UPDATE: Word just in, TCAD has extended the deadline for submitting your appeal until June 1st due to the Memorial Day holiday.
In 2009, the GoodLife Team helped our customers, clients and friends reduce their home values over $1 million cumulatively — saving over $22,000 in real estate taxes! “I encourage everyone to appeal their taxes. When people don’t appeal, the taxing authority accepts that their value is correct. This affects all homeowners in a given area.” says Krisstina Wise. For that reason, we help people negotiate their values in order to do our part to help keep our real estate taxing authority in line with market value.
Check out our video on the appeal process for some quick tips and what to expect from both the Informal and Formal hearings (and what the difference is between the two). Then, keep reading to determine if you should appeal your county property valuation and how to proceed through the process:
Why is tax-assessed value different than market value?
The tax-assessed value is what your county believes your home or condo is worth. The county attempts to set their values at a market value. However, they do not evaluate comparables nor do they perform individual market analysis on every home. The county simply values your home according to the area, not the house. Meaning, the value may be too high or two low, depending on the size, location, amenities and condition of your specific home.
When should I receive my property valuation and how long do I have to appeal?
Travis county should begin mailing property valuations sometime after April 15th. Most homeowners receive their valuation on or around May 1st. Homeowners have until May 31st, or 30 days from the date they receive their valuation (whichever is later), to appeal.
This year, Travis County debuts an online protest system. This option will only be available for about 35,000 homeowners who should be receiving their appraisal notices within the next few weeks (as of May 6th). In the debut of this system, Travis County selected homes that meet specific criteria: under $300k in areas where all of the homes are of similar size, age and condition. For more information on the online system, refer to the recent article in the Austin American Statesman.









On Facebook
On Twitter