Oregon property tax: Measure 50, rates and who gets relief

How is the tax calculated?

Oregon keeps three values for each property:

• Real market value (RMV): the county’s estimate of what the property would sell for.
• Maximum assessed value (MAV): a figure that, after the first year, grows by 3%. The statute says it equals 103% of the prior year’s assessed value or 100% of the prior year’s maximum, whichever is greater (ORS 308.146(1)).
• Assessed value (AV): the lesser of MAV and RMV (ORS 308.146(2)). This is the value that gets taxed.

Your levy code area sets the rate per $1,000 of AV. It adds up the rates of every district that covers your address: the city, county, schools, community college, fire, Metro, and so on.

Multnomah County explains that two calculations are made and your bill is always the lower of them. One multiplies AV by the code area rate and adds special assessments. The other multiplies RMV by the Measure 5 limits, which are $5 per $1,000 for education taxes and $10 per $1,000 for general government taxes (Art. XI, § 11b), then adds the taxes that fall outside those limits, such as bond levies. When the Measure 5 limit produces the lower figure, the county calls it compression.

Does the 3% cap protect a new buyer?

Mostly, and it goes with the property, not the owner. A sale is not among the events in ORS 308.146(3) that change the maximum assessed value. Those events are:

• new property or new improvements
• a partition or subdivision
• rezoning with a use that matches it
• omitted property first taken into account
• loss of an exemption or special assessment
• a lot line adjustment

Even so, the county warns that your tax is not limited to 3%. The 3% limit applies only to MAV. Your bill can rise faster if the rate for your code area rises, if you lose compression savings, or if an exception event occurs.

What exemptions and relief exist?

The Oregon Department of Revenue says: “At present Oregon has no statewide general homestead exemption or exemptions based solely on age and/or income.” Relief is narrower.

Deferral claims are filed with the county assessor after January 1 and on or before April 15 before the tax year (ORS 311.672). A homestead must also have a real market value below the greater of $250,000, indexed since 2022, or a multiple of the county median (ORS 311.670). Veterans file by April 1 unless an earlier claim already covers them (ORS 307.260). These rules are summaries; confirm eligibility with the county or the Department of Revenue.

When are the taxes due?

If the total tax is under $40, installments are not allowed (ORS 311.505(6)).

How do I contest my value?

You petition the county’s property value appeals board. A petition may be filed after the tax statements are mailed and by December 31 of that year (ORS 309.100). The board meets from the first Monday in February and must finish by April 15 (ORS 309.026). It can hear petitions on the January 1 assessed value or real market value. Relatives, attorneys, licensed brokers and appraisers may sign for an owner (ORS 309.100(4)).

Example: a Portland home in 2025-26

This is an example, not a quote. Assume a home with a $500,000 real market value and a $300,000 assessed value in Multnomah County levy code area 001 (City of Portland and Portland Public Schools). County rates are for 2025-26, the most recent sheet the county has published. Your levy code area is on your tax bill.

At the Measure 5 limits, education tax could not exceed $2,500 (5 × $500) and general government tax could not exceed $5,000 (10 × $500). Both lines are below the limits, so there is no compression. The total is 1.62% of the market value. Paying in full by November 15 saves 3%, or $242.28. Rates change every year and differ by address. The home’s own AV may be far from this example.

For the closing side, see closing costs in Oregon. For city detail, see Portland. Lenders often collect the tax monthly through an escrow account.