One of the fastest-growing counties in the United States, Hidalgo County is a crossroads between the United States and Mexico. The largest and most prosperous area outside the triangle of Austin, Houston, and DFW, Hidalgo County is an economic powerhouse as well. This success has led to property values doubling in the past decade, pushing the taxes associated with homes and businesses to all-time highs. The one bright spot is that this has led to more property tax protests as well, as homeowners and businesses oppose the values set forth by the Hidalgo County Appraisal District (HCAD).
Homes Increase 4% in Value
In 2025, homes saw their market value soar by an astounding average of 17.9%, some of the highest growth in the entire state. 2026 saw a more modest climb of 4%, but this was still well above inflation. This overall total rose to $42.98 billion. The most valuable homes were those worth under $250,000, which combined for $24.73 billion following a growth spurt of 3.6%. These were followed by homes worth between $250,000 and $500,000, which rose 4.7% to $14.86 billion. Though they only made up a fraction of the overall value, more expensive homes tended to see higher increases. Those worth over $1.5 million jumped 6.1% to $235.58 million.
Hidalgo County stayed true to its working-class roots when it came to the sizes of homes. The majority of market value was generated by homes under 2,000 square feet, increasing 4.4% to $26.27 billion. Growing by 3.4%, homes between 2,000 and 3,999 square feet were responsible for $14.18 billion of the market value. Those spanning 4,000 to 5,999 square feet were the only other category to reach $1 billion, with a final total of $1.80 billion following an uptick of 2.8%. The largest homes in the county added 6.6% to reach $275.54 million.
When it comes to the age of construction, the largest categories of value are a combination of new and old. Like most of Texas, the majority of value comes from the building boom between 2001 and 2020, which totaled $19.50 billion in market value after a small increase of 1.8%. Homes from 1981 to 2000 were responsible for around 30% of all value, totaling $13.06 billion. In third place was new construction, which saw a meteoric rise of 19.7%, coming in at $5.34 billion. Raw land and the remaining timeframes combined for only 12% of the total.
43% of Hidalgo Homes Could be Overvalued
Houses Valued above/below Market Value based on Jan 2025 – Mar 2026 Sales
A study of actual home sales at the start of 2026 revealed that the appraisal district could be overvaluing at least 43% of homes. Market value is determined by how much the appraisal district believes a home would sell for on the open market. The study shows that around 57% of homes were valued correctly or under what they should. In 2025, only 39% of homes were estimated to be overvalued. Property tax appeals are often used to find the true value of a home, and this study indicates that more taxpayers should be investigating the possibility.
Realtors See Home Prices Drop 36.9%
Because the market value given to homes by the CAD is tied to the real estate market, knowing what the realities are can be helpful to homeowners. In 2026, a study by McAllen realtors showed that the average home price in the county collapsed by 36.9%. In contrast, the CAD claimed that the market value for homes increased by 4%. As home sales are a major piece of evidence for protests targeted at overappraisal, homeowners looking to lower their property taxes with appeals could have an excellent case. This should encourage homeowners on the fence to explore the possibility as well.
Commercial Real Estate Adds 4.5%
2025 saw explosive growth in the market value for businesses, with an overall spike of 23.8%. While this cooled somewhat in 2026, there was still a strong surge of 4.5%, reaching a new total of $19.16 billion. Commercial property in Hidalgo County is unusual for Texas, in that the largest businesses do not dominate the total value or growth. Jumping 4.1%, businesses worth over $5 million totaled $4.78 billion, putting them in third place. Increasing by 4.2%, businesses worth under $500,000 took the top spot with $5.89 billion. Adding 2.8%, those between $1 million and $5 million reached $5.08 billion. Those worth between $500,000 and $1 million soared 8.2% to $3.42 billion.
Highlighting the county’s growth potential, the largest reservoir of commercial value was raw land, with $6.65 billion. Apartments were in second place with $5.45 billion, and saw the highest growth with 7.9%. Warehouses saw a strong increase of 4.4%, totaling $2.97 billion. Retail was close behind with $2.74 billion, following an increase of 2.9%. Offices and hotels were the two smallest categories, but still grew 1.1% and 4.1%, respectively.
When raw land is removed from the picture, businesses follow the same pattern in the age of construction that homes did. 36%, or $6.87 billion, was built between 2001 and 2020, following an uptick of 1.8%. Those from 1981 to 2000 increased 2.1% to $3.39 billion. New construction was again the superstar, adding 24.3% to account for $2.23 billion, roughly 12% of the total. The remaining properties were responsible for around 7% of the total.
Nationwide Commercial Real Estate Falls 7%
While not to the unbalanced standard of 2025, the 4.5% in 2026 is still a big stressor on businesses, especially with so many small enterprises in Hidalgo County. A recent study by the Federal Reserve of St. Louis (FRED) showed that commercial property across the nation has fallen in value over the past few years, dropping by 7%. While Texas and the McAllen area are thriving, that is still a sizeable difference. This could indicate that, like homes, many businesses are being overappraised by the appraisal district. This is why it is recommended that all businesses protest their commercial values every year.
Apartments Soar 7.9%
Like most urban counties in Texas, Hidalgo’s No. 1 commercial real estate type is apartments. Spiking by 7.9%, these accounted for a total of $5.45 billion. Apartments showed a stronger recency bias than homes or general businesses, with 49% of all value coming from those built from 2001 to 2020, following an increase of 2.5%. A staggering 29%, or $1.56 billion, came from new construction following a surge of 25.1%. Those built from 1981 to 2000 added 1.6% to reach $739.44 million. All other construction timeframes combined for less than 8% of the overall total.
HCAD only separates apartments into two categories. Garden apartments jumped 8.3% to total $4.33 billion. Generic apartments, on the other hand, climbed 4.5% to $522.54 million.
Offices Rise by 1.1%
Offices are a relatively small category in Hidalgo County, with an overall market value of $896.05 million, following a small uptick of 1.1%. 54% of all value was built from 2001 to 2020, which added just 0.6%. 34% came from those constructed from 1981 to 2000, which added 0.8%. Even new construction only grew by 4.4%, accounting for 6% of the total. The oldest offices added 10.6% to their total, but only reached $2.19 million.
There were only two subtypes of offices. Medical offices dominated, accounting for $728.91 million after an increase of 1%. Office buildings added 1.4% to total $167.14 million.
Retail Jumps 2.9%
Retail was a strong contributor to the increase in the overall business value, accounting for $2.74 billion following an increase of 2.9%. Like all other properties, the leader in value was stores built from 2001 to 2020, which accounted for $1.16 billion, roughly 55% of the total. Those from 1981 to 2000 reached $757.09 million following a small increase of 1.7%. New construction surged 32% to $214.52 million, while those from 1961 to 1980 totaled $245.21 million following an increase of 1%. The oldest buildings added 7% to their total, reaching $10.22 million.
HCAD divided stores into four categories. The largest was neighborhood shopping centers, which added 4.9% and totaled $1.30 billion. Retail stores grew by 2% and had a final tally of $722.52 million. Strip malls added 1%, for a final sum of $391.98 million. Malls were stagnant with $330.46 million.
Warehouses See Strong Gains
Totaling $2.97 billion after a spike of 4.4%, warehouses followed all the trends set by other real estate when it came to the age of construction. Those built from 2001 to 2020 were responsible for $1.34 billion, roughly 45% of the total. Those from 1981 to 2000 added 4.3% for a final sum of $833.27 million. New construction jumped 18.5% for a final sum of $344.65 million. Warehouses built from 1961 to 1980 added 2.3% to total $296.41 million.
There were only two warehouse subtypes according to HCAD. Generic warehouses totaled $2.94 billion following an increase of 4.4%. Office warehouses surged 6.1% to $27.13 million.
O’Connor Lowers Taxes with Appeals
In Texas, the only ways to lower property taxes are exemptions and protests. An appeal lowers property taxes by challenging the market values assessed by HCAD. In many counties, especially large ones like Hidalgo, appraisal districts are often forced to take shortcuts when it comes to appraising properties. This leaves things wide open for protests, which can correct issues when it comes to overappraisal, unequal appraisal, or factual errors. If these issues are not corrected, they can quickly impact tax bills now and in the future. These lowered values only impact taxation and do not lower the resale value of a home or business.
Appeals are especially important in counties built around working families and small businesses, as they can save a significant amount of taxes for small budgets. This is why taxpayers in Hidalgo are active when it comes to appeals, with over 15% of all properties being protested in 2024 alone. These protests have seen strong results as well, and homeowners reduced the record values in 2025 by 2.8% thanks to diligent effort. Overall, appeals save homeowners and businesses tens of millions of dollars annually in Hidalgo County.
We at O’Connor are here to help you achieve your goals of tax reduction. We offer over 50 years of experience and are a Texas-based company. We know how every appraisal district thinks and can organize the perfect evidence to land a reduction. We support our clients fully, offering services like concierge visits and client success consultants. These personal services separate us from other firms, which use chatbots, AI, and anonymous customer service representatives that rely on one-size-fits-all solutions. There is no cost to join, and you will only be charged a percentage of your savings if we can lower your taxes.
