What Austin's Combined Property Tax Rate Actually Is by ZIP Code
Travis County tax bills drop in October. If you're closing on a home or signing a lease this September, you need the real combined rate — city, county, school district, and MUD stacked together — b…
Travis County tax bills drop in October. If you’re closing on a home or signing a lease this September, you need the real combined rate — city, county, school district, and MUD stacked together — before the envelope arrives. We built the table no one else has.
The number Zillow shows you is wrong. Not approximately wrong. Structurally wrong, in ways that cost Austin-area buyers thousands of dollars a year in miscalculated carrying costs.
National real estate platforms calculate property tax estimates using county-level effective rate averages pulled from aggregate data. Travis County’s blended average gets applied to a listing in Pflugerville that happens to carry an active Municipal Utility District levy. The MUD doesn’t appear. The specific school district rate doesn’t appear. The community college district doesn’t appear. What appears is a round number that flatters the monthly payment estimate and understates what you’ll actually owe come January 31.
This matters more right now than it did three years ago because two legislative changes have reshuffled the rate stack in ways that haven’t propagated through national calculators yet. HB 13, passed in the 2023 special session, raised the school district homestead exemption from $40,000 to $100,000 — the largest single exemption increase in Texas history. HB 5 from the same cycle imposed additional rate compression on school district M&O levies. Both changes reduced effective bills for established homeowners, but they interact with the rest of the stack differently by ZIP code. A buyer comparing intown Austin to Hutto in 2025 is looking at a fundamentally different rate structure than existed in 2022 — and the suburb-versus-city math doesn’t land where conventional wisdom says it does. The gap is smaller than you think, and in the wrong direction for some suburbs.
What follows is the arithmetic, done in public, for 12 ZIP codes where Austin-area buyers and renters are actually making decisions right now.
How Texas Property Tax Actually Stacks
A typical Travis County bill includes some combination of these components. The Travis County base levy funds county government, roads, and Central Health, the county hospital district. The City of Austin levy applies only to parcels inside city limits; unincorporated parcels don’t pay this, but often pay an Emergency Services District levy instead.
The school district levy splits into two separate line items. Maintenance and Operations (M&O) covers the operating budget. Interest and Sinking (I&S) covers bond debt service and fluctuates as districts issue new bonds or retire old ones. Watch the I&S number. That’s where the surprises are.
You also pay the Austin Community College district levy for parcels in Travis County. Williamson County parcels pay Williamson County Community College instead, at a different rate. And the Lower Colorado River Authority levy — small, real, appears on most bills.
Where applicable, a MUD levy funds infrastructure bonds.
For parcels in Williamson County — including some with Austin mailing addresses — the county base rate is Williamson County’s, not Travis County’s. Williamson has historically run a slightly lower base rate than Travis. The community college levy switches from ACC to WCCC. The school district assignment changes entirely, and that’s where the real money moves.
Hays County parcels — Kyle, Buda, Dripping Springs — operate under the Hays CAD and carry Hays County’s base rate plus whatever city levy (if any) and Hays CISD or Dripping Springs ISD assignment applies.
What the Homestead Exemption Actually Saves You, in Dollars
Take a home with a current certified appraised value of $450,000. The owner has filed a homestead exemption. You must file. It is not automatic for buyers, and I’ve talked to too many first-year homeowners who didn’t realize this until their first bill arrived — by which point the deadline had passed.
For school districts, the $100,000 homestead exemption enacted by HB 13 comes off the top. On an AISD parcel, the school district taxes the home on $350,000, not $450,000. AISD’s M&O rate has dropped significantly in recent legislative cycles, falling from approximately $1.17 to approximately $0.8124 per $100, with the I&S component added on top. Verify the exact 2025 combined rate with TCAD directly before relying on any estimate.
Austin applies a 20% homestead exemption on appraised value — the maximum permitted under state law. Twenty percent of $450,000 is $90,000, so the city taxes the home on $360,000. Confirm this exemption remains in effect for the current tax year at tcad.org.
The county applies a homestead exemption that was modified by 2023 legislation; confirm the current dollar amount with TCAD before calculating. ACC and LCRA levy small additional amounts that must be confirmed from the Texas Comptroller’s published Truth-in-Taxation tables or directly from TCAD’s certified entity list.
The layered exemption structure means the effective rate applied to your home is substantially lower than the combined nominal rate. National calculators that apply a single blended rate to full appraised value will overstate your actual bill — not by a little. On a mid-range Austin home, the practical savings from stacking homestead exemptions run into real money. The exact dollar figure depends on your specific CAD’s confirmed entity rates.
The over-65 freeze is a separate and more powerful benefit. Once a homeowner turns 65 and files for the senior exemption, the school district portion of the bill is locked at that year’s dollar amount regardless of future appraisal increases. An additional $10,000 school district exemption applies as well. This covers only the school district portion — not the city or county levy.
The Combined Rate Table: 12 ZIP Codes, Every Entity, One Number
The combined rates below are based on the most recently certified rolls available from TCAD, Williamson CAD, and Hays CAD. Individual entity rates within each stack must be confirmed with the administering CAD before closing, as rates are certified annually and shift meaningfully year to year. Where a MUD creates real intra-ZIP variation, a range is shown.
78704 — Bouldin Creek, South Congress, Travis Heights
Travis County, City of Austin, AISD, ACC, LCRA. No MUD. Estimated combined rate: approximately 1.7–1.95 per $100. Entirely within Travis CAD and AISD. This is about as clean as an Austin-area tax stack gets.
78745 — South Austin (Slaughter Lane corridor)
Travis County, City of Austin, AISD, ACC, LCRA. No MUD. Estimated combined rate: approximately 1.7–1.95 per $100 — identical rate stack to 78704. The lower median price produces a substantially lower absolute bill. Same percentage, meaningfully different dollar amount. Worth saying plainly: in rate terms, these two ZIPs are the same ZIP.
78723 — Mueller, East Austin
Travis County, City of Austin, AISD, ACC, LCRA. No MUD. Estimated combined rate: approximately 1.7–1.95 per $100.
78725 — Easton Park (The Reader Trap)
This is the one that causes the most damage. Easton Park carries an Austin city mailing address, which leads buyers — and some of their agents — to assume an AISD assignment and no MUD. Both assumptions are wrong.
Del Valle ISD runs a higher combined rate than AISD. And the Easton Park MUD, which financed the community’s water, sewer, and drainage infrastructure, is actively in bond service. Travis County, City of Austin, Del Valle ISD, ACC, LCRA, active MUD varying by sub-district. Estimated combined rate: approximately 2.3–2.5+ per $100. Newer MUDs in the Austin metro platted 2018–2023 carry bond payoff timelines through the 2040s. A buyer comparing this address to 78745 using Zillow’s tax estimate will see numbers that are off by thousands of dollars annually. Not hundreds. Thousands.
78660 — Pflugerville
Travis County, City of Pflugerville, Pflugerville ISD, ACC, LCRA. MUD varies significantly — older districts near or past bond payoff, newer ones in active service. Estimated combined rate without MUD: approximately 1.95–2.1 per $100; with active MUD: approximately 2.4–2.7.
Pflugerville is the most variable ZIP in this table. MUDs platted in the late 1990s and early 2000s have retired or are within a few years of retiring their original bond series; buyers in those sub-districts are paying little or no MUD levy. Buyers in subdivisions platted 2015–2022 are in full bond service. Two houses on the same street can carry bills that differ by over $1,000 annually. Confirm the specific parcel’s MUD status with TCEQ before closing.
78664 — Round Rock
Williamson County, City of Round Rock, Round Rock ISD, WCCC, LCRA. Minimal MUD; most established Round Rock neighborhoods predate MUD financing. Estimated combined rate: approximately 2.0–2.3 per $100.
Round Rock ISD operates a seasoned bond program. The I&S rate is manageable compared to the newer Leander and Hutto programs, and the Williamson County base rate is lower than Travis County’s. For buyers who want a suburban rate without suburban surprises, this ZIP is worth running first.
78641 — Leander
Williamson County, City of Leander, Leander ISD, WCCC, LCRA. MUD varies. Estimated combined rate without MUD: approximately 2.0–2.2 per $100; with active MUD: approximately 2.1–2.4.
The Leander ISD I&S rate is where buyers need to focus. The district passed a $772 million bond package in November 2022. The I&S component has been ramping up as bond series are issued and will keep pressuring rates through the mid-2030s. Buyers who underwrote their Leander purchase on 2021 or 2022 rate estimates are already paying more than they projected. It’s not done yet.
78613 — Cedar Park
Williamson County, City of Cedar Park, Leander ISD, WCCC, LCRA. Limited MUD in established neighborhoods. Estimated combined rate: approximately 2.1–2.4 per $100.
Cedar Park shares the Leander ISD assignment with 78641, which means the same escalating I&S pressure applies. Cedar Park’s city levy runs slightly lower than Leander’s, providing modest offset. And most established Cedar Park neighborhoods don’t carry active MUDs — one of the things that makes them more attractive than their list prices suggest.
78747 — Southeast Austin / Buda Border
Travis County, City of Austin (portions), AISD or Del Valle ISD depending on parcel, ACC, LCRA. Active MUD in newer developments. Estimated combined rate: approximately 1.8–2.4+ per $100 depending on ISD and MUD assignment.
Two distinct sub-markets, materially different tax profiles. The newer master-planned communities near the Buda city limit are more likely to carry both Del Valle ISD and an active MUD. Confirm ISD assignment on the specific parcel address, not the ZIP. The ZIP will mislead you here — that’s not a caveat, it’s a guarantee.
78640 — Kyle
Hays County, City of Kyle, Hays CISD, Hays County ESD where applicable. Active MUD in most new construction. Estimated combined rate without MUD: approximately 2.1–2.3 per $100; with active MUD: approximately 2.3–2.6.
Kyle buyers face a compounding problem: Hays CISD passed bonds in 2022 and the I&S rate is still ramping up, and the city levy is among the higher city rates in this table. Most new construction sits in an active MUD. Factor the MUD in. The listing’s tax estimate almost certainly doesn’t.
78634 — Hutto
Williamson County, City of Hutto, Hutto ISD, WCCC, LCRA. Active MUD; 2018–2023 platted districts near peak bond service. Estimated combined rate without MUD: approximately 2.1–2.2 per $100; with active MUD: approximately 2.6–2.9.
Hutto carries the highest combined tax burden in this table. Hutto ISD has the highest school district rate among the ISDs covered here, the city levy is elevated, and most residential development built since 2018 sits in MUD districts currently at or near peak bond service. Payoff on those bonds runs through 2040–2048 per TCEQ registry filings and MUD annual audits. A buyer purchasing a 2021-vintage Hutto home today is paying that MUD levy for most of their likely ownership period. Build it into the model.
78620 — Dripping Springs
Hays County, Dripping Springs ISD, Hays County ESD. Most parcels unincorporated — no city levy. Estimated combined rate: approximately 2.2–2.6 per $100.
Dripping Springs has the widest intra-ZIP rate spread in this table. Two parcels a quarter-mile apart on different sides of a MUD district boundary can produce annual bills that differ by $1,500 or more on comparably priced homes. Most parcels are unincorporated, so there’s no city levy, but the Hays County ESD levy applies instead. Verify each parcel individually. Not each subdivision — each parcel.
The MUD Explained: What It Is, What It Costs, and When It Ends
A Municipal Utility District is a financing mechanism, not a service provider. When a developer platts raw land that lacks municipal water, sewer, and drainage infrastructure — which describes virtually every greenfield suburb built in the Austin metro since the 1990s — they face a choice. Pay for the infrastructure upfront and fold it into lot prices, or form a MUD under Texas Water Code authority, issue tax-exempt bonds, and let the homebuyers pay off those bonds through a property tax levy over 20–30 years.
Developers almost universally choose the second option. It makes the initial lot price look lower. The financing cost disappears into future carrying costs that the buyer often doesn’t see until the first October bill. From the developer’s perspective, it’s a clean solution. From the homeowner’s perspective, the MUD levy typically runs between $0.15 and $0.55 per $100 of appraised value, appears as a separate line item on your property tax bill, and doesn’t go away until the bonds retire.
That terminal date matters enormously. The difference between a Pflugerville district platted in the late 1990s — likely at or near bond retirement — and a Hutto district platted in 2020 — entering peak service — is potentially $1,500 per year on the same-priced home, sustained for the next two decades. That’s not a footnote.
The Easton Park MUDs in 78725 and the cluster of Hutto-area MUDs platted 2018–2023 are in active bond service with payoff estimated 2040–2048. The Dripping Springs corridor has the widest single-ZIP variance.
Before closing on any property in a master-planned community or newer suburban subdivision, request the MUD disclosure notice required under the Texas Water Code. The seller is required to provide it. Read the bond payoff projection — not just the current rate. The current rate is the beginning of the story.
The Price-vs.-Rate Trade-Off: Does the Cheaper House Actually Cost Less to Own?
The rate ranges above make the directional math clear. A Hutto home at a combined rate of 2.6–2.9% with an active MUD and a Mueller home at 1.7–1.95% produce very different annual tax bills. But the gap compresses when you apply exemptions, and compresses further when you factor in the purchase price difference between the two markets. I’ve seen buyers run this comparison and land in genuinely surprising places — and not always where they expected.
The $100,000 school district exemption saves more in raw dollar terms in a high-rate ISD than a low-rate one. But Austin’s 20% city homestead exemption removes a substantial chunk of the city levy on high-value intown properties. Buyers running gross-rate comparisons overstate the practical gap.
The MUD is the variable that blows up the analysis entirely, because it doesn’t appear in any calculator that isn’t pulling parcel-level TCEQ data. The spread between a Hutto parcel with an active MUD and one without is potentially $0.45 per $100 or more. Real money. Missing from Zillow.
Here’s the honest conclusion: on a significantly cheaper Hutto home versus a significantly more expensive intown Austin home, the mortgage financing gap tends to dominate. The monthly difference in mortgage payment usually exceeds the difference in property tax. But the MUD premium is real, it persists for decades, and it should appear as an explicit line item in any comparison — not something you discover in November.
One more thing the legislature didn’t advertise clearly: HB 5’s M&O compression helped suburban buyers who aren’t in a MUD. MUD levies are infrastructure debt, not school operations — HB 5 didn’t touch them. The compression closed part of the intown-to-suburb rate gap; the MUD premium didn’t move at all. Almost nobody running suburb-versus-city comparisons is accounting for that distinction. For more on what Austin builders are actually offering right now to move suburban inventory, that analysis is worth reading alongside this one.
Which Suburb Has the Lowest Combined Rate Right Now?
78664 (Round Rock) and MUD-free parcels in 78660 (Pflugerville) are the lowest combined rates in the suburban ring, both in the 2.0–2.3 range. Round Rock ISD’s seasoned bond program runs a more modest I&S rate than Leander or Hutto, and the Williamson County base rate is lower than Travis County’s. If you’re shopping suburbs on tax burden, start there.
78613 (Cedar Park) carries the Leander ISD rate — currently the highest school district rate among the Williamson County ISDs in this table, owing to the 2022 bond activation. Cedar Park’s city levy is slightly lower than Leander’s, but buyers should budget for continued I&S pressure through the mid-2030s as the bond series is drawn down.
Kyle and Hutto, despite lower purchase prices, are not low-rate suburbs once the MUD is included. They’re high-rate suburbs with discounted purchase prices. That’s a trade-off some buyers should make. But it’s a different trade-off than they’re typically told they’re making, and in our moving & real estate coverage the math changes considerably if you’re planning to stay more than five years.
Why Your Austin Address Might File in Williamson County
Buyers with Austin mailing addresses in 78728 and 78729, and portions of far-north Austin ZIPs near the county line, may have their parcels administered by Williamson CAD rather than Travis CAD. The county line doesn’t follow ZIP code boundaries — a fact that surprises buyers at closing more often than it should.
An address in 78729 with “Austin, TX” on the envelope may sit on the Williamson County side of the line. That means the county base rate is Williamson’s (slightly lower than Travis), the community college levy is WCCC not ACC, the school district assignment may be Round Rock ISD rather than AISD, and appraisal protests go to the Williamson CAD Appraisal Review Board.
To confirm which CAD administers a specific parcel, run the address through both tcad.org and wcad.org. Whichever one returns the parcel record is your CAD. Do this before making an offer — not after.
If a parcel you assumed was AISD turns out to be Round Rock ISD, your annual bill lands somewhere different than your estimate, and you’ll protest your appraisal at the wrong office if you need to dispute it. That mistake can’t be fixed after the deadline passes.
The Dates That Cost You Money If You Miss Them
TCAD certified rolls finalize by July 25. The rates in this article reflect the most recently certified rolls available. Confirm with TCAD whether the current year’s certified rates are available for the specific entity stack on your parcel.
Bills mail in October. The amount on that bill is your legal obligation unless you’ve filed a timely protest and received a binding determination.
Payment is due January 31. A 7% penalty begins accruing on any unpaid balance February 1. The penalty is not waived for escrow disputes between the homeowner and their mortgage servicer. Travis County does not care that your lender made an error. That’s your problem to sort out with your lender while also paying the county.
Protest deadline is May 15, or 30 days from the date of your Notice of Appraised Value, whichever is later. Notices typically arrive March–April. Miss this deadline and your appeal rights for that year are gone. No grace period. No exceptions.
Buyers closing between July 25 and December 31 face a specific timing problem: the certified roll was set in July, based on the seller’s name and exemption status. If the seller had a homestead exemption and you haven’t yet filed yours, your January bill reflects the full appraised value until your exemption is processed. File with the appropriate CAD as soon as your deed records. Ideally within 30 days of closing. For a step-by-step look at how to protest your Travis County property tax appraisal in 2026, that guide covers the formal process from notice to hearing.
The October bill is a fixed event. The rate stack is knowable before it arrives. The gap between what national calculators show and what Travis County actually bills is, in many suburban ZIPs, several thousand dollars per year — wider in a MUD district, wider if you missed the exemption filing, and wider still if you assumed your Austin mailing address meant Travis CAD and AISD.
Confirm your specific parcel’s entity assignments at tcad.org, wcad.org, or hayscad.com before you close. If the combined rate on a master-planned community looks suspiciously clean, ask the title company to pull the MUD disclosure notice. That document exists precisely because buyers kept getting blindsided. Don’t be one of them.
