Celina grew from 16,739 people in 2020 to about 64,400 in 2025 (Census), the fastest growth rate of any U.S. city with 20,000+ residents from 2024 to 2025, and most of its new neighborhoods carry a PID or MUD on top of the regular tax bill. I'm Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, and this is everything I'd tell a client before they buy or sell in Celina.
Ben's take: “In Celina the price is only half the story. I show my buyers the full monthly payment, PID or MUD included, before we tour a single house.”Ben Jimenez, Real Estate Agent, Real Broker, LLC
Celina's median sale price was about $558,000 in August 2026, and Zillow's typical home value of about $512,000 in September 2026 was down 8.9% from a year earlier. Homes went under contract in a median of 72 days and sold at about 97.5% of list price, with about 566 homes for sale (Zillow, three-month averages). Most of what's for sale is new or nearly new: more than 9,500 homes inside the city limits on the Collin County side were built from 2020 on (Collin CAD).
Latest market numbers: the median sale price was $494,651 in the three months ending October 2026, with 8.4 months of supply (a buyer's market, Redfin). See the Celina housing market report for October 2026.
With about two and a half months to a contract and builders competing in the same neighborhoods, Celina buyers can negotiate on price, closing costs and upgrades. Compare the PID or MUD on each home before you compare prices, because two houses at the same price can have very different monthly payments.
Your Celina home is competing with builders down the street offering incentives, so price and presentation decide whether it sells in the first few weeks. I market every listing with professional photos, drone footage and a full video tour.
Ben's take: “Celina's base rate is around 2%, which is higher than Frisco or Prosper, and the PID or MUD comes on top. I put that number in front of my buyers on day one so nobody is surprised at closing.”Ben Jimenez, Real Estate Agent, Real Broker, LLC
Celina lowered its city rate slightly for 2026-27, from $0.576401 to $0.571677 per $100, and Celina ISD's rate went from $1.2089 to $1.2088. The city gives owners 65+ a $30,000 exemption and a tax freeze, but no general homestead percentage. Most newer neighborhoods add a PID installment or a MUD tax on top of these rates (see below).
| City of Celina (FY 2026-27) | $0.571677 per $100 |
| Celina ISD | $1.2088 per $100 |
| Collin County | $0.151414 per $100 |
| Collin College | $0.08122 per $100 |
| Combined (Celina ISD) | about $2.0131 per $100 |
| Combined (Prosper ISD, $1.2011) | about $2.0054 per $100 |
| Light Farms (ETJ, Prosper ISD, MUD) | about $2.2937 per $100 |
At about $2.01 per $100, a $558,000 taxable value comes to about $11,230 a year before exemptions, and the $140,000 school homestead exemption takes about $1,690 off the Celina ISD part. About 6,100 residents live on the Denton County side, where Denton County's $0.183394 rate replaces the Collin County and Collin College rates. I pull the exact bill, PID or MUD, and HOA for the address before my buyers make an offer.
Ben's take: “Celina ISD is growing faster than it can build, and boundaries are being redrawn for 2027-28. I check the district and the assigned campus for the exact address before my buyers write an offer.”Ben Jimenez, Real Estate Agent, Real Broker, LLC
Most of Celina is in Celina ISD, which had 6,337 students in 2025-26 and earned a B (85) in TEA's 2026 ratings. It has one high school, Celina High School (B, 89, about 1,500 students), two middle schools (Moore and Willard), five elementary schools and an early childhood school, and it is building three more elementaries, Scott, Grumbles and Calvert, all set to open for 2027-28. The Bobcats have won nine state football titles, most recently in 2024, and hold the Texas 11-man record of 68 straight wins (1998-2002). Southern Celina, including Mustang Lakes, Lilyana, Creeks of Legacy and most of Light Farms, is in Prosper ISD, rated A (91) with about 33,600 students. Collin College opened its Celina Campus in fall 2021.
Ben's take: “When a Celina buyer asks me why the payment is higher than the price suggests, the answer is almost always the PID. I pull the exact installment for the lot from the city's assessment roll before we write an offer.”Ben Jimenez, Real Estate Agent, Real Broker, LLC
A MUD (municipal utility district) is a separate taxing district that borrows to build a neighborhood's water, sewer and drainage, then repays it with its own tax rate per $100 of value, set every year by its board. A PID (public improvement district) is created by the city: the developer's streets, utilities and parks are paid for with a fixed annual installment assigned to each lot, based on lot size and phase, not on your home's value. Celina has 30 PIDs (City of Celina, August 2026). Both are billed on top of the city, school, county and college taxes, and both are collected by the Collin County Tax Office on the property tax bill (PID installments are billed around October 1 and due January 31), so a lender with an escrow account normally collects them monthly with your taxes. Example: a MUD rate of $0.86 per $100 on a $500,000 home is $4,300 a year, about $358 a month; a PID installment of $3,000 a year adds $250 a month no matter what the home appraises for. Celina PID assessments are typically paid over 30 annual installments, and you can pay one off early in full. A MUD tax has no set end date: it continues while the district has debt and operating costs, and it can end if a city annexes the area and takes the district over. Figures below are 2026-27 annual installments per home from the City's service plan updates, or 2026 MUD rates from Collin CAD.
$0.86 per $100 for tax year 2026, down from $0.89 (district, October 2026; Collin CAD). Light Farms sits in Celina's ETJ, so there's no city tax, and most of it is in Prosper ISD, for a total near $2.29 per $100. On a $550,000 home the MUD alone is about $4,730 a year.
2026-27 installment per home: Phase #1, $2,208.74 (townhome) to $4,712.77 (70' lot); Improvement Area #2, $3,124.53 (townhome) to $7,014.24 (70' lot). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 supplemental annual service plan update, September 8, 2026 council agenda.
The Lakes at Mustang Ranch PID runs $1,371.22 (Phase #1, 50' lot) to $7,672.18 (Phase #7, one-acre lot) for 2026-27, including the Phases #2-9 major-improvement installment. The Mustang Lakes (Annex) PID runs $3,142.05 (40' lot) to $5,921.55 (74' lot). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 service plan updates, August 11, 2026. Mostly Prosper ISD.
2026-27 installments of $1,975.42 (50' lot) to $5,494.58 (74' lot), depending on phase, including the Phases #2-7 major-improvement installment. Source: City of Celina service and assessment plan updated July 14, 2026. Celina ISD.
Improvement Area #1, 2026-27: $2,553.90 (40' lot), $3,037.07 (55' lot) and $3,451.22 (65' lot). Source: City of Celina service and assessment plan updated July 14, 2026, when the council also took up bonds for Improvement Area #2.
2026-27: Phase #1A, $1,194.32 (40' lot) to $1,790.58 (60' lot); Phase #1B, $1,265.52 to $1,897.33 (City of Celina, August 11, 2026). Some first-phase sections, including parts of Rise, Enclave, Brookshire and Arbors at Legacy Hills, are also in North Parkway MMD #1 at $0.408 per $100 (Collin CAD, 2026).
Improvement Area #1, 2026-27: $4,796.92 (60' lot), $4,317.23 (55' lot) and $2,878.15 (multifamily class). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 service plan update, August 11, 2026.
2026-27 installments of $2,364.01 (40' lot) to $6,490.09 (74' lot), depending on phase. The Parks at Wilson Creek (Annex) PID is $4,151.07 (40' lot) to $6,226.61 (60' lot). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 service plan updates, August 11, 2026.
2026-27 installments of $1,805.93 (50' lot) to $2,004.99 (70' lot). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 service plan update, August 11, 2026.
Gross 2026-27 phase installments: Phase #1, $1,734.01 (50' lot) to $2,375.36 (70' lot); Phase #2, $1,025.07 to $1,404.21; Phase #3, $999.61 to $1,369.33. A separate Phases #2-3 installment of $814.17 to $1,115.31 is reduced by a TIRZ credit, to $0 on many lots this year. Source: City of Celina, August 11, 2026. Prosper ISD.
Improvement Area #1, 2026-27: $2,053.09 (40' lot), $3,113.85 (55' lot) and $3,421.82 (60' lot). Source: City of Celina 2026-27 service plan update, August 11, 2026.
Inside the city limits, these add a rate on top of the city tax (Collin CAD, 2026): Uptown MUD #1, $0.80 per $100, for sections of The Ranch at Uptown, The Heights at Uptown, La Terra and North Square at Uptown; Celina MMD #2, $0.77, for parts of Ramble; West Preston MUD #1 and Rainwater Crossing MMD, $0.80 each, for sections of Marilee and Rainwater Crossing.
Ben's take: “Celina changes month to month. I look at what's planned within a couple of miles of a house, the next PID, the next school, the next road, before my clients buy.”Ben Jimenez, Real Estate Agent, Real Broker, LLC
Celina went from 51,717 to 64,427 people from 2024 to 2025, up 24.6%, the fastest rate of any U.S. city with 20,000+ residents (Census Vintage 2025). About 58,400 live in Collin County and 6,100 in Denton County.
Collin CAD lists about 14,300 homes inside Celina's city limits on the Collin County side, and about 2,000 of them were built in 2024 alone. The largest neighborhoods on the roll include Mustang Lakes, Lilyana, Cambridge Crossing, Bluewood and The Parks at Wilson Creek.
The city council took up service and assessment plans and bond sales for three new PIDs in 2026: Celina 241 and Creekbend in August, and Ariana in September.
The city's new Downtown Center will house the Celina Public Library, with an interior digital mural by John Bramblitt and three exterior murals by Damien Mitchell, approved by the city council in 2026.
In March 2026 the city awarded an $11.9 million contract for the Ousley Park stream restoration and trail project. Old Bobcat Stadium is in Ousley Park. Wilson Creek Park Phase 1 is in design and construction.
Methodist Celina is at 1500 S. Dallas Parkway. The city has zoning overlay districts along the Dallas North Tollway corridor and the Collin County Outer Loop, and is rebuilding Celina Parkway and Glendenning Parkway (FM 428).
| Frisco | 12 mi |
| McKinney | 13 mi |
| Plano | 20 mi |
| DFW Airport | 33 mi |
| Dallas Love Field | 33 mi |
| Downtown Dallas | 38 mi |
Straight-line distances from central Celina (Census city point). Preston Road (SH 289) runs through the middle of town, and the city is planning growth along the Dallas North Tollway on its west side and the Collin County Outer Loop. Celina isn't a DART member, so plan on driving.
Brick storefronts from a rebuild that began around 1910 and the Pavilion on the Square, where many of the city's events happen.
A festival each May on the square. The city set aside up to $175,000 for the 2027 music lineup alone.
A market on the square one Friday a month from March through November.
A Celina Chamber of Commerce event each spring with more than 500 ticketed guests at downtown businesses.
The city's July celebration, followed by Beware! of the Square in October and Christmas on the Square for the holidays. The city added Celina Oktoberfest to its event contract in 2026.
A city park with a fishing platform. In 2025-26 the city approved platform repairs, restroom additions and a new playground.
Nine state titles from 1974 to 2024 and the Texas 11-man record of 68 straight wins, set from 1998 to 2002.
Home of Old Bobcat Stadium, where the city awarded an $11.9 million stream restoration and trail project in March 2026.
Just south in Frisco, home of the PGA of America and host of the 2027 PGA Championship, May 17-23, 2027.
A little history: John T. Mulkey named Celina in 1879 after his hometown of Celina, Tennessee, and a post office opened in 1881. When the St. Louis, San Francisco and Texas Railway arrived in 1902, the town moved one mile north to the tracks, moving its buildings on rollers, which earned it the nickname "Rollertown." Celina incorporated in 1907, and in 1915 it built Celina Pike, the first road in Collin County made just for automobiles. The town had 1,861 people in 2000 and 6,028 in 2010.
Representation on builder pricing, upgrades and the builder contract, starting from your first model-home visit in Celina.
Live video tours, in-person inspections and remote closing, so you can buy in Celina before you move to Texas.
Rent, tax and HOA numbers worked out before you offer on a rental in Celina.
A relaunch for Celina homes that came off the market: new pricing review, professional photos, drone and video tours, and a real marketing plan.
Selling the big house, finding the right-size next one, and timing both so you only move once.
Contingent offers, temporary leasebacks or bridge financing, lined up so your sale and your purchase close on a schedule that works.
From pre-approval and down payment programs to inspection and closing, explained step by step before you sign anything.
Private showings, professional photo, drone and video production, and pricing built on true comparable luxury sales.
Ben Jimenez has helped Dallas-Fort Worth buyers, sellers and investors since 2021, with 56+ transactions, $23M+ in sales volume and a 5.0 rating from 46+ five-star reviews. He works in Celina and across DFW on new construction, relocation, investing and multifamily, relaunching homes that didn't sell, downsizing, selling and buying at the same time, first-time buyers, and luxury homes over $1 million. Texas real estate license 0784675.
For many buyers, yes, with tradeoffs. Celina is the fastest-growing city in the U.S. with 20,000+ people (from 51,717 to 64,427 residents, 2024 to 2025, Census), mostly new homes, a median sale price near $558,000 (Zillow, August 2026), a historic downtown square and a strong small-town football tradition. Celina ISD is rated B (85) by TEA and southern Celina is in A-rated Prosper ISD. The tradeoffs: a base tax rate near 2.01% per $100, plus a PID installment of roughly $1,000 to $7,700 a year or a MUD tax in most new neighborhoods, constant construction, schools that are filling up, and a drive of about 12 miles to Frisco and 38 miles straight-line to downtown Dallas. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC who works in Celina, shows buyers the full monthly payment, PID or MUD included, before they choose a neighborhood.
Celina's median sale price was about $558,000 in August 2026, and Zillow's typical home value of about $512,000 in September 2026 was down 8.9% from a year earlier. Homes went under contract in a median of 72 days and sold at about 97.5% of list price (Zillow). Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC who works in Celina, prices homes against recent closed sales in the same neighborhood and against the builders nearby.
For 2026-27, the City of Celina's rate is $0.571677 per $100, Celina ISD's is $1.2088, Collin County's is $0.151414 and Collin College's is $0.08122, for a combined rate of about $2.01 per $100 before exemptions. In Prosper ISD ($1.2011) the combined rate is about $2.005. Most newer neighborhoods add a PID installment or a MUD tax on top. The city gives owners 65+ a $30,000 exemption and a tax freeze. Ben Jimenez, a Celina real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, pulls the exact tax bill before his buyers make an offer.
Some areas do. Light Farms is in Collin County MUD No. 1, at $0.86 per $100 for 2026, and since it's in Celina's ETJ it pays no city tax, for a total near $2.29 per $100. Inside the city limits, Uptown MUD #1 ($0.80) covers sections of The Ranch at Uptown, The Heights at Uptown, La Terra and North Square at Uptown; Celina MMD #2 ($0.77) covers parts of Ramble; North Parkway MMD #1 ($0.408) covers some Legacy Hills sections; and West Preston MUD #1 and Rainwater Crossing MMD ($0.80 each) cover sections of Marilee and Rainwater Crossing (Collin CAD, 2026). Most other new Celina neighborhoods use a PID instead. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who works in Celina, checks the special districts for the exact address before his buyers make an offer.
A PID (public improvement district) assessment pays for a neighborhood's streets, utilities and parks through a fixed annual installment per lot, billed on the property tax bill by the Collin County Tax Office. Celina has 30 PIDs. 2026-27 examples per home: Mosaic $2,208.74 to $7,014.24; Mustang Lakes (Lakes at Mustang Ranch) $1,371.22 to $7,672.18; Cambridge Crossing $1,975.42 to $5,494.58; North Sky $2,553.90 to $3,451.22; Legacy Hills $1,194.32 to $1,897.33; Ten Mile Creek $2,878.15 to $4,796.92; Wilson Creek Meadows $1,805.93 to $2,004.99 (City of Celina service plan updates). The assessment is paid over 30 annual installments and can be paid off early. Ben Jimenez, a Celina real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, pulls the installment for the exact lot from the city's assessment roll.
Most of Celina is in Celina ISD, which had 6,337 students in 2025-26, one high school and a B (85) rating from TEA in 2026, with three new elementary schools opening for 2027-28. Southern Celina, including Mustang Lakes, Lilyana, Creeks of Legacy and most of Light Farms, is in Prosper ISD, rated A (91). Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who works in Celina, confirms the district for the exact address before his buyers make an offer.
Both. Of Celina's estimated 64,427 residents in July 2025, about 58,358 lived in Collin County and 6,069 in Denton County. The county changes the tax rate, so check which side an address is on.
Celina has its historic downtown square, Celina Cajun Fest in May, Friday Night Markets from March through November, the Chamber's spring Downtown Wine Crawl, Splash & Blast in July, Beware! of the Square in October, Christmas on the Square, Celina Oktoberfest, Old Celina Park, the new Ousley Park trail project and Celina Bobcats football, with nine state titles. PGA Frisco is just south in Frisco.
Yes, it's most of the market. Collin CAD lists about 14,300 homes inside the city limits on the Collin County side, and about 2,000 were built in 2024 alone. Large communities include Mustang Lakes, Lilyana, Cambridge Crossing, Mosaic, North Sky, Legacy Hills, Ten Mile Creek and The Parks at Wilson Creek, and the city added three new PIDs in 2026: Celina 241, Creekbend and Ariana. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, represents buyers on new construction in Celina from the first model-home visit.
Celina had 16,739 residents at the 2020 Census and an estimated 64,427 as of July 1, 2025, with about 58,358 in Collin County and 6,069 in Denton County. That was a 24.6% jump from 2024, the fastest rate of any U.S. city with 20,000+ people.
Budget for the full tax bill: a base rate near 2.01% per $100 plus a PID installment or MUD tax in most new neighborhoods. Check which school district the address is in, because southern Celina is in Prosper ISD and Celina ISD is redrawing elementary boundaries for 2027-28. Expect to drive: Frisco is about 12 miles south and downtown Dallas about 38 miles straight-line, with no DART service. And expect construction for years, because the city is still adding PIDs and neighborhoods. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who helps people relocating to Dallas-Fort Worth, maps commute, school and tax for each home before his clients choose.
Ben Jimenez is a Dallas-Fort Worth real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC (Texas license 0784675) who works with buyers and sellers in Celina. He has closed 56+ transactions and $23M+ in sales volume since 2021, with a 5.0 rating from 46+ five-star reviews. Reach him at 469-730-6895 or ben@findyourhomedallas.com.
Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who helps people relocating to Dallas-Fort Worth, starts the search from the new office or school address and works outward by commute time, then runs showings by live video and handles inspections and builder walk-throughs in person so clients can buy before they move.
Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, takes over Celina listings that didn't sell. He starts with why it didn't sell, including competition from builders and the PID or MUD buyers compare, then relaunches it with a new pricing review against recent closed sales, professional photos, drone and video tours, and a marketing plan built for that home.
Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, markets $1M+ homes in Celina and across Dallas-Fort Worth with pricing based on true comparable luxury sales, professional photos, drone footage, a full video tour, and private showings for qualified buyers.
Yes. Common ways are a contingent offer, a temporary leaseback after your sale closes, or bridge financing, and some builders work with contingent buyers. With Celina homes taking about 72 days to go under contract, Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent with Real Broker, LLC, lines up the sale and purchase so both close on a workable schedule.
Start with what your current home will sell for, then decide what size, lot and HOA you want next and whether to buy before or after you sell. A smaller lot also means a smaller PID installment in most Celina neighborhoods. The city gives owners 65 and older a $30,000 exemption and a tax freeze, and Ben Jimenez recommends asking the appraisal district about the school tax ceiling too.
Texas has state down payment and mortgage assistance programs, such as TDHCA's My First Texas Home and TSAHC's Home Sweet Texas, for buyers who qualify on income and other rules. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who works with first-time buyers in Celina, connects buyers with lenders who use those programs before they start touring, and makes sure the PID or MUD is in the payment they qualify for.
It depends on the numbers for the specific home: rent, a combined tax rate near 2.01% plus any PID installment or MUD tax, HOA dues and any HOA leasing rules. Ben Jimenez, a real estate agent who works with investors in Celina, runs those numbers before his clients make an offer.
Book a call with Ben Jimenez, call or text 469-730-6895, or get a free home value.
*Zillow Celina home values, median sale price (August 2026), median days to pending, sale-to-list ratio and inventory, three-month averages through September 30, 2026. **City of Celina, Celina ISD, Collin County and Collin College 2026-27 adopted rates from the Collin CAD entity rate list (data.texas.gov), summed; Prosper ISD and MUD/MMD rates and exemptions from the same list; Denton County rate from the City of Frisco FY 2027 tax rate page. PID installments: City of Celina service and assessment plans and 2026-27 annual service plan updates (council agendas of July 14, August 11 and September 8, 2026). MUD and MMD coverage by neighborhood: Collin CAD 2026 appraisal data. Light Farms: Collin County MUD No. 1. Sources: U.S. Census Bureau 2020 and Vintage 2025 estimates (growth ranking computed from the Census city file); Texas State Historical Association; Wikipedia; Celina ISD; TEA 2026 accountability ratings; Celina Chamber of Commerce; City of Celina council agendas; Methodist Health System; PGA of America. Distances are straight-line. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed. Updated November 11, 2026.