Shelby County property taxEstimate your bill and protest your appraisal.

Your bill starts from the value Shelby County’s appraisal district puts on your home. Below are the 2025 rates for every unit that taxes Shelby County homes, a worked example, and the 2027 protest dates. Then put in your own numbers.

Estimate My Tax

Opens the calculator set to Shelby County.

Rates
2025
School districts
7
Cities
4
Special districts
0
Protest deadline
May 17, 2027

2025 tax rates, Shelby County

Per $100 of taxable value

Part 1 Units that tax every home in the county

  1. 01Shelby County$0.6513

Part 2 The largest school district

  1. 02Center ISD$1.0450

The district that covers the most taxable value in Shelby County. 6 other districts tax part of the county; they're listed below.

Part 3 Example: a $300,000 homestead in Center ISD, outside city limits

UnitTaxableTax
Shelby County$300,000$1,954
Center ISD$160,000$1,672

Estimated yearly tax

$3,626

Each $10,000 cut from this appraisal saves about $170 a year.

An example value, not a typical Shelby County home. The school line subtracts the $140,000 state homestead exemption. It leaves out city and special district taxes and any local-option exemptions the county or school district offers, so your bill can differ.

Estimate My Tax

Source Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts, Tax Rates and Levies (https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/rates/). Adopted 2025 rates.

Checking Shelby County…

Tax Code 41.44

Protesting in Shelby County.

State law sets the protest rules, so they’re the same in Shelby County as in every Texas county. You file with the appraisal district, not the county.

  1. 01Apr 2027

    Your notice arrives

    It lists a market value and an appraised value. You’re taxed on the appraised value, less your exemptions.

  2. 02May 17, 2027

    Protest deadline

    File Form 50-132, the Notice of Protest, by May 15 or within 30 days after your notice was delivered, whichever is later. May 15 is a Saturday in 2027, so the deadline moves to Monday, May 17. Many districts take protests online.

  3. 03May to Jul

    Informal meeting

    Most districts offer a meeting with a staff appraiser before the hearing, and many protests settle there. Take an offer only if it matches your evidence.

  4. 04Summer

    Review board hearing

    If the meeting doesn’t settle it, the appraisal review board, a panel of local citizens, hears both sides and rules.

Tax Code 41.43(b)(3)

Equal appraisal

You can protest that your home is appraised unequally. The board has to rule for you unless the district shows your appraised value is at or below the median of a reasonable number of comparable homes, adjusted for their differences. Every home’s appraised value is public, so you can build this case without sale prices.

Tax Code 23.23

The 10% homestead cap

Once your home has a homestead exemption, its appraised value can’t rise more than 10% a year, plus the value of new improvements. The market value on your notice can rise faster. Check that the appraised value respects the cap.

Where you file

Shelby County appraisal district.

Every Texas county is served by an appraisal district, which sets values. The taxing units set the rates. Your notice, the protest form, and the hearing all go through the district.

Office
724 Shelbyville St., Center, TX 75935-3736

Source Texas Comptroller, county directory, listing updated July 8, 2024. Confirm the details with the district before you file.

Every school district and city.

Which ones tax your home depends on where it sits. Your notice lists them. Rates are 2025, per $100 of taxable value.

School districts
DistrictRate
Center ISD$1.0450
Excelsior ISD$0.7575
Joaquin ISD$1.0386
San Augustine ISD$1.1289
Shelbyville ISD$0.6683
Tenaha ISD$0.83281
Timpson ISD$0.9527
Cities
CityRate
Center$0.590885
Joaquin$0.3183
Tenaha$0.1953
Timpson$0.3587