Question 1

What do property taxes actually run on a Dallas-area investment property?

Accepted Answer

Between about 1.63% and 2.36% of assessed value a year, depending on where the address sits. On tax year 2025 rates, a property in the City of Dallas inside Dallas ISD totals 2.235030 per $100 of assessed value: 0.704700 city, 0.997235 ISD, 0.533095 Dallas County. The same house in Frisco inside Frisco ISD and Collin County totals 1.675480, and in the Denton County part of Frisco ISD it totals 1.630855. That spread is roughly 56 basis points, about $2,800 a year on a $500,000 property. On a long-term hold that is a bigger cost variable than most rate quotes, and it goes into the escrow that sets your qualifying payment.

Question 2

Can I just look up the rate for the city I'm buying in?

Accepted Answer

No. The rate is set by the city, ISD and county combination, not the city alone. A Dallas address spans at least seven school districts, with 2025 totals running from 2.104563 in Highland Park ISD to 2.362101 in Lancaster ISD inside Dallas County, and some Dallas addresses sit in Collin or Denton County, where the county component is materially lower: 0.230563 in Collin and 0.185938 in Denton against 0.533095 in Dallas County. Two houses on the same street can escrow different amounts. Pull the actual combination for the parcel before you underwrite it, not the city average.

Question 3

Do MUDs and PIDs change the number I just calculated?

Accepted Answer

Yes, and they sit on top of it. The city, ISD and county totals above do not include municipal utility districts, public improvement districts or other special districts. The 2025 Old Republic Title guide lists dozens of them across Collin and Denton counties, several at a full 1.000000 per $100, which would take a Frisco-area total of 1.675480 to about 2.68 per $100. That is the difference between a deal that clears the ratio test and one that doesn't. This is most common in newer master-planned subdivisions in the northern suburbs, so check the parcel's district list before you lock a payment.

Question 4

Will my tax bill match what the seller has been paying?

Accepted Answer

Usually not, and you should underwrite the higher number. Texas homestead exemptions and the 10% annual appraisal cap apply to owner-occupied homesteads, so an investor-owned property is assessed without them. If the seller lived in the house, the bill you see in diligence can reflect an exempted, capped value that you won't inherit. On a conventional file the tax escrow feeds directly into your qualifying ratios, so a stale number at application is what breaks the loan two weeks later. Confirm the go-forward assessment with the appraisal district and talk to your CPA about how it lands on your return.

Question 5

How should I budget insurance on a DFW rental?

Accepted Answer

Get a real bound quote, and read the wind and hail deductible before you read the premium. Texas hail policies commonly carry a percentage-of-value deductible rather than a flat dollar amount, which is the line most out-of-state investors never price. On the premium side, Texas statewide homeowners rates rose roughly 21% in 2023 and 19% in 2024, on figures attributed to Texas Department of Insurance data. We don't publish a DFW dollar figure because the available sources are agency estimates that disagree with each other by a wide margin, and TDI doesn't publish a standalone statewide average premium report. Since insurance escrow is part of your qualifying payment, quote it during diligence rather than after.

Question 6

Conventional or DSCR for a Dallas rental right now?

Accepted Answer

With rents flat to falling, documented income is often the file that survives the ratio test. Dallas single-family rents fell 2.2% year over year in the first half of 2026, and DFW closed rents on NTREIS data were about flat, down 0.1% year over year as of July 2026. Resale months of inventory reached 6.00 at 58 days on market, which is the balanced-to-buyer line. A DSCR loan qualifies on the rent, so a soft rent number and a Texas tax escrow both press on the same coverage ratio. If your returns support the file, conventional financing qualifies on you instead and is usually the lower long-term cost. If they don't, DSCR still gets it done. Send us the address and we'll run both.

Question 7

What is a conventional investment property loan?

Accepted Answer

It is standard, competitively priced financing for a non-owner-occupied investment property, the long-term loan you take when your file fits the conventional box. It usually carries a lower rate than a bridge or DSCR loan, in exchange for full documentation.

Question 8

How is it different from a DSCR loan?

Accepted Answer

A conventional loan qualifies on your documented personal income and credit, while a DSCR loan qualifies on the property's rent. Conventional pricing is often lower if you can document your income and you are within the limit on financed properties; DSCR is easier to scale and skips the income docs. We compare both and put you in the one that fits.

Question 9

How much do I need to put down?

Accepted Answer

Plan on roughly 20% to 25% down on an investment-property purchase, with the best pricing at lower leverage and higher credit. Cash-out refinances are typically capped a bit lower than purchases.

Question 10

What credit score do I need?

Accepted Answer

Conventional investment financing generally wants a credit score around 580 or higher, and your rate improves meaningfully as your score and reserves go up. We will tell you up front where your file lands.

Question 11

What can I use it for?

Accepted Answer

Purchases, rate-and-term refinances, and cash-out refinances on non-owner-occupied 1-4 unit investment property. If you will live in the property, that is owner-occupied financing, which we refer to a trusted partner rather than originate here.

Question 12

What documents are required?

Accepted Answer

Because it is fully documented, expect to provide income verification, tax returns, bank statements, and the standard conventional paperwork. If that documentation is a hurdle, our DSCR and bank-statement programs are the no-tax-return alternatives.

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