Two numbers: assessed value and market value
Oregon property tax runs on assessed value, not market value, and since Measure 50 (1997) the two have drifted far apart:
- Each property has a maximum assessed value that can grow no more than 3% a year (except for new construction or major improvements).
- Your assessed value is the lower of that maximum and the real market value.
- Home values have grown much faster than 3% for decades, so statewide, assessed value is only about 54% of market value.
That's why Oregon's rates per $1,000 look high. The 2025-26 statewide average was $17.52 per $1,000 of assessed value, but only $9.40 per $1,000 of market value, or 0.94%.
Measure 5 adds a second limit: taxes other than bonds can't exceed $5 per $1,000 of market value for schools and $10 for other governments. When a property would go over, its taxes are "compressed" down to the limit, starting with local option levies. Statewide, compression cut taxes by $215 million in 2025-26, almost all of it in cities.
2025-26 tax rates by city
Consolidated rates per $1,000 of assessed value for the code area with the most value in each city, before compression, plus the city's ratio of assessed to market value and the resulting rate on market value.
| City | County | Rate per $1,000 AV | AV as share of market value | Rate per $1,000 market value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Portland | Multnomah | 26.94 | 50% | about 13.1 |
| Beaverton | Washington | 21.97 | 55% | 12.2 |
| Salem | Marion | 20.54 | 56% | 11.5 |
| Gresham | Multnomah | 20.35 | 56% | 11.1 |
| Oregon City | Clackamas | 20.03 | 53% | |
| Albany | Linn | 19.90 | 54% | 10.6 |
| Eugene | Lane | 19.48 | 50% | 9.5 |
| Corvallis | Benton | 19.20 | 53% | 10.1 |
| Lake Oswego | Clackamas | 19.20 | 54% | |
| Tigard | Washington | 18.69 | 57% | 10.6 |
| Springfield | Lane | 18.34 | 51% | 9.4 |
| Keizer | Marion | 16.92 | 55% | 9.3 |
| Bend | Deschutes | 16.90 | 41% | about 7.0 |
| Hillsboro | Washington | 16.41 | 67% | 11.1 |
| Medford | Jackson | 14.81 | 60% | 8.9 |
| Grants Pass | Josephine | 13.37 | 65% | 8.6 |
The market value column is our calculation from Department of Revenue data across each city's code areas, before compression. Portland's rate breaks down as 4.96 for Multnomah County, 9.16 for the city, 10.84 for schools and 1.98 for other districts.
Bend is the clearest example of the gap. Its rate of $16.90 per $1,000 of assessed value is about average, but because Bend's values have climbed so much faster than the 3% cap, homes there are assessed at only about 41% of market value. A $700,000 Bend home might pay about $4,870 a year, roughly 0.70%. A $500,000 Portland home pays about $6,700, roughly 1.34%.
Two neighbors can pay very different taxes on similar houses depending on when they were built: new homes enter the rolls at the county's current ratio of assessed to market value, not at the old Measure 50 base.
County averages
| County | Per $1,000 assessed value | Per $1,000 market value |
|---|---|---|
| Multnomah | $23.63 | $12.03 |
| Washington | $18.04 | $10.54 |
| Clackamas | $17.87 | $9.99 |
| Benton | $17.81 | $9.36 |
| Marion | $17.38 | $9.54 |
| Linn | $17.04 | $9.32 |
| Deschutes | $16.80 | $6.98 |
| Lane | $16.45 | $8.44 |
| Jackson | $14.08 | $8.43 |
| Josephine | $10.13 | $6.35 |
| Statewide | $17.52 | $9.40 |
Deadlines, discounts and appeals
- Bills go out by October 25. Pay by November 15: the full amount gets a 3% discount, two-thirds gets 2%, or pay in thirds on November 15, February 15 and May 15.
- Appeals: petition the county Property Value Appeals Board (formerly called the Board of Property Tax Appeals) from when the statement arrives through December 31. Further appeals go to the Oregon Tax Court. Because of Measure 50, an appeal mainly helps if your market value has fallen below your assessed value or there's an error. See our appeal guide.
- Senior and disabled deferral: homeowners 62 and older (or disabled) with household income up to $70,000 can have the state pay their property taxes, repaid with 6% simple interest when the home is sold. Apply to the county assessor by April 15. See deferral programs.
Where these numbers come from
Rates, values and statewide figures are from the Oregon Department of Revenue's Oregon Property Tax Statistics, FY 2025-26 report and its code area supplement. The market value ratios and per-city effective rates are our calculations from that data. Deadlines and the deferral program are from the same report and the Department of Revenue's deferral page. For ZIP-level data, start at our Oregon page.