How Property Taxes Work in Fairview: The 2026 Rates Explained

The four taxing units on a Fairview bill

Every property in Fairview is taxed by four local governments. Each one sets its own rate per $100 of taxable value, and the Collin County Tax Office collects them all on a single bill.

1. The Town of Fairview funds police, fire, streets, parks and general government.
2. A school district, either Lovejoy ISD or McKinney ISD depending on the address. This is the largest piece of the bill.
3. Collin County funds the courts, sheriff, jail, county roads and other county services.
4. Collin College, the community college district for the county.

Rates are adopted each August and September, apply to the tax year that began January 1, and appear on bills mailed in the fall. Bills are due by January 31 of the following year.

The 2026 rates now in effect (FY2026-27)

These are the rates on bills mailed in fall 2026 and due by January 31, 2027, as listed in Collin County's 2026 tax rate table.

The 2025 rates (FY2025-26), for comparison

These are the rates on bills mailed in fall 2025 and due by January 31, 2026.

The Town adopted its FY2025-26 rate on August 25, 2025, up from $0.310281 the year before. The Town's newsletter estimated that the average homeowner would pay $148.39 more in Town property taxes as a result.

Why the school district matters so much

The school district rate makes up roughly two-thirds to 70 percent of a Fairview tax rate. Most of Fairview is in Lovejoy ISD, but the west side and a pocket on the east edge near Orr Road are in McKinney ISD. On the 2026 appraisal roll, 2,302 of the town's 3,611 homes are coded to Lovejoy ISD and 1,309 to McKinney ISD. For 2026, Lovejoy ISD's rate is $0.1709 per $100 higher than McKinney ISD's (the 2025 gap was $0.1509). On a home with a taxable school value of $1 million, that difference is about $1,709 a year.

That difference is not a judgment on either district; it reflects each district's own budget, debt and state funding formula. It does mean two similar homes a mile apart in Fairview can carry noticeably different tax bills. Before you buy, confirm which district serves the address with the district itself.

How rates are split: M&O and I&S

Each rate has two parts:

• Maintenance and operations (M&O) pays for day-to-day costs.
• Interest and sinking (I&S), often called the debt rate, repays voter-approved bonds.

For the Town of Fairview, the debt rate is $0.077483 per $100 in both FY2025-26 and FY2026-27. For Lovejoy ISD, the county's 2026 rate table lists the total rate ($1.2373) without the M&O and I&S split; the district's adopted rate order shows the two parts. Collin College's FY2026-27 rate is $0.0750 M&O plus $0.00622 I&S.

Exemptions

Exemptions reduce the taxable value each unit uses, and each unit sets its own.

Figures are from Collin County's 2026 Tax Rates and Exemptions by Jurisdictions table. Confirm current amounts with the Collin Central Appraisal District.

The absence of a Town homestead exemption is worth noting. Neighboring Allen (5 percent) and Lucas (8 percent) both offer one, according to the same county table, so a Fairview homestead owner pays the Town rate on full appraised value unless they qualify for the 65+ or disability exemption.

To claim a homestead exemption, file with the Collin Central Appraisal District. The general rule is that you must own and live in the home as your principal residence on January 1, and the standard filing deadline is April 30 of that year.

A worked example

Take a Lovejoy ISD home with a taxable value of $1,000,000 and a homestead exemption, using the 2026 rates:

The Collin College line reflects its 20 percent homestead exemption. The same home in McKinney ISD would carry a school tax of about $9,171 instead of $10,641, for a total of about $14,549.

This is an illustration only. Your actual bill depends on your appraised value, any homestead value cap, and the exemptions you qualify for.

What changed for 2026 (FY2026-27)

• Town of Fairview: adopted at $0.329001 per $100, up from $0.316658. The Town's published comparison lists a no-new-revenue rate of $0.311505 and a voter-approval rate of $0.322674. The adopted rate is above that voter-approval rate; under the de minimis rate provision of the Texas Tax Code, a town with fewer than 30,000 residents may adopt a rate above its voter-approval rate, up to its de minimis rate, without an automatic election. The adopted budget raises $843,651 more in property tax revenue than the prior year (8.10 percent), with $331,914 of that from new property added to the roll. The council vote was six to one.
• Collin County: raised its rate on September 14, 2026 on a 4 to 1 vote, the first increase in 33 years, to $0.151414 per $100, up from $0.149343.
• Collin College: unchanged at $0.08122, the same rate since 2022.
• Lovejoy ISD: $1.2373, down from $1.2552.
• McKinney ISD: $1.0664, down from $1.1043. Because the adopted rate exceeds the district's voter-approval rate, McKinney ISD voters will decide on November 3, 2026 whether to ratify it (Proposition A). If they reject it, the district must use its lower voter-approval rate for 2026, and bills for McKinney ISD addresses would be recalculated. The same ballot includes $500 million in McKinney ISD bond propositions. Lovejoy ISD and the Town have no measures on the November ballot.

The Town's September 2026 newsletter put the budget challenge plainly: service costs are rising while state law limits how much a Texas city can increase property tax revenue without voter approval.

Where to check your own numbers

• Collin Central Appraisal District: appraised value, exemptions, and protests.
• Collin County Tax Office (CollinTaxInfo.org): current rates for every unit and your bill.
• Town of Fairview Tax Rates page: the Town's current adopted rate.
• Texas.gov/PropertyTaxes: the state's property tax database, which the Town's notices point to.

Last reviewed October 12, 2026. See something out of date? Email info@grisak.com.