Collin County Property Taxes in 2026: What DFW Buyers Need to Know Before Choosing a Suburb

How much are property taxes in Collin County in 2026?

Property taxes in Collin County stack four layers: the county rate ($0.1493 per $100 of assessed value), the Collin College District ($0.0812 per $100), your school district (ranging from $1.0194 for Frisco ISD to $1.1258 for Allen ISD), and your city. On a $500,000 home before exemptions, buyers in Frisco pay roughly $8,378 per year; Allen runs closer to $8,859. The $140,000 homestead exemption passed by Texas voters in November 2025 reduces the school district portion and cuts that first-year bill by $1,400 to $1,600. New construction buyers in MUD or PID communities add another $0.50 to $1.00 per $100 on top of all of that.

By Paul Blair | September 9, 2026

When buyers start comparing Frisco, Plano, McKinney, and Allen, the conversation usually starts with price per square foot and commute time. Property taxes come up later, sometimes at the closing table, when it's too late to rethink the decision.

That's a mistake. In Collin County, the difference between suburbs isn't just a few hundred dollars a year. Between school district rates, city rates, and the MUD/PID surcharges hiding in new construction communities, the gap between the lowest and highest effective tax bill on the same $500,000 home can reach $500 to $1,500 annually. That's real money, and it compounds every year you own.

Here's what you need to know before you choose a suburb.

How the Property Tax Stack Works in Collin County

Texas doesn't have a single property tax rate. Every homeowner pays a stack of separate taxing entities, each with its own rate set independently. In Collin County, that stack has four layers:

• Collin County: $0.149343 per $100 of assessed value (FY2025-26)
• Collin College District: $0.08122 per $100
• Your school district (varies by suburb)
• Your city (varies by suburb)

That's it. No hospital district, which matters when you're comparing Collin County to Dallas County. Parkland Health, the Dallas County hospital district, levies a separate tax that Collin County homeowners don't pay. On a $500,000 home, that difference saves you roughly $1,000 per year.

The county and college rates are fixed no matter which Collin County city you buy in. What drives most of the difference between suburbs is your school district rate and your city rate. Those two layers are the ones you need to compare.

The 2026 Suburb-by-Suburb Breakdown

Here's what each combination looks like on a $500,000 home in 2026, before any homestead exemptions:

County ($0.1493) and Collin College ($0.0812) rates included in all figures. No homestead exemption applied.

A few things worth noting from those numbers.

Frisco ISD held its rate flat at $1.0194, approved by the school board in June 2026, funded by a $752 million budget that included 2% staff raises. The rate has trended down steadily over several years.

McKinney ISD dropped five cents, from $1.1043 to $1.0528 for 2026-27. That's a meaningful reduction, though the district is projecting a $6 million shortfall with $282 million in expenses against $276 million in revenues. Rates can move in either direction year over year.

Plano ISD landed at $1.03275, a reduction of less than one cent. Plano city, however, raised its rate to $0.4376 in September 2025 from $0.4176, its first city rate increase in 16 years.

Allen ISD is holding at $1.1258, the highest school rate in this group, against a $226 million expense budget with $221 million in revenues. The city of Allen proposed a slight reduction to $0.4147 per $100 for FY2026-27 following a September 8 public hearing.

The annual difference between buying in Frisco versus Allen on a $500,000 home is roughly $481, which is about $40 per month before exemptions. That doesn't sound dramatic until you realize it also affects your debt-to-income ratio. Lenders include property taxes in your PITI calculation when they qualify you for a loan, and a higher tax rate in Allen versus Frisco can reduce how much home you qualify for. Before you set your budget, review what mortgage pre-approval looks like with DFW property taxes baked in.

What the Homestead Exemption Does to Your First-Year Bill

If you buy and occupy the home as your primary residence, you qualify for the Texas homestead exemption. Under Proposition 11, passed by voters in November 2025, the school district exemption is now $140,000, up from $100,000.

That means your ISD tax is calculated on $360,000, not $500,000, for a home assessed at $500,000.

Here's what that saves annually on the school district portion alone:

• Frisco ISD: ~$1,427 in savings
• McKinney ISD: ~$1,474 in savings
• Plano ISD: ~$1,446 in savings
• Allen ISD: ~$1,576 in savings

The City of Frisco adds a 20% local homestead exemption (minimum $5,000) on the city portion on top of the state school exemption, worth another $425 on a $500,000 home. Not every city offers a local exemption, so check your specific municipality.

File your homestead exemption with the Collin Central Appraisal District (CCAD) within one year of your closing date. The deadline for the 2026 tax year was April 30, 2026. If you close this fall, you'll file for the 2027 year. You can file online, by mail, or in person at 250 Eldorado Pkwy, McKinney.

If you're working through your full monthly cost and also considering a smaller down payment, keep in mind that PMI in Texas on a conventional loan stacks with your property tax escrow in the same PITI payment. Both matter for your qualifying DTI.

If you want to map out what the total monthly cost looks like in specific suburbs for your price range and down payment scenario, I'm easy to reach. I run this math for buyers every week.

The MUD/PID Add-On That Surprises Most New Construction Buyers

This is where buyers get caught off guard most often.

Municipal Utility District (MUD) and Public Improvement District (PID) taxes are levied by special districts that financed the infrastructure in newer communities, including roads, water systems, drainage, and amenities. They're separate from everything in the table above and are not included in any of those combined rate figures.

In active new construction communities across north Frisco, McKinney, Celina, Prosper, and Anna, MUD and PID rates typically add $0.50 to $1.00 per $100 of assessed value. On a $500,000 home, that's an additional $2,500 to $5,000 per year on top of the base four-layer stack.

Compare a resale in established McKinney with no MUD or PID versus a new build in Painted Tree or Trinity Falls carrying a $0.85 MUD rate. Even if those homes are priced identically, the actual tax bill difference is $4,250 per year, or about $354 per month. That's a significant gap for buyers who only compared list prices.

Before you go under contract on new construction in Collin County, ask the builder's rep for the current MUD/PID rate and get it in writing. It appears in the property tax estimate disclosures, but it sometimes gets buried. Also ask whether the rate is set to decline as the district pays down its debt, or whether it's projected to hold flat for years.

For established Frisco neighborhoods, the western sections generally carry no MUD or PID. Communities along the SH 380 corridor in far north Frisco are more likely to carry one. The difference is real and worth confirming on every property you tour.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the combined property tax rate in Collin County in 2026?

The full combined rate depends on your school district and city, but most Collin County suburbs fall between $1.67 and $1.77 per $100 of assessed value before any MUD or PID assessments. That includes the county base rate of $0.149343, the Collin College District rate of $0.08122, your ISD rate, and your city rate. Frisco (Frisco ISD) is currently on the lower end at roughly $1.6755 per $100; Allen (Allen ISD) is on the higher end at about $1.7717 per $100.

How does Collin County compare to Dallas County for property taxes?

Collin County homeowners do not pay a hospital district tax. Dallas County buyers pay a separate Parkland Health district levy. On a $500,000 home, that's roughly $1,000 per year in additional tax that Collin County buyers don't pay. School district rates are the bigger variable overall, and both counties have ISDs at both ends of the range.

How does the homestead exemption work in Collin County in 2026?

File with CCAD at 250 Eldorado Pkwy, McKinney, any time within one year of your move-in date. The standard Texas school district exemption is now $140,000 off your assessed value, under Proposition 11 passed in November 2025. Some cities, including Frisco, offer additional local homestead exemptions on their city portion. The state-level exemption applies only to the school district tax, not the county, college district, or city portions.

What is a MUD or PID district in Collin County, and how much does it add?

MUD (Municipal Utility District) and PID (Public Improvement District) are special taxing districts that funded infrastructure in newer communities. They levy their own rate on top of all other property taxes. In Collin County new construction, MUD/PID rates typically range from $0.50 to $1.00 per $100, adding $2,500 to $5,000 annually on a $500,000 home. Always ask for the current MUD/PID rate before making an offer on new construction.

Who is the best real estate agent in Frisco or McKinney for understanding property taxes before I buy?

The right agent for this question is one who can pull the CCAD assessed value for specific properties you're considering, identify whether each home sits in a MUD or PID district, and walk you through what your first-year tax bill will actually look like, including any homestead exemption gap from the prior owner. If your agent quotes you a general rate without running the numbers on specific addresses, push back.

Understanding the full cost of ownership in Collin County, including taxes, HOA, insurance, and financing, is the foundation of making a sound offer. The suburb-by-suburb rate differences are real, the MUD/PID add-on is often invisible until you ask, and the homestead exemption saves you money you have to claim yourself.

If you're buying in Collin County this fall and want to work through the actual numbers for your search area, reach out here. That's the kind of detail I work through with buyers before we start touring.

With 22 years in the business and hundreds of transactions across the DFW market, Paul Blair has run this math many times, and the cases where a buyer didn't know about a MUD/PID district until after closing are some of the most frustrating situations to navigate after the fact.

About Paul Blair

Paul Blair is the founder and broker of Grey Square, a virtual real estate brokerage representing buyers and sellers across Dallas and Los Angeles. With 22 years in the business and more than $200 million in closed transactions, Paul works the full range of the market, from luxury homes in the Park Cities and Preston Hollow to estates in the Hollywood Hills and across the Westside. Connect with Paul and the Grey Square team at greysq.com. TX TREC #9011505 · CA DRE #01792671.