Homeowners in Bend typically see a combined Bend Oregon property tax rate between about $13 and $16 per $1,000 of assessed value, depending on which taxing districts overlap their parcel. That rate is applied to your property’s assessed value, not its market value, and in Oregon those two numbers are often very different. A home worth $700,000 on the open market might carry an assessed value under $350,000, so the dollar amount you actually owe is usually lower than the rate alone would suggest.
What Goes Into the Combined Rate
No single government sets your bill. It stacks the permanent rates and voter-approved levies of every district that serves your address. For most Bend properties the pieces look like this:
- Bend-La Pine Schools, with a permanent rate of $4.7641 per $1,000 of assessed value, plus any active local option levies and bonds. This is the largest single component and accounts for roughly a third of a typical bill.1Bend-La Pine Schools. Bend-La Pine Schools Administrative School District No. 1 Deschutes County
- City of Bend, approximately $2.80 per $1,000, funding city operations, police, and infrastructure.
- Deschutes County, approximately $1.21 per $1,000 for county-wide services including the sheriff’s office and road maintenance.
- Bend Metro Park and Recreation District, a permanent rate of $1.46 per $1,000. Properties just outside the district boundary skip this piece, which is why nearby unincorporated areas can show noticeably lower totals.2Bend Park and Recreation District. FY 2025 BPRD Annual Comprehensive Financial Report
- Smaller levies from the Deschutes County Library District, Central Oregon Community College, the High Desert Education Service District, and, in some areas, a rural fire protection district.
The precise total depends on your tax code area, a geographic zone defined by which districts cover your lot. Two homes a few blocks apart can sit in different code areas and pay different totals. Deschutes County publishes an annual tax rate schedule and an online estimator that lets you look up the exact rate for your parcel.
How Your Bill Is Actually Calculated
Oregon runs property tax on two constitutional amendments that work in tandem. Both show up on your annual statement, and both matter.
Measure 50 and Assessed Value
Measure 50 rolled every property’s taxable value back to 90 percent of its 1995 market value and capped annual growth at 3 percent from that baseline.3FindLaw. Oregon Constitution Art. XI Section 11 That capped figure is your maximum assessed value, or MAV. It is separate from real market value (RMV), which is what the assessor thinks your home would sell for today. In Bend, where prices have climbed hard over the past decade, the gap between the two can be large, and your tax is calculated on the lower number.
The math is straightforward. Divide your assessed value by 1,000, multiply by your total tax rate, and that is your annual bill. A home assessed at $350,000 in a code area with a $14.50 rate owes $5,075 for the year. Market swings during the year do not change the bill, because assessed value was locked in at the start of the tax year.
Measure 5 and Compression
Measure 5 caps the total tax that can be levied against a property at $5 per $1,000 of real market value for education and $10 per $1,000 for general government.4Oregon Department of Revenue. A Brief History of Oregon Property Taxation When the calculated taxes exceed either ceiling, rates get reduced proportionally until they fit under the cap. That reduction is called compression.
Compression mostly hits properties where assessed value sits close to market value, because there’s less of a gap to absorb the full rate. For a long-held Bend home with a wide MAV-to-RMV gap, compression rarely applies. For a newly built home where assessed value was set near the purchase price, it sometimes does. Both values appear on your tax statement, so you can check whether your rate was compressed.
Why Newer and Remodeled Homes Pay More
Buying an existing home does not reset your tax basis. You inherit the seller’s assessed value, and the 3 percent annual cap continues from that number rather than from your purchase price. In a rising market that is a real benefit, because the taxable value stays well below what you paid.
New construction and major improvements work differently. The county applies a changed property ratio (CPR) to set the assessed value of the new work. The CPR is calculated each year by dividing the average MAV of unchanged properties by their average RMV, broken out by property class. In a fast-appreciating county, the ratio can land well below 50 percent, so a $200,000 addition might only add roughly $90,000 to assessed value. From there it grows at the standard 3 percent per year.
Even with that built-in discount, the starting assessed value for a brand-new Bend home will be higher than that of an equivalent older home whose MAV has been capped for decades. That is why two similar houses on the same street can carry very different tax bills.
Voter-Approved Levies and Bonds
Permanent rates set the floor. Voters add to it through two mechanisms:
- Local option levies fund specific operations for a set number of years, then expire. Bend-La Pine Schools and the park district have both used them.
- General obligation bonds pay for capital projects such as school buildings or park facilities. The bond rate appears on your tax bill until the debt is retired.
Bond levies are not subject to Measure 5 compression, so they get collected in full regardless of the RMV ceiling.4Oregon Department of Revenue. A Brief History of Oregon Property Taxation A new bond approved at the ballot box adds its full rate to your bill. Because the mix of active levies shifts every few years, the current rate schedule from the Deschutes County Assessor is the most reliable place to see what you are actually paying.
Paying Your Bill and the Discount for Paying Early
Deschutes County collects property taxes with payment due in mid-November. When the statutory November 15 deadline falls on a weekend, it moves to the next business day. For 2025–2026, the due date is November 17, 2025.5Deschutes County, OR. Property Tax Collection – How to Make a Payment
- Pay in full by the November deadline and take a 3 percent discount.
- Pay two-thirds by November for a 2 percent discount, with the remainder due May 15.
- Pay in three equal installments with no discount, due November 17, February 17, and May 15 for the current cycle.5Deschutes County, OR. Property Tax Collection – How to Make a Payment
The 3 percent discount is meaningful. On a $5,000 bill, paying in November saves $150.
Miss the deadline and interest accrues at 1⅓ percent per month, or 16 percent annually, on any unpaid balance. Interest on the first installment begins after December 15, the second after February 15, and the third after May 15.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes 311.505 – Due Dates; Interest on Late Payments If taxes stay unpaid for three or more consecutive years, Oregon law requires the county to begin foreclosure under ORS Chapter 312.
Programs That Can Lower What You Owe
Two programs come up most often in Bend.
The senior and disabled homeowner deferral lets owners 62 or older, or those classified as disabled, defer their entire property tax bill. The state pays the county, and the deferred amount becomes a lien on the home that accrues interest and comes due when you sell, move out, or pass away. For 2026, prior-year household income must be $70,000 or less and the home’s real market value must be at least $301,000. Applications run January 1 through April 15, with late filings accepted through December 1 for a penalty. A mortgage lender cannot prohibit you from participating.7Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners Program
The disabled veteran exemption removes a portion of assessed value from taxation for qualifying disabled veterans, active-duty service members, and surviving spouses. For the 2026 tax year the exemption is $27,092 or $32,512, depending on disability rating, and the amounts rise 3 percent annually.8Oregon Department of Revenue. Disabled Veteran or Surviving Spouse Property Tax Exemption
When It’s Worth Appealing Your Assessment
If you believe the assessor’s real market value is too high, you can petition the Board of Property Tax Appeals by December 31 for the current tax year. The owner carries the burden of proof, and the strongest cases rely on recent comparable sales or documented condition problems. BOPTA will not consider hardship, complaints about rates, or prior-year values.
For most Bend homeowners the MAV cap already holds assessed value well below market value, so an appeal rarely changes the bill. The time it matters most is after a remodel, subdivision, or other change that triggers a reassessment outside the normal 3 percent growth. If BOPTA rules against you, the next step is the Oregon Tax Court Magistrate Division.