Warrenton's Data Center Fight Is Still in Court. Your Water Bill Already Moved.
October 22, 2026
October 22, 2026
If you are pricing a house inside Warrenton's town limits this fall, which change to your monthly costs is the bigger one: the town's real estate tax increase or its water and sewer increase? Most people guess the tax, because that is the one that makes headlines. The town's own budget numbers point the other way.
The rest of the story follows from that. The Amazon data center planned for Blackwell Road has been the town's main political issue for four years, and it will come up again before the Nov. 3 mayoral election. The site is still undecided. The costs a buyer actually takes on at closing were set by other decisions: a water and sewer rate study, a countywide reassessment, and two budget votes in a row. None of them depends on what a judge decides about Amazon.
In May, the Warrenton Town Council voted 5-2 to raise the town's real estate tax rate from $0.055 to $0.075 per $100 of assessed value. FauquierNow reported that this adds an average of $141.58 to residents' annual town tax bills. Because the median home value also rose by nearly $86,000, the median residential town bill came to $354.15. Before the FY2026 budget, the town rate was $0.040, according to the town's FY2026 adopted budget fact sheet. Over two budgets, the rate has nearly doubled.
In June, the council adopted the $58.2 million FY2027 budget, also 5-2, along with a 23% increase in water and sewer rates. The Fauquier Times estimated that the increase adds $20.40 a month, or about $244 a year, for a household using 5,000 gallons a month. The town's budget document uses a lighter 3,000 gallons a month and shows the average in-town residential bill rising from $67.58 to $83.24.
| Line item | Prior year | FY2027 / 2026 | What it means for a typical household |
|---|---|---|---|
| Town of Warrenton real estate rate, per $100 | $0.055 | $0.075 | $141.58 more a year on average |
| In-town water and sewer, 3,000 gallons a month | $67.58 a month | $83.24 a month | About $188 more a year |
| In-town water and sewer, 5,000 gallons a month | Not published | $20.40 more a month | About $244 more a year |
| Fauquier County countywide rate, per $100 | $0.967 | $0.895 | County average homeowner bill still up $321.43 |
At either usage level, the water increase is larger than the town tax increase. The water increase was also planned years ago. The town completed an update to its water and sewer rate study in 2023, which recommended phasing in rate increases and issuing debt to modernize aging infrastructure. The FY2027 budget says this is the last year of double-digit increases under that study. The Fauquier Times described the increase as "already in the works." For the first time in town history, the same budget also finances the Capital Improvement Program with bond debt, including upgrades to the wastewater treatment plant.
The county column shows the same pattern. Fauquier County lowered its countywide rate to $0.895 per $100 for 2026, down from $0.967. Even so, FauquierNow reported an average homeowner increase of $321.43, because the reassessment raised values faster than the rate came down. Warrenton residents pay both town and county taxes.
The original revenue estimates for the Amazon site were smaller and less certain than the length of the fight might suggest.
In 2021, then-Town Manager Brandie Schaeffer and Community Development Director Rob Walton sent tax estimates to council members, based on information apparently supplied by Amazon. As the Fauquier Times reported in 2022, Walton put the town's potential revenue at $4.6 million over five years and the county's at $10.6 million. The real estate portion was small. At the rates in effect then, the estimate was $12,544 a year to the town and $282,480 a year to the county.
Almost all of the projected money came from taxes on computer equipment, which is the least predictable part of the estimate. The same reporting described three ways that revenue could shrink:
Local officials planned with that uncertainty in mind from the start. In an August 2021 email, Schaeffer said she would recommend the town use data center revenue only for one-time capital improvements. Fauquier's commissioner of the revenue, Eric Maybach, replied that he would also advise against:
"allowing the county to become operationally dependent on this revenue."
Spread evenly, $4.6 million over five years is less than $1 million a year, set against a town budget that is now $58.2 million. The town's own staff also advised against using that money for recurring operating costs. Even under the original projections, the data center was not going to cover water mains or annual payroll.
Most of the legal history comes from the town attorney's December 2025 response to Amazon's zoning appeal, with later updates from FauquierNow.
Amazon's own position has not changed much. In a petition quoted in the town's December 2025 filing, Amazon said it had forgone immediate construction in Warrenton and leased data center space elsewhere, while still pointing to more than $550 million in planned future investment. The power supply is also unsettled. By early 2025, the Fauquier Times reported that Dominion Energy had not moved its proposal forward in about a year.
The election will not settle the question either. All three mayoral candidates, Council member David McGuire, Planning Commission Chair Darine Barbour and former Council member Renard Carlos, oppose data centers in town. The Fauquier Times reported that each has said what they would do if the courts allow construction. McGuire said he would hold Amazon to every zoning requirement. Barbour said she would push for enforceable conditions. Carlos and Barbour both described a public process for alternative uses if the legal challenges succeed. McGuire also noted that the mayor runs meetings and sets the agenda but votes only to break ties.
None of this has made Fauquier County a slow market. Bright MLS data for August 2026, current as of Sept. 4, shows a county median sold price of $675,000, up 4.7% from August 2025, with homes selling in a median of 16 days. Supply has loosened somewhat. The county ended August with 247 active listings, up 13.8% year over year, or 2.98 months of supply. Closed sales fell 4.5% to 85.
The reassessment shows up in every in-town tax bill. Fauquier's four-year reassessment raised total property values 22.3% from January 2022. The median residential value rose about 15.8%, from roughly $460,000 to $533,000. In practice, a buyer comparing a house inside town limits with a similar one outside is comparing two different cost structures. The in-town house adds a town tax line that is still rising and, where the house is on town utilities, a water and sewer bill set by a rate study and bond financing. The data center will not change either number this year.
Before an offer, ask the seller for twelve months of town water and sewer bills, and confirm whether the parcel is inside town limits so you know which tax lines apply. This post is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice. Please confirm your own situation with the appropriate professional.
Is the Amazon data center going to be built? As of the latest reporting in August 2026, the main challenge to the permit and the zoning amendment was waiting on Judge Sincavage's ruling, and Amazon's vested-rights appeal was still active. The Fauquier Times' election coverage reports that Amazon still owns the parcel.
Do county residents outside town limits pay the Warrenton tax? The town rate is a separate levy that applies to property inside Warrenton. Town residents pay it in addition to the county rate.
Will water rates keep climbing at this pace? The town's FY2027 budget calls this year the last double-digit increase recommended by its 2023 rate study. Future rates will depend on later budgets.
If you are weighing a property in or around Warrenton and want to know what it will really cost to own, start with its utility history, its tax lines and the land-use questions around it. Debbie Meighan can go through those details with you before you commit. Schedule a confidential consultation to discuss your estate.
Debbie's mission is to connect qualified buyers and motivated sellers to cement the best real estate transactions, deals where both sides come together for a common goal, and everyone feels like they have walked away a winner.
