Selling Your House in Princeton, TX

The three county offices behind a Princeton sale

Princeton had about 37,019 residents in 2024, according to the Census Bureau, and all of it lies in Collin County. Every Princeton seller deals with the same three county offices:

Collin Central Appraisal District

The district in McKinney sets the taxable value and handles exemptions. If you think the value is wrong, you file the protest with the Collin Appraisal Review Board, which also hears it.

Collin County Tax Office

The district's tax rate and exemption table names the Collin County Tax Office as collector for both Princeton City and Princeton ISD. The tax assessor-collector mails statements in October and sets January 31 as the date to pay without penalty. If any year is unpaid, ask the office for a payoff figure early.

Collin County Clerk

Your deed, and the release when a loan is paid off, are recorded by the county clerk's land recordings office on Bloomdale Road in McKinney. That is also where you look up what has been filed against the property.

Who supplies your water, and how to close the account

Not every Princeton house gets its water from the city. The Utility Billing page says customers who get water from another provider should contact that supplier directly. The city's utility billing forms page has separate sewer-only applications for Culleoka and Milligan water customers, so a house can get its water from one of them and its sewer from the city. Look at your last bills before you set a shutoff date.

For city water customers, the Start / Stop Service page has the details that matter at move-out:

• A residential account carries a $200 deposit. $50 of it is a non-refundable service charge, and the other $150 comes back when the account closes, minus the final bill.
• The trash and recycling cart stays with the house. A resident who takes it is billed its replacement value.
• To end service, fill out the Disconnect Service Form. The printable version says to allow up to ten business days, asks for a forwarding address for any leftover deposit, and says a balance still owed after the deposit is billed to you.

Trash pickup runs through the city's contract with Community Waste Disposal (CWD), per the Utility Billing page. Utility Billing is at the Municipal Center, 2000 E. Princeton Drive, 972-736-2711.

Princeton code compliance and housing standards

Princeton's Code Compliance division enforces the city's Code of Ordinances. The violations it lists first are the ones a house sitting empty tends to collect:

• Grass, weeds and other plants over ten inches tall.
• Trash left outside the cart or overflowing.
• Junked vehicles in public view. The page says to move them behind a fence, repair them or get valid documentation to avoid a citation.

The division uses courtesy reminder door tags, and anyone can file a report online with the address and the type of problem. Cases about the condition of the house itself go further. Under the Housing Standards Commission page, the City Council acts as that commission: it interprets the city's housing standards, hears cases and decides them. If you get a notice about a substandard structure, read it closely and talk to a Texas real estate attorney before you list. Our page on selling a house that needs repairs covers the as-is option.

Permits and inspections for past work

If a buyer asks about past work, the answer lives with Building Inspections. Princeton takes permit applications, fees and inspection requests through its EnerGov self-service portal. The department's page says work that needs a permit must stay accessible and exposed until it is approved, and inspections run Monday through Thursday. A finished project that never had its inspections is a question for that department before closing, not after.

If a foreclosure notice is already posted

Texas foreclosures run on a fixed calendar. Under Property Code 51.002, a sale is held between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. on the first Tuesday of the month. At least 21 days before, the notice must be posted at the courthouse door, filed with the county clerk and mailed to the borrower by certified mail. On a home, the servicer must first give at least 20 days to cure the default before that notice can go out.

Collin County gathers posted notices in a foreclosure notice search that can be filtered to Princeton and shows the sale date. If your address is on it, a sale date has been set. Our page on selling a house to stop a foreclosure explains what owners do in that window, and Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas takes calls for Collin County at its McKinney office, 972-542-9405.

Selling your Princeton house to us

You can sell the house as-is without fixing anything first. We pay all closing costs, and we can close in 7–14 days. Se habla español.

Read how it works or get your offer started. If you are weighing the costs of holding a house while it sits, our holding cost calculator can help you run the numbers.

Local offices for this area

• Collin Central Appraisal District
• Collin County Tax Assessor-Collector: Property Taxes
• Collin County Clerk: Land Recordings
• City of Princeton: Start / Stop Utility Service
• City of Princeton Code Compliance
• Legal Aid of NorthWest Texas, McKinney office

ZIP codes we buy in: 75407