Home address: 7215 Bayou Oaks Dr

2021 Taxable Value: $220,692

Recent Sales Price: $107,000 – Over-taxed by 106%

Texas property owners can avoid paying excess property taxes by taking several basic steps. Appraisal districts are flexible on market value appeals given the large number of houses they value and that are protested. An unequal appraisal appeal is easy to prepare.  Just find neighborhood homes with a lower level of assessment (per square foot).  Summarize the data in a table. Property tax appeals are often won with a smile and a bit of data.

Many owners do not protest because they do not understand the process.  Most would appeal if they know how easy it is the high chance of success. It is difficult for appraisal districts to accurately value homes since they rarely or never see the houses. Tax protests are resolved at the informal hearing since the result is within a “reasonable range of value”.  Appraisal is not an exact science and valuations are only an educated opinion of value, not a fact. Not appealing your property taxes annually is the equivalent of volunteering to pay extra property taxes.