Texas · Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX metro area

Buying a home in The Woodlands, Texas

In The Woodlands, the median value of owner-occupied homes is $511,700, Montgomery County's effective property tax rate is 1.52%, a purchase mortgage carried a median $8,102 in total loan costs in 2025, and median gross rent is $1,822 a month.

Data as of : Census ACS 2020-2024, Census Vintage 2024, HMDA 2025, HUD FY 2027. Sources

The Woodlands home costs, fact by fact

About The Woodlands

In Montgomery County, the effective property tax rate (median tax as a share of home value) is 1.52%, and HUD's Fair Market Rent for a two-bedroom is $1,497. The Woodlands, Texas, has a population of 121,002, and its median value of owner-occupied homes, estimated by owners rather than a sale price, is $511,700.

Reading the The Woodlands figures

Owners in The Woodlands estimate their homes at $511,700, far above the Texas figure of $318,100. Frisco carries $642,100 and Austin $555,300, so only those cities sit higher among the covered places named here. McKinney reports $471,800. Plano follows with $465,900, and Allen with $464,100. That makes the city part of a cluster of high-value places, well beyond Dallas, whose owners say $320,700. Treat all of these as owners' opinions of value, not sale prices.

The city spans two counties, and the tax figures below come from Montgomery County. There the effective rate is 1.52%, and the median bill reaches $5,268 a year. County homes are valued at $346,200, a level far under what The Woodlands owners report, which suggests that a house in the city is likely to cost more to hold than the county reference implies. A buyer should price the bill from the home's own value rather than from the county median.

Renters see a different picture. The census rent is $1,822 a month, a little under Plano's $1,841 and Richardson's $1,857. Allen is higher, at $1,932. Austin comes in lower, at $1,729, and League City lower still, at $1,684. For the Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land area, HUD lists $1,497 for the smaller bedroom count and $2,017 for the larger, so the census rent falls between those entries. The HUD figure guides assistance and is not a market median.

Ownership reaches 72.5% of households. League City reports 74.7%, while Allen shows 69.4% and McKinney 63.8%. Austin shows 43.4% and Dallas 42.4%. In practical terms, this is a place where owners clearly outnumber renters, and the rental stock is a smaller part of the picture than in the largest cities named above.

A further angle is the gap between the city and its county. Montgomery County homes are valued at $346,200, while Frisco owners report $642,100, so The Woodlands is nearer to the top of the covered range than to its own county. County statistics describe the broader area, and the city's own $511,700 is the better guide to what a purchase might involve. Owners' estimates still need checking against real listings and appraisals.

For the loan, lenders in Montgomery County made 12,679 loans in 2025. Their median cost was $8,102, and the middle of the field paid between $5,568 and $11,705. That range is wide enough that a quote from a different lender can change the closing cost noticeably.

Scale matters too. The metro area, ranked 5th nationally, counts 7,796,182 people, and The Woodlands itself has 121,002.

Calculate for Texas

If you buy

Texas state transfer tax

Texas has no real estate transfer tax. Change the price: the amount is recalculated instantly.

Price$318,100
State transfer tax$0
Share of the price—

Default price: the Texas median value of owner-occupied homes, $318,100 (Census ACS 2025). Rule: No transfer tax exists. Buyers pay county recording fees and a state-set title insurance premium. Who pays: No transfer tax to assign. Recording fees and the title insurance premium appear on the closing statement. Not included: county and city transfer taxes, recording fees, title insurance and lender charges. Texas transfer tax guide · all 50 states.

If you sell

Capital gain and the federal tax on it

Same federal rule in every state: Section 121 of the Internal Revenue Code excludes up to $250,000 of gain on a main home ($500,000 for a married couple filing jointly).

Capital gain$350,000
Section 121 exclusion$250,000 (limit $250,000)
Taxable gain$100,000
Type of gainLong-term (owned over 1 year), 15% chosen
Federal tax on the gain$15,000

Section 121 excludes $250,000; the rest is taxable.

Gain = sale price minus your adjusted basis (purchase price, buying costs and improvements); selling expenses reduce it (IRS Publication 523). Long-term rates for sales in 2026, by taxable income including the gain (IRS Rev. Proc. 2025-32, section 4.03): 0% up to $49,450 single or $98,900 married filing jointly, 15% up to $545,500 single or $613,700 jointly, 20% above. Not included: Texas state income tax on the gain (not computed), the net investment income tax, depreciation recapture on a rental or home office, and the reduced exclusion for an early sale. Agent commissions are negotiated and never set by law. Capital gains on a home sale.

Questions about buying a home in The Woodlands

How much is property tax in The Woodlands?

Homeowners in Montgomery County pay a median $5,268 a year in property tax, 1.52% of the county median home value of $346,200 (Census ACS 2020-2024). Your bill depends on your assessed value and local rates.

What are closing costs on a mortgage in The Woodlands?

Home-purchase mortgages in Montgomery County carried median total loan costs of $8,102 in 2025; half of the 12,679 loans fell between $5,568 and $11,705 (HMDA). Total loan costs are the lender and settlement-service charges of the Closing Disclosure; transfer taxes and prepaid items come on top.

Is there a transfer tax when you buy a home in The Woodlands?

Texas has no real estate transfer tax. Article VIII, Section 29 of the Texas Constitution, added November 3, 2015, says no law enacted after January 1, 2016 may impose a transfer tax on a transaction that conveys fee simple title to real property.

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in The Woodlands?

It depends on your mortgage rate, down payment and how long you stay. As a benchmark, the median value of owner-occupied homes in The Woodlands ($511,700) equals 23.4 years of the median gross rent ($1,822 a month), both from Census ACS 2020-2024.

What natural hazards affect home insurance in The Woodlands?

Across Texas, the main hazards for home insurance are flood, tornado, wind and hail, and the insurer of last resort is Texas FAIR Plan Association (TFPA). Texas gets more tornadoes than any other state, according to the Texas Department of Insurance; on the coast, windstorm coverage comes from a separate policy, often from TWIA, in 14 coastal counties plus part of Harris County.

Run your own numbers: rent vs buy calculator · closing costs calculator.

Texas rules that apply in The Woodlands

Other large cities in Texas

Who licenses each trade in Texas · All covered cities

Sources

Texas · All states · Federal guides