Communities

Living in The Woodlands, TX: what home buyers should know

Quick answer. The Woodlands is a master-planned community about 27 miles north of downtown Houston. The Woodlands Township is a special-purpose local government, and the Montgomery County tax sheet does not list it with the cities. The April 1, 2020 Census counted 114,436 people in The Woodlands CDP. The Township’s adopted 2026 rate is $0.1694 per $100. The school district, any utility district, and the flood zone still have to be read for the address.

By Michael O'Neal, Broker and REALTOR®, Keller Williams Realty Northeast
Published November 12, 2026

I read the Census Bureau, the Township, Woodlands Water, the Montgomery County tax sheet, TxDOT, and the flood pages on November 12, 2026. I am a broker, not a tax adviser, surveyor, or flood engineer. Confirm anything that changes your offer with the office that published it.

What is the Township, and what is the Census line?

The Township’s About page calls it a special-purpose local government. George P. Mitchell founded the community in 1974, about 27 miles north of downtown Houston. That page says more than 120,000 residents and over 2,100 businesses. In 2010 the Township took on services that homeowner associations and special-purpose districts had provided. An elected board governs it. Property tax and sales tax fund it. The listed services include fire protection, contracted law enforcement, parks and pathways, recreation, covenant administration, and contracted trash and recycling. Town Hall is at 2801 Technology Forest Blvd., The Woodlands, TX 77381. Source

On the Montgomery County 2026 rate sheet, cities such as Conroe and Shenandoah have their own lines. The Township is a different line, code CWT. I do not call it a city. A city tax shows up only if a city is on the account. The Township taxes page says its line is on the Montgomery County bill or the Harris County bill, depending on the property. Start with the Woodlands guide. Source Source

The Census area is The Woodlands CDP, not a city limit, a school zone, or a flood zone. April 1, 2020 counted 114,436 people. The 2024 Gazetteer lists 43.275 square miles of land and 0.521 square miles of water. The 2020–2024 survey counts 121,002 people, 44,062 households, and 2.73 people per household. The Township’s “more than 120,000” is its own description, not the 2020 count. Source Source Source Source Source

What does the housing mix look like?

In the 2020–2024 survey the CDP had 46,843 housing units, 44,062 of them occupied, and 72.5 percent of occupied homes were owner-occupied. Median value of those owner-occupied homes was $511,700. Monthly owner costs were $2,970 with a mortgage and $1,103 without one. Median gross rent was $1,822. Mean travel time to work was 27.0 minutes. That is the Census area, not this week’s list price, and 27.0 minutes is not a drive from one house. Source Source

What do the villages change for a buyer?

The Village Associations page lists eight villages: Alden Bridge, Cochran’s Crossing, College Park, Creekside Park, Grogan’s Mill, Indian Springs, Panther Creek, and Sterling Ridge. Most have a resident-led village association. Town Center is not on that list. Town Center and Grogan’s Mill are in Montgomery County. Creekside Park is in Harris County. The county, the school district, and the utility district follow the address. Use the village comparison and the area guide. Source Source Source Source

The Township’s page on George Mitchell’s plan says the villages came first and the commercial centers after, with a village center for daily needs and Town Center as the mixed-use center. Covenant administration is a Township service. Read the covenants for the address before you assume a change is allowed. The choice against nearby Spring is a separate article, The Woodlands and nearby Spring communities. Source Source

Which schools serve the address?

Depending on the address, the Township says a student may attend Conroe ISD, Tomball ISD, or Magnolia ISD. The village name is not the attendance map. I am not rating campuses. Confirm the house with the district before you write. Source

On the Montgomery County 2026 sheet, Conroe ISD is $0.9471 per $100, with $0.6671 for maintenance and operations and $0.2800 for debt, a $140,000 homestead, $65,000 for over-65 owners, and $60,000 for disabled owners. Magnolia ISD is $0.9325 per $100, with $0.6399 and $0.2926, a $140,000 homestead, and $60,000 for over-65 or disabled owners. Each line applies only inside that district. Tomball ISD is not on the Montgomery County sheet. A Harris County address, including one in Creekside Park, needs the Harris County account. Source Source

How do Township taxes and MUDs hit the payment?

On September 3, 2026 the Board adopted $0.1694 per $100: $0.0100 for debt service and $0.1594 for maintenance and operations, down from $0.1714 in 2025. The Township’s notice says that adopted rate will raise more maintenance-and-operations taxes than last year’s rate, effectively by 1.79 percent, and it puts the change on a $100,000 home at about -$1.80. A rate is not the bill. Read the notice with the account. Source Source

On the same county sheet the Township homestead is 3 percent, with $50,000 for over-65 or disabled owners. Montgomery County is $0.3860 per $100 ($0.3415 and $0.0445), with a 20 percent homestead, $50,000 for over-65 owners, and $75,000 for disabled owners. The hospital district is $0.0458. The line labeled Lone Star CC is $0.1058. None of those lines is automatic. Open the Montgomery Central Appraisal District account, or HCAD if the house is in Harris County. Source

Many houses also pay a municipal utility district. Woodlands Water’s 2026 column lists ten districts. These are the published rates per $100:

MUD 1, 0.063161
MUD 6, 0.064896
MUD 7, 0.10176
MUD 36, 0.04192
MUD 39, 0.24
MUD 46, 0.171612
MUD 47, 0.159239
MUD 60, 0.11735
MUD 67, 0.131421
Metro, 0.08345

Woodlands Water says the rate is applied to appraised value, and that districts differ. Harris-Montgomery Counties MUD 386 provides water and wastewater to Creekside Park and is not on that table, so read its rate on the Harris County account. Water Code chapter 54 lets a MUD levy a tax. File a homestead if this will be your primary home. The homestead guide has the steps. Type the rates into the true cost calculator. The longer version is MUD and PID taxes. Source Source Source

What is the drive, Town Center, and the Waterway?

About 27 miles north of downtown is the Township’s distance, not a drive time. TxDOT carries Interstate 45 from Galveston through Houston and Montgomery County toward Dallas. That file is the highway’s route. Drive your own route at the hour you leave. The 27.0-minute Census mean is the commute figure inside the CDP. Source Source

The Woodlands Express is a weekday bus to Downtown, Greenway Plaza, the Texas Medical Center, and the Energy Corridor, from the Research Forest, Sterling Ridge, and Sawdust park-and-ride lots. The Township owns the buses. A contractor runs them. Source

Town Center is in Montgomery County, around The Woodlands Mall, Market Street, and Hughes Landing. The Waterway connects to parks and The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion. The Town Center trolley is free, with stops the Township lists at Hughes Landing, Market Street, The Pavilion, and The Woodlands Mall. Published hours are Monday–Thursday 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., Friday and Saturday 10 a.m. to 10 p.m., and Sunday noon to 7 p.m., with no service on Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year’s Day. Source Source

How many parks and pathways does the Township publish?

The About page says 150 parks and 220 miles of hike and bike trails. The George Mitchell page says 151 parks and 220 miles of hike and bike trails. The Township’s 2025 Community Facts table, which that page says is provided by Howard Hughes, says 151 parks and 220 miles of pathways. The mileage agrees. The park count does not, so I am not quoting a park count. Use the area guide for the village parks, and confirm the trail you care about on the Township site. Source Source Source

Will you be buying new, or an established house?

That Community Facts table lists 35,060 single-family homes and an ultimate of 35,200, a gap of 140 on the table. Multifamily and assisted living are 10,190 against 12,850, and attached homes are 3,855 against 5,250. The Township says Howard Hughes provided the figures. They are not the Census count of 46,843 housing units. On that table, single-family homes sit close to the ultimate and the other rows do not, so most houses you tour are already built. Read the village and the tax stack. New construction nearby is the subject of The Woodlands and nearby Spring communities, not this page. Source

How do you check flood risk for one house?

Flood risk is an address question. Start with FEMA’s Flood Map Service Center. Montgomery County’s floodplain office publishes the FEMA maps, and the county GIS site describes an “Am I in a Floodplain?” lookup. A Harris County address, including Creekside Park, also needs Harris County Flood Control’s flood education tool. Read FEMA’s map for the house. Source Source

Property Code section 5.008 requires the seller of a one-dwelling home to give a written notice on the flood items the statute lists. Read it with the map and get a flood quote during the option period. The Houston flood-check article and the flood-maps page use the same tools. Source

Who The Woodlands fits

It fits a buyer who wants Township services and pathways and will read the village, the school district, and the MUD before comparing payments. The Census picture is a place, not a list price. Kingwood, Atascocita, and Humble are the northeast Harris County guides: Living in Kingwood, Living in Atascocita, and Living in Humble. If Spring is also on the list, read the comparison and drive both. Owners can start with the Woodlands seller guide. Buyers can start with how buying with me works.

FAQ

Is The Woodlands a city?

The Township describes itself as a special-purpose local government. On the Montgomery County 2026 tax sheet it is not grouped with the cities. A city tax appears only if a city is on that property’s account.

Which school district serves The Woodlands?

The Township says the address decides among Conroe ISD, Tomball ISD, and Magnolia ISD. Confirm the house with the district. The village name is not the attendance zone.

What is The Woodlands Township 2026 property tax rate?

The Board adopted $0.1694 per $100 on September 3, 2026, down from $0.1714 in 2025. A MUD, the county, a school district, and any city on the account are separate lines.

How do I check flood risk for a house in The Woodlands?

Use FEMA’s map for the address, the Montgomery County floodplain tools, and the Harris County tool if the house is in Harris County. Read the seller’s notice under Property Code section 5.008.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau, 2020 Census P1, The Woodlands CDP (114,436), the 2024 Gazetteer (43.275 square miles of land), and the 2020–2024 American Community Survey tables DP05, DP04, DP03, and DP02, read November 12, 2026. The CDP definition is the Census Bureau’s.
About the Township, George Mitchell’s Vision, Taxes, and the September 3, 2026 Boardroom Briefing.
Montgomery County Tax Office, 2026 rates and exemptions, read November 12, 2026, and Montgomery Central Appraisal District.
Village Associations, Town Center, Grogan’s Mill, Creekside Park, and Covenants and Standards.
School districts.
Woodlands Water, MUD tax rates, and MUD 386.
The Woodlands Express, Town Center trolleys, and the TxDOT Interstate 45 designation file.
2025 Community Facts, published by the Township and attributed there to Howard Hughes.
FEMA Flood Map Service Center, Montgomery County FEMA maps, Montgomery County GIS, the Harris County flood education tool, and Property Code section 5.008.

Want to see The Woodlands in person? Call me and I will show you around.

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