Property tax in Oregon is calculated on your home’s assessed value, not its market value, and the two numbers are usually far apart. The statewide average effective rate works out to about 0.81% of market value, but what you actually owe depends on a capped assessed value that often sits well below what your house would sell for. Taxes are billed once a year after October 25 and paid in three installments, with a discount if you pay the full amount early.
How Your Tax Bill Is Calculated
Your county assessor tracks two separate numbers for your property. Real market value is what your home would likely sell for on the open market as of January 1. Maximum assessed value is a formula figure equal to 103% of the prior year’s assessed value or 100% of the prior year’s maximum assessed value, whichever is greater.1Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 308.146 – Determination of Maximum Assessed Value and Assessed Value
Your tax is based on assessed value, which is simply the lower of those two. In a rising market, maximum assessed value is almost always the lower number, so that’s what you pay on. The gap can be large: a home worth $500,000 on the open market might have an assessed value under $300,000 if it hasn’t changed hands or been significantly renovated in years.1Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 308.146 – Determination of Maximum Assessed Value and Assessed Value In a declining market, the math flips. If real market value drops below maximum assessed value, you pay on the lower market value instead.
Two constitutional amendments drive this system. Measure 5 caps the total rate that all overlapping taxing districts can charge against a single property: education taxes cannot exceed $5 per $1,000 of real market value, and all other government taxes are capped at $10 per $1,000.2FindLaw. Oregon Constitution Art XI Section 11b Measure 50 added the 3% annual growth cap on assessed value starting in the 1997–98 tax year and locked each taxing district into a permanent rate so it couldn’t simply raise rates to compensate.3FindLaw. Oregon Constitution Art XI Section 11
When Your Assessed Value Can Jump More Than 3%
The 3% annual cap applies to properties that haven’t physically changed. Add a new structure, make significant improvements to an existing building, or subdivide a lot, and the assessor recalculates your maximum assessed value to reflect the added value.4Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 308.153 – New Property and New Improvements to Property A major remodel or addition increases your taxable base right away rather than being phased in.
The reverse also happens. If a fire or natural disaster destroys part of your property, the assessor reduces your maximum assessed value to reflect the loss, and that reduction lowers your tax bill for as long as the damage persists.
When Oregon Property Taxes Are Due
The property tax year runs July 1 through June 30. Statements arrive after October 25, and the tax is payable in three equal installments: November 15, February 15, and May 15.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 311.505 – Due Dates, Interest on Late Payments, Discounts on Early Payments If a due date lands on a weekend or holiday, it shifts to the next business day.
Paying early earns you a discount. Pay the full year by November 15 and you get 3% off the total bill. Pay two-thirds by that date and you get 2% off the amount paid. The three-installment plan costs nothing extra, but there’s no discount either.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 311.505 – Due Dates, Interest on Late Payments, Discounts on Early Payments If your total bill is under $40, you must pay in full with no installment option.
Late payments accrue interest at 1⅓% per month, or 16% annualized. Interest on the first installment begins December 15 rather than November 15, which gives you a one-month grace period. The second and third installments accrue interest immediately after their due dates.5Oregon Public Law. Oregon Revised Statutes 311.505 – Due Dates, Interest on Late Payments, Discounts on Early Payments The 3% early-payment discount is worth taking if you can swing it. On a $4,000 bill, it saves $120.
Exemptions and Deferral Programs
Disabled Veteran Exemption
Veterans with a disability rating of 40% or more can exempt part of their homestead’s assessed value from taxation. Veterans with a service-connected disability certified by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs receive a higher exemption, built from an $18,000 base that grows by 3% each year. Veterans whose disability is not service-connected, or is certified by a private physician rather than the VA, work from a $15,000 base.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 307.250 – Property of Veterans or Surviving Spouses After nearly three decades of 3% compounding, current exemption amounts are substantially higher than those base figures. An unmarried surviving spouse of a qualifying veteran can also claim the exemption.
Non-service-connected veterans face an income test: total gross income for the prior calendar year, including government pensions and disability payments, cannot exceed 185% of the federal poverty guidelines.6Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Code 307.250 – Property of Veterans or Surviving Spouses Service-connected veterans have no income cap.
Senior and Disabled Homeowner Deferral
Oregon’s deferral program lets qualifying homeowners borrow from the state to cover their annual property taxes. The state pays the county on your behalf each November, and you repay when you sell the home, move out, or pass away. The deferred balance accrues 6% simple interest, not compounded.7Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners Program
Household income must be $70,000 or less to qualify for 2026. The program is open to senior homeowners and homeowners with disabilities who meet residency and equity requirements.7Oregon Department of Revenue. Oregon Property Tax Deferral for Disabled and Senior Homeowners Program The deferral creates a lien on your property, which reduces equity available for later borrowing.
Appealing Your Property Valuation
If you think your real market value is set too high, you can petition the Property Value Appeals Board (formerly the Board of Property Tax Appeals) through your county clerk’s office. The filing window opens when tax statements are mailed in late October and closes December 31, not in the new year as many homeowners assume.8Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 309 – Property Value Appeals Board
The petition must be in writing, signed and verified under oath, and state the facts and grounds for your challenge. You also indicate whether you want to appear at a hearing.8Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 309 – Property Value Appeals Board The strongest petitions include a recent appraisal or comparable sales data showing your market value is lower than the assessor’s figure. Photos of deferred maintenance or structural problems help, because the assessor may not know about interior conditions.
Know what you’re really challenging. Lowering real market value only cuts your tax bill if the new figure drops below your maximum assessed value. For most properties in a normal market, real market value sits well above maximum assessed value, so a modest reduction changes nothing on the bill. This is where most appeals run aground.
What Happens If You Don’t Pay
Oregon moves to foreclose on properties with taxes delinquent for three or more years. The county tax collector prepares a foreclosure list and, with the district attorney’s help, initiates proceedings three months after the delinquency date.9Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 312 – Tax Foreclosure The case runs against the property itself rather than you personally, and the court enters a judgment ordering the property sold to the county.
After the judgment, you have a two-year redemption period. Pay all delinquent taxes, interest, and costs within that window and you keep the property. Miss it, and the tax collector deeds the property to the county and your ownership ends.9Oregon State Legislature. Oregon Revised Statutes Chapter 312 – Tax Foreclosure The practical timeline from first missed payment to losing the home is roughly five years. The 16% annual interest running the entire time makes the hole significantly deeper each month.
Federal Deduction and Mortgage Escrow
Oregon property taxes you pay are deductible on your federal return if you itemize. Real property taxes qualify under the state and local tax (SALT) deduction, which for 2026 is capped at $40,400 for most filers and $20,200 for married individuals filing separately.10Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 164 – Taxes That cap covers your property taxes, state income taxes, and any personal property taxes combined, not each separately. Oregon’s state income tax is high enough that homeowners with large state tax bills may have little room left under the cap for property taxes.
If you have a mortgage, your lender almost certainly collects property taxes with your monthly payment and holds the money in escrow until the bill comes due. Federal rules cap the cushion your servicer can keep at one-sixth of estimated annual escrow disbursements, and surpluses over $50 must be refunded.11Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1024.17 – Escrow Accounts The servicer must perform an annual escrow analysis and adjust your monthly payment when the tax amount changes. Because assessed values can rise up to 3% per year and local rates shift, expect a small annual bump even if nothing about your property changes. When the analysis arrives in early spring, check that the tax figure matches your most recent county statement.