How to Navigate a Property Tax Appraisal Protest

Depending on the county you live in, the deadline to file a protest for residential property tax appraisals is days away.

Many have until May 15 or 30 days after the notice of appraised value was sent, whichever is later.

• The Collin Central Appraisal District deadline is May 15.
• The Dallas Central Appraisal District’s protest deadline is May 22.
• Denton Central Appraisal District’s deadline is May 17.
• Tarrant Appraisal District says protests must be filed before May 30.

Read on for steps you can take now if you plan to protest.

“A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS TODAY, A FEW THOUSAND DOLLARS NEXT YEAR”

With a jump from $415,079 to $502,172 in the last year, Bo Rogers disagrees with the county appraisal district’s estimated value of his home.

“Of course, I'm protesting this year and I've got the numbers down,” Rogers told NBC 5 Responds.

Rogers, a mortgage loan officer, said he protests his appraisal on his own most years. He said he starts with a simple real estate search of his address online to see what numbers come up.

Because home sale prices are not public information, he’ll ask the agent who sold him his house to help look for what Rogers calls “the worst comps” or similar homes in his area that recently sold for less than the appraisal district's estimated “market value” for Roger’s home.

From there, Rogers said he settles on a number he believes is fair to present to the appraisal district. He said it often meets him part way.

“A few thousand dollars today, a few thousand dollars next year and the year after will make a big difference,” Rogers said.

WHY HOMEOWNERS SHOULD ENSURE THE VALUE IS FAIR

As the Texas Comptroller’s office explains it placing a value on your home is the first step in the property tax process. The appraisal district sets the taxable value of properties. Then, local entities, including county commissioners court, city council and school districts set tax rates when adopting their budgets.

Which is why homeowners should ensure the value is fair.

“You always need to make sure that you're trying to keep your market value in line and accurate,” said Will Wiggins, with North Texas Property Tax Services.

GATHERING INFORMATION ABOUT VALUE

Wiggins explains homeowners can take a few approaches when protesting, including presenting sales comps that support their argument. Homeowners can also check into appraised values of similar homes.

You can search that information on your county’s appraisal district website. For example, if you find a property similar to yours and assessed at a lower value, you can use that information to help make a case that your property is assessed too high. Remember to account for features like pools and age of the home.

As homeowners gather evidence, keep in mind, appraisers aren’t seeing inside homes and may not know about fire damage or other issues that would impact value. Document needed repairs or renovations with photos and estimates from your contractor.

“If you have a hole in your roof or something as of Jan. 1, then that would be considered atypical and then you'd want a consideration for that,” said Wiggins.

Wiggins explained that general maintenance needs in the home wouldn’t carry as much weight when protesting value with appraisal districts.

“Typical is the word to pay attention to,” Wiggins said. “If it's in a typical condition of the neighborhood, then that may work against you and it may not be considered as heavy as situations that are atypical.”

Homeowners can hire a consultant to handle the protest. Consumers may pay a flat fee, a contingency or a combination of the two.

If you protest yourself, your notice of appraised value should include a protest form. You can also find one online.

Most appraisal districts offer options like an online protest. Property owners may also end up settling on a value during an informal protest where a property owner can discuss the value with an appraiser one-on-one, before going to an appraisal review board hearing.

Before a hearing, you have the right to ask for the information the appraisal district used to set the value of your property. The appraisal district must provide it during the 14 days before your scheduled protest hearing. Here's a link to the Texas Comptroller's office list of frequently asked questions about ARB hearings. Under the "what are some helpful hints when protesting to the ARB" question, it explains you can ask for a copy of the data, schedules, formulas, and any other information that the appraisal district plans to introduce at the hearing.

If you have a homestead exemption because your property is your primary residence, the appraisal district can’t increase the appraised value, which is what your taxes are based on, more than 10 percent each year. On your property tax notice, you’ll see the appraisal district also lists the market value, what it believes you could sell your house for. The market value is not capped. That’s the value homeowners can protest, not the assessment.

The county can’t increase the value because you’ve protested its appraisal. If you succeed in lowering the appraisal, it wouldn’t impact your home’s sale price if you later put it on the market.

Homeowners should also ensure they are taking the exemptions they are eligible to take. That may be a homestead, disabled veteran or over 65 exemption. You can read more about exemptions here.

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