Oregon property tax is a local tax, not a state one. Your bill is set by the county assessor and paid to the county tax collector, based on your home’s capped assessed value multiplied by the combined rates of the school, city, county, and special districts your property sits in.1Oregon State Legislature. The New Direction of the Oregon Property Tax System Under Measure 50 Statements go out by October 25, and payment is due November 15, with a discount for paying in full.2Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Tax Payment Procedure
How Your Taxable Value Is Set
Every property is valued as of January 1 each year.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation The assessor assigns two numbers: Real Market Value (RMV), what the property would sell for, and Maximum Assessed Value (MAV), a constitutional cap. The number that actually goes on your bill, your Assessed Value, is whichever of the two is lower.4Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Maximum Assessed Value Manual
MAV comes from Measure 50, passed in 1997. It started at 90 percent of each property’s 1995–96 market value and grows by no more than 3 percent per year.4Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Maximum Assessed Value Manual For a long-held home in Portland or the Willamette Valley, that cap means you are often taxed on a figure well below what the house would sell for.
Certain events let the MAV jump by more than 3 percent. New construction, major renovations, lot line adjustments, and changes in a property’s legal status all trigger a reassessment. Add a bedroom or finish a garage, and the assessor will account for the added value.
The Rate Limits That Cap Your Bill
Measure 5, passed in 1990, caps operating taxes at $5 per $1,000 of RMV for education and $10 per $1,000 for general government (cities, counties, parks, and similar services), for a combined ceiling of $15 per $1,000.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation
When overlapping districts push past either limit, compression kicks in. Local option levies get reduced first; if cutting those to zero still is not enough, permanent rate levies in that category are reduced proportionally until the total fits.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation A new levy voters just approved may not actually raise your bill if your property is already at the ceiling.
Voter-approved bonds for capital construction sit outside the Measure 5 limits.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation So your total bill can exceed $15 per $1,000 of RMV when school or infrastructure bonds are in play, and in districts carrying heavy bond debt that difference is noticeable.
When Payment Is Due and How to Save
The tax year runs July 1 through June 30. County tax collectors mail statements by October 25, and you have three ways to pay:2Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Tax Payment Procedure
- Pay in full by November 15 and get a 3 percent discount on the total bill.
- Pay two-thirds by November 15 and get a 2 percent discount, with the remaining third due May 15.
- Pay in three equal installments on November 15, February 15, and May 15, with no discount.
On a $5,000 bill, the full-payment discount is $150. Payments go to your county tax collector, not any state office, and most counties accept payment online, by mail, or in person.
What Happens If You Pay Late
Unpaid balances accrue interest at 1.333 percent per month, which works out to 16 percent per year. Under ORS 311.505, interest on the first installment starts if it is not paid by December 15, giving roughly a one-month grace period after November 15. The February 15 and May 15 installments accrue interest immediately after their deadlines.5Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 311 – Collection of Property Taxes
If taxes remain unpaid for three years from the earliest delinquency date, the county can begin foreclosure. After the court enters judgment, you still have a two-year redemption period to pay the full delinquent amount and reclaim the property, and the county must notify you at least one year before that window closes.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 312 – Tax Foreclosure and County Disposition of Foreclosed Properties Miss the redemption period and the tax collector deeds the property to the county, ending your rights permanently. The full timeline from first missed payment to permanent loss runs roughly five years, with interest accruing the whole way.
Programs That Lower or Defer Your Bill
Disabled Veteran Exemption
Oregon reduces the assessed value of a qualifying veteran’s homestead. For 2026, the exemption is $27,092 for a general disability rating and $32,512 for a service-connected disability.7Oregon Department of Revenue. Disabled Veteran or Surviving Spouse Property Tax Exemption You need certification from the VA or an Armed Forces branch of a disability of 40 percent or more; a licensed physician can certify annually if no VA rating exists.8Oregon Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Taxes Surviving spouses and registered domestic partners of qualifying veterans may also be eligible. You apply through your county assessor.
Senior and Disabled Deferral
If you are 62 or older, or disabled and receiving (or eligible for) federal Social Security Disability benefits, you may qualify to defer your property taxes entirely. The Oregon Department of Revenue pays the county on your behalf, and you owe nothing until you sell, move out, or pass away.9Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners
For 2026, household income for the prior calendar year cannot exceed $70,000, counting all taxable and nontaxable income of you and a spouse who lives in the home. The property must be your primary residence, and you need enough equity for the state to secure its interest. Deferred taxes carry 6 percent simple interest per year, and the state records a lien on the property.10Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners Program Over ten or fifteen years, that interest adds up, so run the numbers before signing up. Applications are due to your county assessor by April 15. Late applications are accepted between April 16 and December 1 with a fee.9Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners
Appealing a Valuation
If you think the assessor’s number is wrong, you can file a petition with your county’s Property Value Appeals Board, formerly the Board of Property Tax Appeals. Petitions are generally due by December 31 of the tax year in question, and the board is the usual first step before any further appeal to the Oregon Tax Court.11Oregon Department of Revenue. How to Appeal Your Property Value The Oregon Department of Revenue oversees county assessors to keep valuations uniform statewide.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation
Beyond the Family Home
Two situations fall outside the ordinary homeowner picture but are easy to overlook. Businesses that own tangible personal property, including equipment, machinery, furniture, and fixtures, must file a return with the county assessor by March 15 each year, even for items that have been fully depreciated or put in storage.3Oregon Department of Revenue. Property Assessment and Taxation And farmland can receive a special assessment that values it on its agricultural use rather than development potential, but if the land is later converted or sold out of farm use, the county collects a rollback of up to five years’ worth of the tax difference for farmland outside an exclusive farm-use zone.12Oregon Department of Revenue. Assessment of Farmland Not in an Exclusive Farm-Use Zone In either case, call your county assessor before you assume the rule does not reach you.