For Amanda Hawkins, opening the envelope containing a new, higher valuation assessment on her New Brighton home was jaw-dropping news. It has, in turn, led to a big spike for the home’s 2026 property tax statement.
“It was definitely sticker shock,” Hawkins said.
Hawkins will see a 26 percent increase in her taxes this year — more than $1,000 in total. She was hit with increased taxes from the city and county, along with a huge jump in the valuation of her house. Now she’s wondering if she and her partner’s decision to buy their first home in 2024, with three young children, was a good idea.
“That’s what really hit me — that I might not be able to afford a home after all,” Hawkins said. “But at that point, it was too late to go back. It was an unexpected expense on my end.”
Stories like Hawkins’ situation are being shared on social media neighborhood groups, are being forcefully told to local government officials and are making their way to lawmakers at the Capitol in St. Paul.
The reality of last fall's property tax hikes have been dropping into Minnesota mailboxes over the last few weeks. Property owners are receiving their finalized tax bills bearing some of the largest levy hikes in years.
According to the Minnesota Department of Revenue, the combined certified property tax levies are $873 million more for 2026 than they were in 2025. That’s slightly lower than the preliminary levies that cities, counties, townships and other entities put forward last fall, but still represent a 6.8 percent increase over the prior year.
In all, property tax payments will total almost $13.8 billion this year. School districts collect the largest share of that, followed by counties, cities, townships and special taxing districts.
The average city tax levy increase is 7.7 percent, with a few cases where the year-over-year tax take will fall slightly and some where it will shoot up fast. The average county bump is 7.6 percent, with some boosting their levies by double digit percentages.
What individual property owners pay depends on multiple things, including their classification of their land, the value of the parcel and the mix of properties within those boundaries.
But the upward trajectory has legislators feeling some pressure to send some tax relief to their constituents, especially at a time where other costs — health care, gasoline and food — have already put a strain on family budgets.
“If you talk to people in Minneapolis or St. Paul or Upsala or down in Zumbrota, what you're going to hear from people is that life is too expensive,” said Rep Isaac Schultz, R-Upsala.
The state's projected $3.7 billion surplus could give legislators a means to respond.
Schultz is proposing sending the state’s positive budget balance to property owners as property tax aid.
“Minnesotans across the board should see the benefit of the budget surplus that we have in the state,” he said.
But that surplus won't last. Some lawmakers worry about creating a hole later. There is also plenty of competition for the money.
Meanwhile, other lawmakers are on a parallel search for workarounds.
“One of the top concerns, if not the top concern, that I've been hearing from constituents, is their frustration over ever-increasing property taxes,” said Sen. Michael Kreun, R-Blaine.
Kreun has a bill in the Senate that would cap local property tax hikes for counties and cities.
His cap would tie any increases to inflation and population growth; anything past that would need to be greenlit by constituents.
“Rates could be increased over that cap, but only if they are proved at the ballot box by the voters,” he said.
County leaders have pushed back. They say caps won't solve the issues they're facing, just constrain their operations more.
“The costs, the mandates from federal and state government really make up most of what we do in counties,” said Barb Weckman Brekke, a Scott County Commissioner. “So this talk right now of levy limits is really frustrating, because I don't know from a county perspective, what we could do differently."
To do that, Rep. Matt Norris argues it's time for a major reset. Norris, DFL-Blaine, said the larger property tax system hasn't been looked at closely in 25 years.
“Too often here at the Capitol, we address property taxes in a piecemeal way: Some special benefit for one type of property or exempting specific parcels,” he said.
Norris and Rep. Greg Davids, R-Preston, both introduced bills to create a working group to assess the current system and recommend adjustments. They say they’ll work together on that idea. Their effort is pending in the House Taxes Committee, which Davids co-chairs.
“This isn't something that can be done on the back of a napkin,” Norris said. “It requires serious input and study from both legislators and the people that set levies at the local level."
Minnesota taxpayers will have two big reminders of the issue in the coming year. First half property tax payments are due three days before the legislative session ends.
The second half payment for 2026 is potentially more politically problematic. That due date is Oct. 15 — just three weeks ahead of the November election.
In New Brighton, Hawkins said she feels financially stuck by this year’s tax hit. As a middle-class family, she said there’s not much wiggle room in the household budget to absorb the extra taxes. She harbors worries that it could become a trend.
“We want to pay for our roads, our schools, things like that, and keep the neighborhood as great as it is – the reason I moved there,” she said. “But I can’t afford my house if this keeps happening because this isn't something I can plan for our budget with these swings as they are.”
