Fairfax County residents got some relief in real estate taxes with the County's new budget. County executives voted to reduce the property tax rate by 1-cent per $100 of assessed value — from $1.135 to $1.125.
Because home prices have increased for most property owners, residents may still pay more in real estate taxes this year — but not as much as they would have if the rate had stayed the same or increased. The new rate will result in an average real estate tax bill increase of just over $450, according to County officials.
Some of the money from the reduced real estate tax will be made up by increased fees elsewhere, including zoning, fire marshal, land development and senior center fee increases.
Fairfax County Public Schools did not receive as much money as the system asked for. "Board members agreed that approving the full 10.5% requested increase would have 'placed too heavy of a burden on our taxpayers.' The mark-up package notes the board is optimistic that additional state funding will help to shrink the shortfall and allow for investments in teacher compensation," according to an announcement by county officials. (Read more about the Fairfax County budget here.)
In Alexandria earlier this month, the Alexandria City Council unanimously adopted the new FY2025 budget of $926.4 million — a 4.8% increase from the previous year's budget. Like in Fairfax County, the fiscal year runs from July 1 - June 30 every year.
The Alexandria City budget passed with a 2.5-cent increase in the real estate tax rate, to $1.135 per $100 of assessed value. "This increase means the average single-family homeowner will pay $483 and the average condominium owner will pay $285 more this year than last year," city officials explained. A few months ago, the City Manager had proposed a budget with no increase in that tax rate, but school and infrastructure needs affected the numbers.
