Nashville's 2026 Property Tax Bills: Due Dates, Tax Relief, and the Senior Tax Freeze

Davidson County's 2026 property tax statements went out in the first week of October, and the Metropolitan Trustee's Office opened applications for the 2026 Tax Relief and Tax Freeze programs on October 5. If you bought a Nashville home this year, plan to sell one, or help an older parent with their house, two dates matter this season: the last day of February 2027 to pay without interest, and April 5, 2027 to apply for relief or the freeze.

This guide draws on the Office of the Metropolitan Trustee, the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). It is general education, not tax, legal, or lending advice.

The 2026 Davidson County calendar

The Trustee's Office says Davidson County property taxes are due and payable on the first Monday of October and must be paid in full by the last day of February of the following year to avoid interest. For the 2026 tax year:

• Monday, October 5, 2026: 2026 taxes became payable, and the Tax Relief and Tax Freeze application window opened.
• Last day of February 2027: Pay in full to avoid interest. February 28, 2027 is a Sunday, and the Trustee's Office is closed on weekends, so plan any in-person or mailed payment for the week before.
• March 1, 2027: Interest of 1.5 percent is added to the base tax on the first day of each month starting March 1. The Trustee puts that at 18 percent a year.
• Monday, April 5, 2027: Deadline to apply for or recertify 2026 Tax Relief and Tax Freeze. Taxes must also be paid in full by then to qualify.

The taxes that become payable in October cover the current calendar year. The Trustee accepts partial payments during the collection period, as long as the full amount is paid by the February deadline.

No bill in the mail does not mean no bill

According to the Trustee, Tennessee law does not require tax notices to be mailed. A statement that never arrives does not excuse the tax or the interest on a late payment. Statements go to the owner of record, which matters if you closed this year: the bill may carry the seller's name or reach the seller's old address. The Trustee tells new owners to contact their title company or check the closing statement to see who is responsible, and notes that unpaid taxes keep accruing against the property.

A few payment rules from the Trustee:

• Mail counts as received on the U.S. Postal Service postmark date. Without a postmark, the payment counts on the date the office receives it, and office meter dates are not accepted.
• Payments on the Trustee's website count on the date of the online transaction. Bank bill-pay payments post on the date they are received.
• Card payments carry a percentage-based processing fee, and e-checks carry a $1.00 fee. Metro does not keep these fees.
• Belle Meade, Ridgetop, and Goodlettsville bill their own city taxes separately.

Buyers: match the bill to your closing paperwork

In an October 6 newsletter, the Trustee walked through the 2026 statement. If a mortgage company pays the taxes, that shows in the red section near the middle of the front. The back of the statement notes a $30 fee for any returned payment.

With an escrow account, the CFPB explains, part of each monthly payment goes into escrow and your servicer pays the tax bill. Without escrow, you have to budget for the bill yourself. The CFPB warns that unpaid property taxes can lead to penalties, a tax lien, or foreclosure.

Your Closing Disclosure shows how the year's taxes were split with the seller. The CFPB's explainer defines two lines:

• Adjustments for Items Unpaid by Seller: taxes the seller owes for the period before closing that you will pay later. The seller reimburses you at closing.
• Adjustments for Items Paid by Seller in Advance: costs the seller already prepaid, which you reimburse.

If you aren't sure who is paying your 2026 bill, compare your Closing Disclosure, your escrow statement, and the red mortgage-company section of the tax statement. Then call your servicer or title company well before February.

Tax Relief: a credit, not an exemption

The Tennessee Comptroller describes Property Tax Relief as a state program, dating to 1973, that reimburses part or all of the taxes paid by eligible low-income elderly and disabled homeowners and by qualifying disabled veterans or their surviving spouses. Recipients still get a tax bill.

For 2026, the Davidson County Trustee lists three ways to qualify. Each one requires that you own and live in the home:

• A service-related, 100% disabled veteran, or the veteran's surviving spouse who has not remarried
• Age 65 or older by December 31, 2026, with 2025 income of $38,470 or less
• A disability approved by December 31, 2026, with 2025 income of $38,470 or less

The Trustee says the credit, funded by the state and Metro, is not repaid and creates no lien. Savings depend on the home's value, the district tax rate, and that year's maximum credit. The Comptroller's 2026 brochure says relief is calculated on up to $33,600 of market value for elderly and disabled homeowners and up to $175,000 for disabled veterans and qualifying surviving spouses. The Trustee also cautions that funding depends on state appropriations and is not guaranteed.

Tax Freeze: locking in today's amount

According to the Trustee, Davidson County was the first jurisdiction in Tennessee to adopt a property tax freeze. Voters approved it in a 2006 constitutional amendment, and the Tax Freeze Act of 2007 lets local governments choose to offer it.

To qualify for 2026, you must own and live in the home, be 65 or older by December 31, 2026, and have 2025 income of $63,470 or less. As long as you requalify every year, your tax amount stays frozen, even if Metro raises the rate or a reappraisal raises your value. Up to five acres of a residential property can be frozen.

The freeze does not lower the bill in the year you apply, and it does not roll back to an earlier year's amount. If a reassessment lowers your value, the tax drops and then freezes at the lower figure.

Whose income counts, and what happens when you move

Both programs look at the combined 2025 income of the applicant, the applicant's spouse, and every owner on the deed. A co-owner's income counts even if that person doesn't live in the home. The Trustee names adding a new owner to the deed as a common reason a member ends up over the limit, so talk with an attorney before making any deed change.

Both programs are also tied to the home you own and live in. The Trustee lists selling the property or no longer living in it among the reasons a member is removed. If you sell and buy another Davidson County home, ask the Trustee's Office about applying at the new address. When a former freeze participant later requalifies, the old frozen amount is not reinstated. A new one is set for the year eligibility is reestablished.

How to apply in Davidson County

• Where: Office of the Metropolitan Trustee, Howard Office Building, 700 President Ronald Reagan Way, Suite 220. Applications are taken Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The Trustee also holds sign-up events around the county.
• Appointments: New applicants can book with a specialist up to 24 hours ahead. An application takes about 35 minutes on average.
• Bring: A valid photo ID and all 2025 income documents, plus a disability award letter if it applies. If you didn't file a 2025 return, bring bank statements and your 1099 and SSA forms. The Trustee's program pages also list the 2025 Reappraisal Notice.
• Mortgage is fine: The home does not have to be paid off. Someone with power of attorney can apply for the homeowner with a copy of that document.
• Current members: Sign and return the colored recertification voucher that came with your statement by April 5, 2027. If you haven't received one by November 2026, call (615) 862-6330. Under a new state law, Tax Relief recipients who are 80 or older and have been enrolled five years in a row can check a box on the voucher instead of reporting income.

Outside Davidson County, the Comptroller says county trustees and other tax collecting officials take Tax Relief applications statewide. The freeze is a local option, so check with your own county trustee in Williamson, Rutherford, or another county.

This article is for general education only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Program rules, income limits, and deadlines come from official sources accessed October 20, 2026, and can change. Confirm details with the Office of the Metropolitan Trustee at (615) 862-6330 or your county trustee.