Cobb County’s Cooling Real Estate Market Leads to Modest 2025 Tax Digest Growth

Cobb County’s once red-hot real estate market is cooling, prompting the Board of Tax Assessors to predict a modest 2% increase in the 2025 tax digest.

“Two years ago, I told you the county’s real estate market was traveling at 55 miles an hour; last year, I said it was going 35, and this year, we’re at 20 miles an hour,” said outgoing Chief Assessor Stephen White.

White, who now serves as the county’s Support Services Director, joined newly appointed Chief Appraiser Christine Stinchcomb in presenting the annual tax digest projection to county officials and stakeholders. This presentation helps local governments plan their budgets and set millage rates.

The tax digest is the official record of all taxable properties within Cobb County, including residential and commercial real estate, as well as personal property. It reflects the total assessed value of these properties and serves as the basis for calculating property taxes. Local governments use the tax digest to determine revenue for essential services such as schools, public safety, and infrastructure. The digest is prepared annually by the county tax assessor’s office and submitted to the state for approval.

Tax digest increases are muted somewhat for the county's general fund, where a floating homestead exemption locks in property values for homeowners at the time they apply for the exemption.

Last year, the Board of Tax Assessors projected a 7.5% increase in the tax digest, at the end of the year it came in at 8.52%.  This year, however, significantly fewer homeowners will see their property values reassessed, and the average increase is expected to be much lower.

During their CobbTV presentation, White and Stinchcomb shared data indicating a cooling real estate market. The average home sales price in Cobb County increased by only $20,000 over the past year, bringing the average cost to nearly $500,000.

“Just two years ago, the average price of a home in Cobb County increased by $50,000; this year, it’s only $20,000—so things are changing,” White noted.

The number of homes on the market has doubled in recent years, and the average time on the market has risen from about a week in 2020 to just over a month in 2024.

“The data shows that in 2021, about 17,000 homes were on the market,” Stinchcomb said. “At the start of this year, that number had climbed to around 35,000.”

Despite the slowdown, home prices continue to rise—just at a more moderate pace.

“Residential property values are still increasing, just not at the rapid pace we saw coming out of the pandemic,” White said.