Property tax guides
Clear, practical walkthroughs to complement the calculators. No filler, no affiliate sludge.
Property tax news roundup — July 20, 2026
The relief-versus-services fight defines the cycle: Florida's November amendment would save homeowners about $200 a month but could open an $11 billion hole and trigger new flat fees, while New York City closed a $12 billion budget gap on one-time aid. The actionable news is elsewhere: Texas seniors in lower-priced towns can now reach a $0 school-tax bill, California and Florida owners risk five-figure increases if they botch tax-base portability when they move, and Georgia's 2026 appeal rules reward owners who follow up after a win.
Property tax news roundup — July 7, 2026
A 9-0 Supreme Court ruling says the surplus you're owed after a tax foreclosure sale is measured by the auction price, not your home's value — the strongest argument yet for never letting a bill go delinquent. Plus 64% polling support and the fine print on Florida's November amendment, Jackson County MO approving credits for homeowners who overpaid, Jersey City's 15% hike, and new laws in effect in South Carolina, Rhode Island, and Arizona.
Property tax news roundup — July 1, 2026
The theme this cycle is states reaching down to limit local taxing power — Florida moving to make millage hikes harder (a just-signed measure reported as SB 4F), Texas pushing voter-approval and the idea of eliminating school property taxes. Both are still proposals or untested. The changes actually hitting bills are local: an Arizona veteran-exemption fix, an Ohio owner-occupancy cut, a San Antonio budget gap that may raise rates, and a St. Louis County mess charging on-time payers late fees.
Property tax news roundup — June 26, 2026
Reform momentum is building across the South — Florida's $250K homestead amendment heads to the November ballot under a legal challenge, and Mississippi is studying a full senior exemption for 2027. But the changes that actually hit bills this month are local: Cary +8%, Red Bank's third hike in five years, Bossier Parish's cut, Warren County's sales-tax swap, and a Cook County ruling that calls the old tax-deed system unconstitutional.
Property tax news roundup — June 22, 2026
The week's one genuinely new development: North Carolina's reappraisal freeze became law. SB 889 rolls 2026 revaluations back a year for about nine counties, opens an $83.7M hole in Guilford's budget, and leaves Helene-hit Buncombe still on the hook. Plus the Minnesota 'quintile' notice that quietly sets your assessment — and where Florida, Georgia, and Ohio actually stand.
Property tax news roundup — June 20, 2026
Two states, two ways relief gets stuck: Florida's homestead cut is locked onto the November ballot and now fighting over local budgets, while Georgia's relief plan hit a Saturday impasse because nobody agrees who pays for it. Plus the burden quietly shifting from empty offices onto Washington homeowners, and the veteran exemptions worth claiming in Texas and Michigan.
Property tax news roundup — June 18, 2026
Two property tax stories are running in opposite directions: statehouses promising relief (Florida's November amendment, a Connecticut governor's race built on tax caps) while cities raise the actual bills — Salt Lake City +12.5%, Minneapolis eyeing another hike, Madison schools. Plus Baltimore's 'cut' that isn't, Michigan assessment errors, and the appeal windows open right now in Georgia and Idaho.
Property tax news roundup — June 17, 2026
Florida's property tax fight has moved off the ballot wording and onto local budgets — Ocoee is weighing a fire fee, Leon County a hiring freeze, and a lawsuit calls the amendment 'misleading.' The same shape shows up nationwide: Baltimore's and Greensboro's 'cuts' that land as hikes, assessments outrunning the caps, and New York's STAR relief running alongside Niagara Falls foreclosure notices.
Property tax news roundup — June 14, 2026
This week is about the fine print. Florida's headline cut makes new residents wait up to five years and leaves school taxes untouched; Texas is the already-enacted version, aimed at the opposite layer; senior relief is generous but underclaimed (and a deferral is a loan, not a gift); and Michigan is the reminder that a low tax bill resets the moment a home changes hands.
Property tax news roundup — June 12, 2026
Florida's property tax fight goes to court — a lawsuit says the ballot wording misleads voters — while St. Petersburg and Tallahassee put real numbers on the loss. Plus South Carolina and Virginia cities raising to catch up on deferred pipes, North Carolina pairing a reappraisal freeze with a levy cap, New Jersey reconsidering its 2% cap, and an Arizona reminder that a 'delinquent' notice can be a clerical error.
Property tax news roundup — June 10, 2026
Florida's relief numbers land — Leon County says $71M, Boca Raton nearly $17M — and the politics push past November toward outright elimination. Plus 54 Massachusetts towns ask to override the cap, Raleigh raises for police, Portland stacks fee on fee, Boise backs down after pushback, and a $17K Cook County bill shows how to fight a bad assessment.
Property tax news roundup — June 9, 2026
Florida's homestead amendment is locked onto the November ballot and the fight has moved to local budgets — sheriffs, schools, and counties bracing for the hit. Plus Charlotte raises rates for public safety, Baltimore's 'cut' that isn't, a $17K Cook County shock, and Seattle's empty offices shifting the bill to homeowners.
Property tax news roundup — June 6, 2026
Ohio's drive to abolish property taxes gives up on 2026 and regroups for 2027, Florida's homestead amendment becomes a fight over local budgets, Iowa enacts a 2% levy cap, and a North Carolina loophole forces a tax hike.
Property tax news roundup — June 3, 2026
Florida sends a $250K homestead exemption to the November ballot, Ohio and Oklahoma test abolishing property taxes outright, and Wake County, NC raises rates — what it means for homeowners.
Property tax news roundup — May 31, 2026
Florida's special session on a homestead-exemption overhaul, a Tennessee cap petition, Chicago's school-driven increases, and what homeowners should do about a rising assessment.
The SALT deduction cap in 2025
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act quadrupled the SALT cap to $40,000 for 2025 — but with a steep phase-out above $500K MAGI and a hard reversion to $10,000 in 2030. Who the change actually helps, and the deadline that undoes it.
The homestead exemption, explained
The highest-ROI move in property tax and one of the most commonly missed. What it is, how to file with your county, state-by-state amounts, deadlines, stacking with senior/veteran exemptions, and recovering missed years.
Property tax escrow accounts, explained
Why your mortgage servicer collects extra each month, the RESPA rules that govern it, why your payment jumps after a reassessment, how to read the annual escrow statement, and when you can waive escrow entirely.
What is a mill rate?
A mill is $1 of tax per $1,000 of assessed value — but where does the rate come from? How your local mill rate is set from a budget, how to read the stack on your bill, and why a high rate isn't always a high tax.
Georgia property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
The 40% assessment ratio, the $2,000 standard homestead plus HB 581's floating exemption, appeals, and why Georgia rates run low.
North Carolina property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
100% market-value assessment, the eight-year reappraisal cycle, the elderly/disabled and veteran exclusions, and the Circuit Breaker deferment.
Michigan property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
Proposal A's taxable-value cap, the uncapping pop-up when you buy, the Principal Residence Exemption, and why Michigan rates run high.
Washington property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
The budget-based levy system, the 1% constitutional cap and 101% growth limit, senior and disabled relief, and ESSB 6162.
Florida property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
Homestead exemption, Save Our Homes 3% cap, portability, TRIM notices, county-by-county variation, and the appeal process.
Texas property tax: the complete homeowner's guide
$140K school homestead exemption, the 10% homestead cap, MUD/PID districts, the protest process, and county-specific rate variation.
California Prop 13, explained
How the 1% rate cap and 2% assessment cap work, what triggers reassessment, the role of Prop 19, and how Mello-Roos and parcel taxes add on top.
Senior and veteran property tax exemptions: state-by-state guide
The most generous senior, disability, and veteran exemption programs nationwide. Tax freezes, full disabled-veteran exemptions, and how to stack with the homestead.
How property tax actually works
A plain-English walkthrough of assessed value, mill rates, exemptions, and why two identical homes can owe wildly different bills.
7 legitimate ways to lower your property tax bill
Exemptions, appeals, clerical errors, and other real tactics — ranked by dollar impact and effort required.
How to file a property tax assessment appeal (DIY guide)
Step-by-step: when to file, how to build your comps, the evidence that actually moves assessors, and the mistakes that sink appeals.