Ohio’s property tax system is cracking under pressure. Cities and suburbs are booming, assessments are soaring, and families across the state are getting hit with bills they never expected—and cannot afford.
From Cleveland’s suburbs to small towns in Mahoning County, tax delinquency is creeping higher and higher. In some parts of Youngstown, one out of every three homeowners has fallen behind. In Mahoning County alone, unpaid property taxes now total over $70 million.
And it is not just the working poor who are struggling. Middle-class families, retirees, and long-time homeowners say the current system is unsustainable.
Cuyahoga County, home to Cleveland, reassessed properties recently and saw a 32% average increase in values. In East Cleveland, the spike was a staggering 67%.
For homeowners who bought modest houses in quiet neighborhoods, today’s tax bills feel more like something out of a luxury development. The message is clear: pay up, or risk losing the place you thought you owned.
What Went Wrong?
At the heart of the crisis is a confluence of growth and outdated policy.
Ohio reassesses properties every six years, and the last few years have been a rollercoaster. A post-pandemic housing boom, record-low inventory, and out-of-state investors have all sent prices soaring. For many homeowners, the latest reassessment was the first since COVID-19 changed the market—and it showed.
The system was never built to handle this kind of sudden shift. Property taxes are supposed to reflect value, but what happens when value balloons and incomes do not?
The result: working families with stagnant wages now face tax bills that look like luxury dues. Ohio ranks eighth in the country for property tax burden, yet it stands 40th in median household income.
That mismatch is fueling a growing sense of betrayal—and a growing movement to change everything.
A New Kind of Revolt
Across Ohio, citizens are organizing not just for relief, but for revolution. A grassroots campaign called Ax the Tax is pushing for a constitutional amendment that would abolish property taxes entirely.
Blackmarr helped launch the effort through her group, Citizens for Property Tax Reform. While leadership of the campaign has since shifted, she remains one of the clearest voices warning of what happens when families get priced out of their homes.
“We cannot have people losing the homes they worked all their lives to pay off,” she said. “It is robbing an entire generation of the American dream.”
To critics, the repeal idea is reckless. Property taxes are the financial backbone of public schools, emergency services, libraries, and infrastructure. Eliminating them would leave a $23 billion hole in local budgets. Teachers, firefighters, road crews—all would be at risk.
But supporters say that without radical change, the bleeding will continue. Some see repeal as the only way to force lawmakers to take action they have avoided for decades.
The Political Jigsaw
Inside the Ohio Statehouse, pressure is mounting. Governor Mike DeWine has formed a property tax reform task force, demanding “meaningful” recommendations by the end of September. But the task force holds no direct power—it can only advise.
Meanwhile, lawmakers are pushing their own fixes. One bipartisan proposal would cap property taxes at 1.25% of market value—and lower that to 1% for seniors who have lived in their homes for at least five years.
Another provision, recently vetoed by Governor DeWine but overridden by the House, would limit local governments’ ability to place certain levies on the ballot. If the Senate follows suit, it could reshape how new taxes are introduced altogether.
The County Auditors’ Association of Ohio, which oversees property assessments, has presented a more technocratic plan. Its proposal includes:
- Expanding homestead exemptions for low-income seniors
- Boosting owner-occupancy tax credits
- Capping how much local revenue can grow
- Targeted relief programs for families struggling with high assessments
Each of these ideas could help. But so far, none have passed. And for families already stretched to the edge, the delay feels like indifference.
Real People, Real Losses
The numbers paint a bleak picture. But it is stories like Blackmarr’s that show what this crisis means day to day.
She has heard from dozens of Ohioans who say their property taxes have overtaken what they once paid on their mortgages. Some are taking out loans. Others are skipping healthcare costs to make payments. A few are quietly preparing to sell.
One mortgage broker said it plainly: “If you really want to find out who owns your home, stop paying your property tax.”
The idea of property ownership—central to the American ideal—starts to crumble when the cost of staying in your home rises faster than your income.
And it leaves a heavy question hanging in the air: Is homeownership still a path to stability, or has it become a trap?
What Comes Next?
No one expects a perfect fix this year. Property tax systems are deeply woven into the fabric of state finance. Undoing them is complicated. Reforming them is contentious.
But what is clear is that the pressure is rising.
Ballot initiatives. Veto showdowns. Local protests. Tax revolts. These are no longer outliers—they are part of a growing wave of public frustration, one that could shape Ohio’s political landscape for years to come.
For now, families across the state are doing their best to hang on—paying bills, organizing meetings, sharing resources, and hoping lawmakers finally step up.
“I am not against taxes,” Blackmarr said. “But the way we are doing this—it is cruel. It is unsustainable. And it is breaking people.”
Ohio’s property tax crisis may have started with reassessments. But the fallout is reshaping something far bigger: how people think about what they truly own—and what it takes to keep it.
