Property Taxes in Northwest Harris and Southeast Montgomery Counties - why they are so high!
When people move to the Houston area from other states they are often surprised by our high property taxes. We were in that group when we moved here 11 years ago. What we found however is that Texas is one of seven states without an individual or corporate income tax. Most states derive about 40% of their revenue from income taxes, a third from sales tax and the rest from taxes on items such as business licenses and gasoline. Since Texas doesn't have a state income tax they have a fairly high sales tax (in our area 7 to 8%) and high property taxes but that is offset by no state income tax. All that infrastructure has to be paid for in some way; I guess. In Northwest Harris and Southeast Montgomery Counties there are basically three different property taxing authorities. There is a county tax; which covers such things as county, hospital, emergency services, port authority, flood control, community college etc. The second tax is a school tax. The amount of this tax will depend on which school district you live in. The amount of the school district taxes vary by district but they are very similar; they differ by pennies. It doesn't 
matter where you live you are going to have these two taxing authorities.
The third taxing authority is the MUD or Municipal Utility District. Basically this is your water & sewer tax. This is the taxing authority that is going to vary subdivision by subdivision. There are a few older subdivisions in the area that have paid their bonds and don't have this tax. The rate will vary from .25 to over $2.00 per 100 value of your house. If you live in a country subdivision and are on a septic you will not have this tax. Typically the country subdivisions are on septic and have community water.
If your home is your homestead you can qualify for a homestead exemption. This can be up to 20% of your property tax. Each taxing entity will give you a different exemption though so you will need to check with the taxing authorities in the area you live. To get information for Harris County taxes you can go to the Harris County Appraisal District HCAD. For Montgomery County taxes you can get information at the Montgomery County Appraisal Tax Office.
Even with the higher property tax Texas ranks fairly low in overall taxes paid among all 50 states. I found a study where The Tax Foundation, a nonprofit fiscal policy research group, estimated the average taxpayer's total state and local tax burden for 2006 in each of the 50 states and the District of Columbia. According to that study Texas was ranked 7 out of the nation but there are differing studies. Texas always seems to be ranked fairly good though.
The good news is that you get a LOT of home for your money in Texas; even with the high taxes. We have lived in two other states and for the same money a month we bought a newer home with more square footage. What a great place to live!
For all your Northwest Houston Real Estate needs, contact me today!
Marchel Peterson
Results Realty
Cell: 832-721-8332
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Donna, your area has a less expensive tax rate than ours; although it sounds like they are structured simiar by county, school, college, MUD or city, etc. We don't have many cities so have lots of MUDS.
About the lowest rate that I have seen is $2.30 (which is a country property) and the highest was a little over $4.00 (OUCH). The tax rate of the community I live in is $3.52 which is a little bit on the higher side but it is also a newer community and the newer communities have not had time to pay down their bonds so the MUD tax is almost always higher in a newer community.
Houston is totally unique in all the MUD districts we have. I don't know why these area around here didn't incorporate way back when. Spring does not actually have a town. I think if it is in Northwest Harris County and they don't know what to call it; it got thrown in to Spring. Until just recently The Woodlands was just a big Spring zip code but they recently took steps to protect themself from annexation by Houston.
Hi Marchel Just had a couple down from New Jersey and they were not aware that TEXAS does not have a state income tax. They were very happy to hear the good news. They are looking to move to San Antonio in May-June timeframe. The husband is being transferred here by his company.
SHIRLEY, I think it really helps out of state people deal with our property taxes when they find out there is no state income tax. We were freaked out about the high taxes until we found that out then it didn't look so bad.
COURTNEY, I live in a subdivision with a fairly high MUD tax which makes my taxes higher; but I LOVE my subdivison and I think it is worth it. We do get a lot of home for the money.
LIZ, Isn't that house cute! That came from the real estate graphic site.
What can one do to get around high HOAs? Also, are there any Northern or communities in Conroe or College Station with no MUD tax? Thanks.
Kat, I'm not a College Station agent but there are homes in the city of Conroe and Tomball that are not in an HOA. There are also HOA's that don't have high fees. My HOA is only $250 per year.
I live in Friendwood and my taxes are to high . can you offer any advise to get help with this .
Thanks
Claudia Oliver
Claudia, You can fight your taxes yourself or there are also companies that will fight them for you but they keep a small percentage. If you would like for me to send you some comparables to see if it is worth it please email me and I will be glad to do that for you.