“Affordability” is the Democrats’ battle cry to win elections these days. But Republicans are ready to flip the script to woo homeowners, who make up the majority (65%) of American households.
Across the nation, these homeowners are angry and ready to fight against soaring property taxes. Their homes have appreciated, but they don’t have more cash in their pockets to pay the rising taxes that come with rising home values.
A property tax revolt, with silver-haired payers leading the charge, is likely to shape the political map for November 2026.
Steve Moore, cofounder of the Committee to Unleash Prosperity, predicts fierce battles in state capitols, where teachers’ unions and other special interests will try to stop the tax relief movement, scaremongering about damaging cuts to school budgets and potholes in the streets.
These interests favor any state law that forces towns to reassess homes periodically because it leads to more local revenue. More money is taken out of homeowners’ pockets to fill public workers’ paychecks.
The fights are already happening, and evidence so far shows that property tax relief is a winner. It’s dominating in Texas and Florida, underway in Wyoming and Wisconsin, and there is even some hope that it will catch fire in tax-hell New York state and neighboring, tax-beleaguered Connecticut.
In the blue city of Austin, Texas, 63% of voters rejected a proposal last month put forward by the Democratic mayor and city council to increase property taxes. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott is pushing a 3% annual statewide cap on how fast a home’s assessment rises. He’s styling himself as the protector of homeownership. Smart politics.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is making property tax reform his issue, too, even floating eliminating property taxes entirely and replacing them with sales taxes, a state fund to help the poorest counties, and – imagine this – frugality.
Florida epitomizes the problem of soaring property values. One Panama City retiree complains that his tiny two-bedroom, two-bath home just got slapped with $4,200 in property taxes, even though his income is only $32,000.
Florida already has a sensible law, the Save Our Homes Act, that limits annual assessment increases to 3% or inflation, whichever is lower. But when real estate turns over, the limit doesn’t apply. In some counties, home values have tripled, and the residents are panicking.
Property tax reform is the biggest issue being fought out in the state legislature, and ultimately, Florida voters will have a chance to vote on one or even several ballot propositions to curb or eliminate property taxes.
Here’s the irony: Floridians are living in a tax paradise compared to what New Yorkers endure. New Yorkers cough up the most state and local taxes per capita of anyone in the nation, according to the Tax Foundation. Of the seven counties in the nation with the highest property taxes, six are in New York State: Westchester, Suffolk, Rockland, Putnam, Nassau, and Manhattan.
Of the nation’s metropolitan areas, economically depressed Syracuse has the highest property tax rate, according to the American City Business Journals’ report, taxing $28.82 per $1,000 worth of property. The city spends too much, says Robert Ward of the Business Council Policy Institute.
Truth is, the situation would be even worse today if the ignominious former Gov. Andrew Cuomo had not pushed through an important reform in 2010 to cap annual increases in local levies to the lesser of 2% or the rate of inflation. But as homes are bought and sold, the cap is lifted, and property taxes soar.
Bruce Blakeman, who is seeking the Republican nomination for governor in 2026, will likely make property relief a key issue. As county executive in Nassau, where real estate is pricey, Blakeman actually froze assessments for four consecutive years to avert tax increases. That is in a county that is heavily Democratic. Blakeman sees the explosive political potential of the issue. Stay tuned.
Next door in Connecticut, home prices have risen 60% over the last five years, and owners are nearing desperation. Their property taxes reflect skyrocketing home values, when taxes should be going up only modestly to reflect inflationary increases in the cost of towns’ services and schools.
Connecticut needs a cap on property tax hikes, limiting them to the rate of inflation. But most of the voices in the state capitol push for more revenue to keep the government gravy train running. Homeowners be damned.
With outrage rising, all that could change. Homeownership is the American dream. Property taxes threaten it. Voters of all persuasions are feeling the pain, setting in motion a demand for tax fairness that could make 2026 an upset election season.
Betsy McCaughey is a former Lt. Governor of New York State and Chairman & Founder of the Committee to Reduce Infection Deaths. Follow her on Twitter @Betsy_McCaughey.
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The confiscatory Property tax rate increases in leftist run states, county’s, and cities must be stopped.
Either we The People vote these statist’s out or GO GALT.
IF YOU STOP AND THINK FOR A MOMENT, UNDER PRESENT PROPERTY TAX LAWS NO ONE OWNES THEIR PROPERTY, HOMES. THE GOVERNMENT OWNS EVERYTHING!
HOW IN HELL DID THIS HAPPEN IN AMERICA?
TEACHERS UNIONS (A FEW UNSCRUPULOUS INDIVIDUALS) MANAGED TO CON PROPERTY OWNERS INTO THINKING SCHOOLS NEEDED LOTS MORE OF OUR MONEY. IN 1979 JIMMY CARTER GAVE THE TEACHER UNIONS THE GREEN LIGHT BY SIGNING THE BILL CREATING THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION: IT ONLY TOOK THEM 47 YEARS TO DESTROY OUR PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM
OUR PUBLIC SCHOOL SYSTEM S TURNING OUT A SUB PAR PRODUCT (STUDENTS).
I feel lucky that, even living in a high tax blue state, my property taxes are reasonable. There is a tax break here if we own over 20 acres, also if it’s classified as timber land, both of which apply. I don’t know how long that will last, most legislators can’t spend our money fast enough (although I don’t see visible improvement anywhere). As long as there are property taxes, we never really own our home.
Love the “Silver Haired Payers” reference. We, the older property owners who mostly own mortgage-free homes are getting hammered by soaring property taxes. The monthly amount of these taxes exceed the monthly mortgage payments most of us paid for our first or second homes. And the majority of us are on fixed incomes that do not rise as fast as the property taxes do. So we are in a Catch-22 situation.
Time for American taxpayers to WAKEUP, and hold the Marxist Democrats accountable for these high costs in blue states. Our taxes are funding all their PROGRESSIVE programs for illegals and fellow corrupt Marxist Democrats.
Time to teach N.J. Massachusetts, CT, CA. VT, Maine, etc
Property taxes are precisely the epitome of what our founding fathers loathed. However; since we’re a post constitutional America, it’s exactly what the US government desires. Don’t pay the extortionists and see who takes your home. Oh, and the govt enforcement will be there to cart you away, but keep waving those illegal (per the flag code) bastardized US flags with the blue line and understand that they’re just doing their jobs, right? Yeah, whatever
What never seems to be mentioned is the fact that tenants also pay property taxes. Property taxes are part of the cost of doing business and are incorporated into the rental cost. Everyone is affected by property taxes. When property taxes are reduced or eliminated, rental prices will go down.
The teacher’s union should keep quiet as they have not delivered for what they are being paid for, educating our children. There are a lot of good teachers in the system, but it gets in their way many times. In addition, an inordinate amount of money goes for the bloated, dysfunctional, administrative department. Money spent on “consultants”, why? You were hired to figure out what should be done to make the place run efficiently. Deferred maintenance abounds, why? No wonder private and parochial schools are eating their lunch, and they don’t put up with social nonsense. Charter schools are a good idea, but fought against by the teacher’s union, because most of them excel. There was an experiment done in a New York school district where in the same building, they physically split the teaching. One half was public grades, and the other half were charter school grades. Who do you think excelled beyond all expectations? rest my case.
If your home is paid off, you shouldn’t have to pay taxes on it…you own it
We need transparency and accountability – What is this money being spent on? If you have no state tax the money has to come from somewhere. Sales tax is probably the largest source of revenue and we are still spending despite inflation. Plus we have a ton of temporary taxes for special projects that seem to get increased annually and never go away. Property taxes are the great scam. We have been suckered in because we all want to see our property increase in value but that increase is tied directly to the rise in property taxes. Unfortunately this is a double edge sword. As housing cost gets unaffordable the property taxes rise proportionally. It’s a lose/lose situation.
Taxes are getting out of control here in Kansas as well. Up 13% this year alone. Up over 30% since 2018
Those who choose to live in a blue state should move since the majority of people there vote for higher taxes. Hard to escape for some but that’s the only way to find lower taxes.
Property taxes and the people that pay them is the one infringement that never seems to get any relief. Property values are what the government says it is but even worse, government coluded special interests using carefully crafted wording can add a “free for all” tax liability exclusively only for homeowners to foot the bill. My tax burden always increases without fail due to government reassessment, it’s a built-in government raise with no limit. I don’t actually own my home, I lease it from the county, complete with penalties, interest and or confiscation. Eliminating this revenue stream will be next to impossible and bureaucrats who actually run tax collection would sell out their own mothers to keep the money flowing out of your wallet to theirs.
Politicians of both parties are guilty of being just plain publc parasites, always gathering behind closed doors to discover more ways to fleece the people and fund the projects most likely to attract voters to carry them through the next election. The worst part of that enormously lucrative game is that property owners do not band together to oppose the leeches.
The proposals espoused mirror California’s Proposition 13, which capped property tax assessments to the lesser of FMV or 2%. The negatives are that existing homeowners are locked into their homes as a new purchase, even a downsize, would dramatically increase their property tax and new purchasers pay an exhorbitant amount of property taxes compared to the “grandfathered” property owners. Two solutions are to cap property tax revenue expenditures at 2% or the rate of increase in the median sales price, whichever is lower, and the property tax assessment stays with the property when it is acquired by a new buyer.
how can you not include California in this? Rate of increase controlled but the add ons for bond measures etc. bring the tax bill to the highest.
I don’t get it…I have to live with what I make and change my budget or needs in order to make ends meet. Why does the government, local, county, state, get to go into my pocket and take more, while I have to make due with less. Why can’t they redo their budget and learn to live with it?
I’ve lived in Oregon all my life. The blue wave came north from California decades ago and shows NO sign of abating. Property taxes are my largest expense at $1000 per month! Oregon, like the federal government has a SPENDING problem, NOT a revenue problem. My wife and I know lots of folks escaping to other states and while taxes alone is/are not a reason to make a major life decision, they are moving to the top of the list!
Property taxes and school taxes in Upstate Northern NY are outrageous, I can’t even afford to pay them in one lump sum any more. Vote for Elise Stefanik for Governor of NY on November 3, 2026, our lives depend on it.