Property Tax Resources · Harris County, Texas
The largest county in Texas — Harris County’s 4.8 million residents face a 1.62% effective rate and $4,406 median annual bill, with dozens of overlapping taxing entities adding complexity to every property owner’s burden.
Sources: Population — U.S. Census Bureau ACS 2024 estimates; County Debt — Texas Bond Review Board (FY2025)
🔴 2026 Protest Deadline: May 15, 2026 — or 30 days after your Notice of Appraised Value is mailed, whichever is later. Miss this date and you waive your right to protest.
Harris County is the most populous county in Texas and the third most populous county in the United States, home to the city of Houston and a sprawling network of incorporated cities, unincorporated communities, and a vast array of Municipal Utility Districts. The county’s property tax structure is among the most complex in the state — a typical Houston homeowner may be billed by HISD or another ISD, Harris County, a MUD, a hospital district, a flood control district, and a port authority, all in the same tax statement.
At a 1.62% effective rate with a $4,406 median annual bill, Harris County property taxes are significant — and Harris County property owners are among the most active protesters in Texas. Nearly two-thirds achieved reductions in 2024. HCAD handles millions of accounts and the informal settlement process is a real avenue for value reduction. If your appraised value increased this cycle, filing a protest is one of the highest-return uses of a few hours of your time.
Enter the date your Notice of Appraised Value was mailed to find your exact filing deadline.
Every taxing unit in Harris County — your school district, city, county — must publish its proposed rate and hold a public hearing before adopting any rate exceeding the no-new-revenue rate. These meetings are open. Your voice is on the record.
View Harris County Tax Rates →| Taxing Entity | Type | Rate (2025 adopted) |
|---|---|---|
| Harris County | County | $0.3810/$100 |
| Aldine ISD | School District | $1.0340/$100 |
| Alief ISD | School District | $1.0072/$100 |
| Channelview ISD | School District | $0.9617/$100 |
| Clear Creek ISD | School District | $0.9690/$100 |
| Crosby ISD | School District | $1.2241/$100 |
| Cypress-Fairbanks ISD | School District | $1.0669/$100 |
| Dayton ISD | School District | $0.9572/$100 |
| Deer Park ISD | School District | $1.1389/$100 |
| Galena Park ISD | School District | $1.2499/$100 |
| Goose Creek CISD | School District | $1.0700/$100 |
| Houston ISD | School District | $0.8783/$100 |
| Huffman ISD | School District | $1.0737/$100 |
| Humble ISD | School District | $1.1052/$100 |
| Katy ISD | School District | $1.1171/$100 |
| Klein ISD | School District | $1.0119/$100 |
| La Porte ISD | School District | $1.0641/$100 |
| New Caney ISD | School District | $1.2552/$100 |
| Pasadena ISD | School District | $1.1722/$100 |
| Pearland ISD | School District | $1.1350/$100 |
| Sheldon ISD | School District | $1.2552/$100 |
| Spring Branch ISD | School District | $1.0231/$100 |
| Spring ISD | School District | $1.1369/$100 |
| Stafford MSD | School District | $1.0021/$100 |
| Tomball ISD | School District | $1.0629/$100 |
| Waller ISD | School District | $1.0626/$100 |
2025 adopted rates per Texas Comptroller Tax Rates & Levies (source). City, MUD, college and other special-district rates may also apply depending on your parcel. Your total depends on which districts your property falls in — verify current rates at your county appraisal district.
2025 adopted rates per Texas Comptroller Tax Rates & Levies (source). City, MUD, college and other special-district rates may also apply depending on your parcel. Your total depends on which districts your property falls in — verify current rates at your county appraisal district.
What your Notice means and exactly what to do — and by when — after it arrives.
How the Texas homestead exemption lowers your taxable value, including recent changes.
When a property tax consultant is worth it for protesting your appraisal.
Lesser-known special valuations that can cut the taxable value of qualifying land.
The state office that oversees appraisal districts and protects taxpayers.
Who sets your county’s values and why that role matters to your bill.
Search your account at hcad.org. Know your Notice of Appraised Value and the deadline printed on it.
File online, by mail, or in person at Harris Central Appraisal District (HCAD): 13013 Northwest Fwy., Houston, TX 77040. Deadline: May 15, 2026 or 30 days after your notice was mailed.
Recent sales of comparable properties, your purchase price, photos of condition issues, and repair estimates all strengthen your case.
Before your ARB hearing, a CAD appraiser may offer to settle. Review any offer carefully — you can accept or proceed to the formal hearing.
The Appraisal Review Board is independent of the CAD. Present your evidence clearly and concisely. Most hearings run 15–30 minutes.
Disagree with the ARB ruling? You may appeal to district court, binding arbitration, or SOAH (properties over $1 million).
“No person’s particular services shall be demanded, nor property taken or applied to public use, unless by the consent of himself or his representative, without just compensation being made therefor.”
— Section 13, Declaration of Rights, Republic of Texas, 1836Harris County is where more Texans live than anywhere else in the state — and where the complexity of overlapping taxing entities has made the property tax system opaque enough that most property owners don’t know what they’re paying or why. The founders of the Republic wrote that no property shall be taken without consent and just compensation, and that all political power is inherent in the people. Every MUD levy, every school district rate, every county assessment that exceeds what the evidence supports is a violation of that principle — and the protest system is the mechanism to push back. In 2023 alone, Harris County property owners saved more than $254 million through protests. Look up your value. File your protest. Four million Texans shouldn’t leave that money on the table.
