Texas Porch

Property Tax

Two offices handle your property tax bill in Marion County

The Marion Central Appraisal District sets your property value, while a separate Tax Office collects what you owe — two different offices with two different jobs.

Marion County Money & Taxes

In Marion County, two offices deal with your property taxes. The Marion Central Appraisal District (MCAD) in Jefferson decides what your property is worth. That value is used to calculate your tax bill. The Tax Assessor-Collector then bills you and collects the money. These are separate offices. If you think your value is too high, you protest at MCAD — not at the Tax Office.

If you live in your home as your primary residence, you can apply for a homestead exemption. This lowers the taxable value of your home and reduces your bill. The state requires school districts to give homeowners a $140,000 exemption on their home's value. You must apply with MCAD and attach a copy of your Texas driver's license showing the property address. The general deadline to apply is before May 1 each year, but check with MCAD for the current deadline. Marion County adopted a 2025 county tax rate of about $0.5358 per $100 of appraised value — but the total bill includes school district and other local rates too.

Source to confirm: Texas Comptroller — Marion County Directory

More Marion County notes

State Park

Caddo Lake State Park sits on a vast cypress swamp near Karnack

Caddo Lake State Park gives you access to a 26,810-acre lake full of cypress trees, more than 70 fish species, and CCC-built cabins from the 1930s.

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Public Hunting

Caddo Lake Wildlife Management Area allows public hunting with a permit

The Caddo Lake WMA covers about 8,124 acres in Marion and Harrison counties and is open to hunters who obtain the required permit from TPWD.

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Septic / OSSF

Most rural land in Marion County relies on a septic system

Outside city limits, most homes use an on-site sewage facility — a septic system — and Texas law requires a permit and a licensed site evaluation before you build or change one.

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Historic District

Jefferson's downtown is on the National Register of Historic Places

A 47-block area of Jefferson was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971, preserving dozens of 19th-century buildings from the town's days as Texas's leading inland port.

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