The Woodlands Property Tax Rate 2026: Township vs. MUD Bills

Woodlands Water mails municipal utility district tax statements in October. They are due when they arrive, and penalty and interest start on February 1. This bill doesn't come with your Montgomery County statement. If you pay through a third-party service or your bank's bill-pay, you have to add the MUD tax bill as a separate payee, mailed to PO Box 7829, The Woodlands, TX 77387-7829. Someone who bought this year and only watches the county bill can find a penalty notice in February for a tax they never knew they owed.

That separate envelope is also the most useful number for anyone comparing homes across The Woodlands right now. It matters more than the Township rate that made the news last month.

The cut that made the headlines

On September 3, 2026, The Woodlands Township board adopted a 2026 property tax rate of $0.1694 per $100 of taxable value. Last year's rate was $0.1714. The debt service piece, $0.0100, passed unanimously. The maintenance and operations piece, $0.1594, passed 6 to 1, with Director Shelley Sekula-Gibbs voting no.

According to the Township's own budget presentation, the new rate means $10 less per year on a $500,000 taxable home than the old rate would have charged.

For the typical homestead, the Township line still goes up. Community Impact reported figures from the Township's taxpayer impact statement. Under the rate adopted in 2025 for the FY2026 budget, the median homestead taxable value was $485,695 and the Township tax on it was $832.48. For the FY2027 budget, the statement uses a median homestead taxable value of $509,335. That matches the median taxable homestead value on the Montgomery Central Appraisal District's 2026 roll for the Township. At the adopted $0.1694 rate, that works out to about $863, roughly $30 more than last year. Taxable values rose about 4.87%, and the rate fell about 1.17%. The larger number wins.

Why the Township line is so small to begin with

The Township's rate is low because property tax isn't its main source of money. For the 2027 budget, the Township projected $85.28 million in sales and use tax, which is 46% of revenue. That figure is $3.684 million higher than the 2026 projection. Property tax was projected at $52.27 million, or 29%. Because shoppers and diners pay so much of the Township's costs, homeowners carry less of them.

The budget wasn't trimmed to pay for the cut, either. Fire Department spending rose $1.280 million to $37.58 million, and law enforcement spending rose $4.397 million. In May, Township President and CEO Monique Sharp described the choice the board was weighing:

"You can offer tax relief through an exemption, or you can offer it by looking at the tax rate, which impacts all taxpayers."

The board chose the rate. Sharp also said the convention center bonds will be paid off in September 2027, which frees up $2.8 million in revenue. That will be next year's budget conversation.

One house, several taxable values

Before comparing the lines on a bill, you need to know that each taxing unit takes its own exemption off the same house. The Montgomery County Tax Office's 2026 schedule lists them.

Conroe ISD adopted its rate on August 18, 2026, $0.0025 lower than its prior $0.9496. Lone Star College approved its rate on October 1, 2026.

Here is a homestead with a $500,000 value, before appraisal caps, age-based exemptions or any other adjustments:

1. Conroe ISD taxes it as a $360,000 home.
2. Montgomery County and the hospital district tax it as a $400,000 home.
3. Lone Star College taxes it as a $460,000 home.
4. The Township taxes it as a $485,000 home.

The Texas Comptroller explains that the $140,000 exemption applies to school district taxes. It doesn't carry over to the other lines. These are the same for every Montgomery County address in The Woodlands with the same school district. When two homes at the same price differ, the MUD is what differs.

Where your address starts to matter

Woodlands Water collects taxes for ten Montgomery County MUDs. Each has its own board and its own rate. Its published 2026 rates:

From MUD 36 to MUD 39, the rate gap is about $0.198 per $100. That is roughly 100 times the Township's two-tenths-of-a-cent cut. On a $500,000 value, before any MUD exemptions, the gap comes to about $990 a year. MUD 39's rate alone is higher than the Township's whole rate.

No district on that list raised its rate for 2026. MUD 39 held at $0.24, and the other eight went down. MUD 60 had the biggest drop, from $0.124965 to $0.11735. The Township's cut got the coverage. The MUD reductions arrive in the October envelope with no public hearing that most people follow.

Woodlands Water also lists a Metro district. Its published figures don't match the signed 2025 levy order we reviewed, so anyone looking at a home in that district should confirm the rate directly before relying on it.

Finding the MUD for a specific house

Village names won't tell you the MUD. One map shows MUD 47 covering parts of northwest Alden Bridge and southeast Cochran's Crossing, which means one village can sit in two districts. Woodlands Water has an address-based MUD locator. It warns that its boundaries are approximate, so for any home under contract, confirm the district with the title company or the seller's last MUD statement.

Harris County MUDs 386 and 387 aren't managed by Woodlands Water. Homes on the Harris County side, including Creekside Park, have a different set of taxing units. This comparison doesn't apply to them.

The MUD structure itself may change. A July 2026 opinion column in Woodlands Online described 2026 studies of MUD consolidation, which estimated about $100,000 a year in savings for MUDs 1 and 6. It also reported that the MUD 1 board voted in June against looking at consolidation any further. For now, the ten districts and ten rates remain.

The water bill is a separate question

The MUD tax is different from your monthly water and sewer bill. As of February 1, 2026, the SJRA surface water conversion charge dropped from $2.92 to $2.81 per 1,000 gallons. A new $0.11 infrastructure renewal fee offset it exactly, so the net bill didn't change. Woodlands Water's regional comparison, effective March 1, 2026, puts the average monthly water and sewer cost in its service area at $103, based on 10,000 gallons of water and 6,000 gallons of sewer.

Questions buyers ask about this

Does my mortgage escrow cover the MUD bill? Ask your lender to confirm the MUD is on the escrow analysis. Woodlands Water collects this tax and mails its own statement, separate from the Montgomery County bill.

When does a late MUD payment start costing money? Penalty and interest begin February 1. Woodlands Water posts payments by postmark, so a payment mailed in late January needs a postmark no later than January 31.

Did the Township change its homestead exemption this year? Our research found no adopted change. Community Impact reports that the Township's existing exemptions are a 3% homestead exemption and $50,000 for homeowners 65 and older. The Township projected its exemptions would reduce 2027 taxable values by $1.1 billion.

Where can I see every 2026 rate in one place? The Montgomery County Tax Office publishes a 2026 rate and exemption schedule. The Woodlands MUD rates are on the Woodlands Water tax page.

This is general market information, not tax advice. For anything specific to your situation, check with a tax professional or the appraisal district.

If you're comparing two Woodlands homes at a similar price, we'll look up the MUD for each address and lay out every line of the projected tax bill side by side before you make an offer. Book a consultation with Beatriz Manchado, in English or Spanish, and let's find your next home with the full carrying cost in view.