How to Protest Your Property Taxes
One of the reasons people are flocking to Texas is the perceived tax savings of having no State Income Tax. But our government has to get its money somehow...and that comes in the form of higher property taxes.
Just because the County Appraisal District says your home (that they've never seen in person) is worth X...so now you owe $1,000's more in taxes, doesn't mean you have to take their word for it! Here's how you can protest your property taxes.
You can submit your protest filing electronically or fill out a form and either mail or deliver it in person.
There are a couple of very important sections in the protest I want to highlight:
Section 4: Additional Facts
This is where you can input your opinion of your property’s value. You must also provide facts that may help resolve this protest in the box below.
As much as we all want to stick it to the people who are taking so much of your hard earned money...you are dealing with the entity that WANTS to take more money from you. You have to be reasonable. If similar homes are selling between $450,000 and $600,000...you can't come telling them $300,000. They will not take your protest seriously.
When you are submiting a protest, be sure to ask them for their evidence to give you clarity on what comps they’re looking at to come up with a value for your property.
The more ammo you have to fight their appraised value, the better chance you have at successfully reducing that value.
Section 5: Hearing Type
Do you request an informal conference before your protest hearing?
This gives you the opportunity to present your case and come to an agreement directly with the appraisal district. You want to try to do the informal hearing if you can because the formal process can be extremely difficult to have success with.
How do you intend to appear in the Appraisal Review Board hearing? You have the option to appear in person (PREFERRED), by phone conference, video conference, or on written affidavit submitted with evidence before the hearing begins.
The deadline to submit protest is May 15th at 11:59pm and the ARB hearing process will begin on April 17th and typically lasts about 15 minutes. Both property owner and a representative from the appraisal district will present their evidence and take questions from a panel of ARB members.
The property owner will receive a Notice of Final Order in the mail 3-4 weeks after the hearing.
If you have questions or need help with comps to back up your protest, please don't hesitate to reach out.
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