Property taxes in the 10 most populous counties in Texas increased faster than inflation or population growth, according to a recent report. | Adobe Stock
Property taxes in the 10 most populous counties in Texas increased faster than inflation or population growth, according to a recent report. | Adobe Stock
Property tax increases for the most populous counties in Texas, including Denton County, outstripped the tax's preferred growth rate, a combination of inflation and population growth, from 2016-2020, a report by the Texas Public Policy Foundation found.
Property tax in all 10 counties, including Denton, outstripped this preferred rate, the report stated.
"It’s not a stretch to say that property taxes are out of control in the Lone Star State,” James Quintero, a policy director at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, wrote in a newsletter March 3. “As a result, local governments are getting rich while families are forced to make hard decisions."
According to report, "Just the Facts: Property Taxes in Texas’ Most Populous Cities, Counties, and School Districts," published in February, property taxes are unique in several ways. First, the report notes that property taxes are “the largest tax assessed in Texas,” according to the state’s comptroller.
In 2019, nearly 50% of all tax dollars collected in Texas came from property taxes, according to the report. The report also found that there were 4,256 separate property taxing units in Texas in fiscal year 2019 and Texas tax laws are difficult for most people to understand.
“Texas’ property taxes are notoriously complicated, oftentimes requiring a taxpayer to seek help through consultants, accountants, advocates, and attorney,” the report stated.”
The Balance ranked Texas among the 10 states with the highest property tax rates in the United States with a median payment of $4,065 per year.
In 2021, the Tax Foundation found that Texas had the sixth highest property tax rate measured as property taxes paid as a percentage of owner-occupied housing value in 2019.
Hidalgo County's property tax grew 14.6% from $191.7 million to $219.6 million from 2016 to 2020, according to the report. The combined population and inflation for the city grew by 10.4% during that time, resulting in a difference of 4.2%.
All of Texas’ 10 most populous counties experienced some level of population growth from 2016-2020, the report found.
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