Understanding Your Bexar County Property Tax Bill

Every October, the same thing happens. The Bexar County property tax bill arrives, the number looks higher than expected, and the first phone call goes to the wrong office. If you own property in San Antonio or anywhere in Bexar County — or you're about to — it's worth understanding how this system actually works, because most of the confusion comes down to a handful of distinctions nobody explains clearly.

Two Offices, Two Different Jobs

The first thing to understand is that two separate entities handle your property taxes, and they don't do each other's jobs.

The Bexar Appraisal District (BCAD) determines what your property is worth. Every year, as of January 1, BCAD assigns a market value to your home. If you disagree with that value, BCAD is where you protest — but only during the spring protest window.

The Bexar County Tax Assessor-Collector sends the bill and collects the money — not just for the county, but under contract for 66 other taxing jurisdictions. This office doesn't set your home's value and can't change it. Calling them in October to argue the number is like calling the bank to dispute the price of the house.

Appraised Value vs. Assessed Value in Texas

This is the distinction that explains most of the confusion on the bill itself.

Your appraised value (sometimes called market value) is BCAD's estimate of what your home would sell for. Your assessed value (taxable value) is the number your taxes are actually calculated on — and for a home with a homestead exemption, the two can be very different.

Texas Tax Code §23.23 caps the annual increase in a homestead's assessed value at 10% per year, no matter how much the market value rises. If your home's market value jumped 18% in a strong year, your taxable value rose at most 10%. Over several strong years, the gap between the two numbers can grow to tens of thousands of dollars. When you see both figures on your notice, that gap is the cap doing its work — it isn't an error.

One caution for owners of higher-value homes: the cap limits your taxable value's growth rate, not your bill. Rates and other factors still move the final number.

The Homestead Exemption — And What Changed in 2025

Texas voters approved significant changes in November 2025, so figures you remember from a few years ago are out of date.

The school district homestead exemption is now $140,000, raised from $100,000 by Proposition 13. If your home's appraised value is $600,000, your school taxes — typically the largest line on the bill — are calculated as if the home were worth $460,000, before any other reductions.

Homeowners 65 or older, or those with a qualifying disability, receive an additional $60,000 school district exemption on top of that, for a total of $200,000 — along with a ceiling that limits their school taxes going forward.

Local exemptions stack on top. The City of San Antonio, Bexar County, and University Health each offer a 20% exemption on appraised value for homesteads. These apply to their own lines on the bill, not the school line, but together they matter.

The homestead exemption requires a one-time filing with BCAD — it does not transfer automatically when you buy a home, and it is not applied automatically when you close. The standard deadline is April 30 of the tax year, and Texas Tax Code §11.431 allows late applications for up to two years back — which means some owners are owed refunds they haven't claimed.

Why the Bill Has So Many Lines

A Bexar County tax bill isn't one tax — it's several, collected together. Depending on where you live, you'll see line items for your school district, the city, Bexar County, University Health, Alamo Colleges, the San Antonio River Authority, and flood control. Each entity sets its own rate, and each applies its own exemptions. The school district line is almost always the largest, which is why the $140,000 exemption is the one that moves the total most.

When Are Bexar County Property Taxes Due? The Calendar That Matters

The property tax year runs on a rhythm, and October is the end of it — not the beginning.

January 1 — BCAD values your property as of this date.

April — Appraisal notices mail out. This is the number to scrutinize.

May 15 — The protest deadline, or 30 days after your notice was mailed, whichever is later.

Late summer and fall — Taxing units adopt their rates for the year.

October — Bills mail out.

January 31 — Payment deadline. On February 1, unpaid balances become delinquent, and penalty and interest begin accruing — starting at a combined 7% and climbing from there.

The single most important takeaway: by the time the bill arrives in October, the value behind it was set months earlier. If the number seems wrong, the time to act was April and May — and the time to prepare for next year is when the next notice arrives.

For those who prefer to spread payments out, the Tax Assessor-Collector offers half-payment and installment options, and qualifying homeowners — including those 65 and older — have additional payment plans and deferral rights worth asking about directly.

What People Get Wrong

Treating the October bill as negotiable. It isn't. The protest window closed in the spring.

Assuming the previous owner's exemptions carry over. They don't. New owners must file their own homestead application, and the difference between an exempted and unexempted bill on the same house can be substantial.

Never filing at all. The homestead exemption is free, it's a one-time filing, and the two-year lookback means even owners who missed it may still recover overpaid taxes.

Reading the appraised value as the taxable value. On a capped homestead, they diverge — and understanding which number drives the bill prevents both false alarm and false comfort.

Honest Caveats

Everything above describes the general structure, not your specific bill. Exemption combinations differ by property and owner; school district rates vary meaningfully across Bexar County; and rates change every year, so the same value can produce a different bill. Just as importantly, this article covers Bexar County only. Much of the Hill Country luxury market — Cordillera Ranch and other Boerne-area communities among them — sits in Kendall County or beyond, with a different appraisal district, different local exemptions, and its own calendar. If you own or are buying outside Bexar County, verify everything with the appraisal district that actually covers the property.

This article is provided for general informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, tax, or investment advice. Exemption amounts, tax rates, deadlines, and procedures change; verify all figures with the Bexar Appraisal District, the Bexar County Tax Assessor-Collector, and the Texas Comptroller, and consult a qualified tax professional regarding your specific situation. All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Equal Housing Opportunity.