition 10 (tax waived on the destroyed part of a homestead after a fire) and Proposition 17 (border security infrastructure). Nothing needs filing if your homestead exemption was already on record — appraisal districts applied the new amounts automatically.

Less than the headline, because it is a school district exemption only. Your county, city, hospital district and community college still tax the full value. The extra $40,000 from Proposition 13 is worth roughly $350 to $520 a year depending on your school district's rate — least in Houston ISD, most in the higher-rate San Antonio districts. The extra $50,000 from Proposition 11 is worth roughly $440 to $650 on top of that. Figures that quote double these numbers have multiplied a school-only exemption by the combined tax rate.

Between August and October. Every taxing unit on your bill — school district, county, city, hospital district, community college, and any MUD — adopts its own rate separately after a public hearing, so the number on your bill is the sum of eight or so independent decisions. Until they are all adopted, any estimate uses the previous year's rates.

No, but understand what you are looking at. Year-to-year rate movement is small compared to the two things that actually swing your bill: whether you have filed your exemptions, and what the appraisal district decided your house is worth. Both of those are worth acting on now. The rate is the one part you have almost no influence over.

Texas property tax = (Assessed Value - Exemptions) × Total Tax Rate. Rates are the sum of school district, county, city, and special district rates.

Texas has no state income tax, so local services (schools, infrastructure) are funded largely by property taxes. Rapid growth and frequent reappraisals contribute to high bills.

Apply for all exemptions you qualify for, protest your appraisal if overvalued, and attend public hearings on tax rates. Homestead, over-65, disabled, and veteran exemptions can save thousands.

It is $140,000 against school district taxes, raised from $100,000 by Proposition 13 in November 2025 and applied retroactively to the 2025 tax year. Counties must offer at least $3,000 of their own, and cities and special districts may offer up to 20% of value. Apply with your county appraisal district by 30 April; you can file up to two years late and still get it. It does **not** need renewing each year — it stays until you move or the district asks you to reverify — and it also caps your appraised value at 10% growth a year, which is worth more over a decade than the exemption itself.

They are due January 31 each year. Penalties and interest begin February 1 for late payments.

Yes, and the burden is not on you. Under Tax Code §41.43 the appraisal district must establish your property's value by a preponderance of the evidence at the hearing — you are not required to prove they were wrong. Most protests are settled informally with an appraiser before they ever reach the Appraisal Review Board. Filing costs nothing, and a protest cannot raise your value above the notice you are protesting. The deadline is 15 May, or 30 days after your notice arrives, whichever is later.

Homestead ($140,000 for school taxes - increased from $100,000 after Proposition 13), over-65 ($60,000 additional + tax ceiling - increased from $10,000 after Proposition 11), disabled person ($60,000 + optional tax ceiling), disabled veteran (varies by disability percentage: 10-29% = $5,000, 30-49% = $7,500, 50-69% = $10,000, 70% = $12,000, 100% = total exemption). Combined exemption for seniors/disabled is now $200,000 total. Counties and cities may offer additional local exemptions.

Penalties and interest accrue monthly, and the county may eventually foreclose on your property to recover unpaid taxes.

Yes, especially for seniors, disabled persons, or hardship cases. Contact your county tax office for eligibility.