The Potter County property tax rate for the 2025–2026 fiscal year is $0.59024 per $100 of assessed value, made up of $0.54946 for maintenance and operations and $0.04078 for debt service.1Potter County, Texas. FY25-26 Adopted Budget That number alone won’t tell you what you owe. Your bill stacks the county rate together with the city, school district, community college, and any special districts that cover your address, and for most Potter County homeowners the combined rate lands somewhere between roughly $2.10 and $2.65 per $100 of assessed value.
What Stacks on Top of the County Rate
Each taxing entity whose boundaries include your property adds its rate to your bill.2Potter County, Texas. Tax Rate Information For a home inside the Amarillo city limits and within the Amarillo ISD attendance zone, the main entities are:
- Potter County: $0.59024 per $1001Potter County, Texas. FY25-26 Adopted Budget
- City of Amarillo: $0.43070 per $1003City of Amarillo. Notice of Public Hearing on Tax Increase
- Amarillo College: $0.21994 per $100
- Amarillo ISD: rate varies by year, with separate maintenance-and-operations and debt service components
Homes outside the Amarillo city limits may fall within River Road ISD, Highland Park ISD, or Bushland ISD instead, each with its own rate.2Potter County, Texas. Tax Rate Information Some bills also include water conservation districts such as the High Plains Water District or Panhandle Groundwater District.
How the Bill Is Calculated
The Potter-Randall Appraisal District (PRAD) sets the market value of every property as of January 1 each year.4Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Valuing Property Any exemptions you qualify for come off that value to produce a taxable value. The math from there: divide the taxable value by 100, then multiply by the combined rate.
A home taxed on $200,000 at a combined rate of $2.40 owes $4,800 for the year. A $300,000 taxable value at the same rate owes $7,200. The formula never changes; the value and the combined rate do.
The 10 Percent Appraisal Cap
With a homestead exemption on your primary residence, the appraised value PRAD assigns cannot rise more than 10 percent per year over the prior year’s appraised value, no matter what the market does.4Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Valuing Property New improvements like an addition or a pool get assessed at full market value and added on top of the cap.
Non-homestead properties valued at $5,320,000 or less have a separate 20 percent annual cap.4Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Valuing Property Commercial property, rentals, and vacant land above that threshold have no cap.
Exemptions That Lower Your Bill
Exemptions cut the value that actually gets taxed, and they’re the most reliable way to shrink a Potter County tax bill.
General Residence Homestead
If you own and occupy your home as your primary residence, school districts must exempt $140,000 of appraised value from school taxes. On a $300,000 home, school taxes apply as though the home were worth $160,000. Cities and counties may layer optional exemptions on top.5Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Tax Exemptions
Over-65 and Disability
Homeowners who are 65 or older, or who have a qualifying disability, get an additional $60,000 school district exemption on top of the general homestead, for a total of $200,000 off the school-taxable value.6State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead
The bigger benefit is often the school district tax ceiling. Once you qualify, your school district taxes freeze at their current dollar amount. Rate hikes and value climbs don’t move them. The ceiling adjusts only if you add improvements. A surviving spouse keeps the exemption and the ceiling if they were at least 55 when the qualifying owner died.6State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.13 – Residence Homestead
Disabled Veterans
Veterans with a service-connected disability receive an exemption tied to their VA rating:7State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.22 – Disabled Veterans
- 10 to 29 percent: $5,000
- 30 to 49 percent: $7,500
- 50 to 69 percent: $10,000
- 70 percent or higher: $12,000
Veterans rated 100 percent disabled, or classified by the VA as individually unemployable, pay no property tax on their residence homestead at all. A surviving spouse who was married to the veteran at the time of death can keep that full exemption.8State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 11.131 – Residence Homestead of 100 Percent or Totally Disabled Veteran
Protesting Your Appraised Value
If PRAD’s value looks too high, you can protest, and a lower appraised value compounds across every entity on your bill. File a written notice of protest by May 15 or within 30 days of the date your notice of appraised value was mailed, whichever is later.9State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.44 – Notice of Protest You can file online through the PRAD portal, by mail, or in person at 5701 Hollywood Road in Amarillo.10Potter-Randall Appraisal District. PRAD Official Site
Most protests start with an informal meeting with a PRAD appraiser. Bring recent comparable sales from your neighborhood, photos of damage or deferred maintenance, and any repair estimates. The condition that matters is what existed on January 1, so damage that happened after that doesn’t count for the current year. If the informal meeting doesn’t resolve things, you get a formal hearing before the Appraisal Review Board, usually 15 to 20 minutes, and you can attend in person, by phone, or by written affidavit. Board decisions can be appealed through binding arbitration or district court.
Paying Your Taxes
Bills go out in October and are due by January 31.11Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Paying Your Taxes You can pay online through the county portal, by mail, or in person at the Potter County Tax Office. If your mortgage escrows for taxes, your lender remits the bill from the account you fund monthly.
Installment Plans
Homeowners who are 65 or older, disabled, or a disabled veteran with a homestead exemption can split the bill into four equal installments. Pay the first installment and submit a written request before the delinquency date. The remaining three are due before April 1, June 1, and August 1. Missing any installment triggers a 6 percent penalty plus 1 percent monthly interest on the unpaid amount.12Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Payment Options
Tax Deferral
Homeowners 65 or older or disabled can defer collection entirely by filing an affidavit with the chief appraiser at PRAD. While the deferral is in place, no taxing entity can sue to collect or seize the home. Taxes still accrue, and the deferred balance comes due 181 days after you stop owning or occupying the home as your primary residence.
What Late Payment Costs
Any tax unpaid on February 1 is delinquent.11Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Paying Your Taxes That day you owe a 6 percent penalty plus 1 percent interest. Penalty climbs 1 percent a month through June. On July 1 the penalty jumps to 12 percent regardless of month count, and attorney collection fees may attach.13State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 33.01 – Penalties and Interest Interest keeps running at 1 percent per month with no cap.
- February: 7 percent (6% penalty + 1% interest)
- March: 9 percent
- April: 11 percent
- May: 13 percent
- June: 15 percent
- July: 18 percent (penalty locks at 12%)
Each taxing entity also holds a lien on your property that attaches automatically on January 1, and courts can foreclose if the balance sits long enough.11Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Paying Your Taxes
Business Property Is Taxed Too
Property tax in Potter County isn’t limited to real estate. If you own a business, tangible assets used to produce income (furniture, equipment, inventory, vehicles) are also taxable, and you must file a rendition with PRAD by April 15 each year listing what you owned on January 1. Businesses with $20,000 or more in personal property must also include a good-faith estimate of market value or the original cost and acquisition date of each item. Late filing adds a penalty to the bill.