How does Arizona's cap on property tax increases work for a home you buy in Scottsdale?

Arizona caps how much the value your property tax is figured on can go up each year. That value is called the Limited Property Value, and under A.R.S. 42-13301 it can go up by no more than 5% a year and can never be higher than the Full Cash Value. The bill itself can still change, because each taxing district sets its own rate.

I'm Jen Keene, a REALTOR® with eXp Luxury in Scottsdale, AZ, and I'm the agent people call at every stage of their life.

This is general information, not tax or legal advice. The Maricopa County Assessor's Office and a tax professional can tell you what applies to the home you're buying. I read the sources below on November 5, 2026, and values and rates change every year, so the figures on your own notice are the ones that count.

The Arizona Department of Revenue says every property has two values, a Limited Value and a Full Cash Value. Arizona voters approved Proposition 117 in 2012, and the Department says that beginning with tax year 2015 all property taxes, primary and secondary, are levied against the Limited Value. The Maricopa County Assessor's Office describes Full Cash Value as reflecting market value, and it's the value an owner can appeal. The Assessor's valuation notice FAQ says the Limited Property Value can't be appealed.

The two numbers can move in different directions. The Assessor's 2022 valuation notice FAQ says that in a declining market the Full Cash Value can fall while the Limited Property Value rises, and that the Limited Property Value can never exceed the Full Cash Value, which the statute says too. Both values are printed on the Notice of Value the Assessor mails each year, so that notice is where you see them for a specific home.

The Department of Revenue says Limited Values are worked out one parcel at a time, and A.R.S. 42-13301 refers to a parcel's limited property value the same way. For a parcel that existed the year before and had no construction, destruction, split, combining of parcels or change in use, the Department says the current Limited Value starts from the previous year's Limited Value and rises by no more than 5 percent. The Assessor's page on Limited Property Value says the same in its own words: the value generally rises by only 5% a year, even when market value changes by more.

The limit applies to the value, and the bill can still change when a district changes its rate. The Department of Revenue says primary taxes pay for the operation of counties, cities and towns, school districts and community college districts, and secondary taxes pay for things like debt, voter-approved budget overrides and special service districts. The Assessor's FAQ adds that the Treasurer's Office calculates and collects the tax, and that your tax amount depends on the levy each taxing jurisdiction sets, so a home with a limited value can still see a different bill from one year to the next.

The official sources I read don't list a sale as a reason the Limited Property Value is reset, and I'd confirm that with the Assessor for the specific home before you rely on it. A.R.S. 42-13302 lists the situations where the value is set a different way: property left off the rolls, a change in physical use, construction or demolition worth 15% or more of the Full Cash Value, a split or combining of parcels, and property that loses a valuation protection. The Department of Revenue's description names construction, destruction, a split, combining parcels and a change in use. The Assessor's page lists new construction or major improvements, demolition, splits and lot combinations, a change in use, and the loss of certain special valuation programs.

A plain sale isn't on any of those three lists, and the statute says a change in the occupant of a single-family residence isn't a change in use by itself. None of them says outright that a sale never changes the value, so I wouldn't promise you what a home's Limited Property Value will be after you close. The one sale-related item in the statute is for a home with a valuation protection: if title passes to someone who doesn't qualify for it, the value is set the other way. Ask the Assessor whether the home you're looking at has a valuation protection on it. Here's my post on Scottsdale property tax, which also covers Arizona's senior valuation program.

Work on the house can. A.R.S. 42-13302 says construction, destruction or demolition since the prior valuation year that changes the property by 15% or more of its Full Cash Value is handled under the different method, and the Assessor's FAQ says the 5% cap doesn't apply when an owner adds or removes improvements. For those parcels, the Department of Revenue says the Limited Value is set by applying the ratio of Full Cash Value to Limited Property Value of existing properties of the same use or class.

The Assessor's page says that method can raise the value, lower it, or leave it about the same, so the 5% limit doesn't work the same way once you build. If you're planning a pool or a guest house, ask the Assessor how a project like that would be treated before you start. I cover those two projects in my posts on buying a home with a pool in Scottsdale and buying a home with a guest house in Scottsdale.

The Limited Property Value is one part of the bill. The Maricopa County Assessor's FAQ says the Notice of Value isn't your tax bill and that the Treasurer's Office calculates and collects the tax. The Department of Revenue's list of what the taxes pay for shows the rest: counties, cities, school districts, community college districts and special districts each have their own rate, and the Treasurer adds them into one bill.

For where to look up a bill and the City of Scottsdale's rate for the 2026/27 fiscal year, here's my post on how to look up your Scottsdale property tax bill. I don't put a rate or a dollar example in this post, because the rate depends on the tax year and on which districts serve the address.

Start with the Notice of Value. The Assessor's 2022 FAQ says it shows the legal classification, Full Cash Value, Limited Property Value, assessment ratio and assessed value for the current and prior tax year, so you can see both values side by side. Ask the seller for their latest notice, or look the home up on the Assessor's site, and then look up the bill at the Treasurer's site to see what the current owner is paying.

Then ask the Assessor, or a tax professional, how the value is expected to be treated after you buy, and whether any valuation protection or recent work on the house affects it. Here's my guide to buying a home in Scottsdale. If you have a home in mind and want help pulling the county's records for it, get in touch or call me at (480) 203-6605.