It’s that time of year again – Tax-Assessed Appraisal time.
On May 1st, if you are a homeowner, you should receive your property valuation by your county appraisal district. And, according to recent article in the community impact, it is most likely that your tax appraisal has increased. According to the article, home values in Travis County increased by 5% over last year. The average appraisal in Travis County rose from $281,623 in 2008 to $295,747 in 2009.
For those of you who think your new tax appraisal value is too high, you have until May 31st to protest your county’s appraisal.
To help you through the process of filing your protest, I have a few suggestions.
To begin, keep in mind that your tax-assessed value is different than the market value of your home. Many people confuse the two distinctions, and it is likely that the two values on your home are different. The tax-assessed value is what Travis County believes your Austin home or Austin condo is worth. While the county does attempt to set their values at a market value, the county does not evaluate comparables nor perform individual market analysis on every home, which is the action we would perform to assess the market value of your specific 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. If your tax-assessed value, which you pay taxes on, is too low, there is no action required. However, if you believe that the tax assessed value on your specific home is too high, follow the steps below to protest your Austin real estate appraisal.
File Your Protest
Travis County has a protest form. However, you can type up or handwrite your protest and fax or mail it in. If you are going to write up your protest, be sure to include the following:
- Identify yourself as the homeowner
- Include the property address
- Indicate that you are dissatisfied with the decision made by the appraisal district
Prepare to Wait
After you have filed, it can take several months for the Travis County Appraisal District to schedule your informal hearing.
Prepare to Present
The purpose of the informal hearing is for you to present your evidence and facts to support your claim that they have over-valued your Austin home or condo. We suggest the following as valuable evidence to compile for your hearing:
Comparable Market Analysis
A comparable market analysis looks at Market Value and shows recent sales for homes that are similar to yours in size, age, location and type of construction. Use the GoodLife Team Market Snapshot to get an online evaluation of your home using real-time data from the Austin MLS. This tool is easy to use and we stand ready to answer any questions you may have regarding the data.
Documentation Regarding Your Home’s Condition
Do you have foundation issues? Plumbing problems? Anything that would adversely affect the Market Value of your home should be documented. Take photographs and bring them with you to your hearing.
Documentation Regarding Your Home’s Location
Once again, anything that would adversely affect the Market Value of your home is evidence that you can use in your appeal. If your home backs up to a busy street, consider printing off a Google map to document your location.
Recently Purchased Homes
If you purchased your home in the last several months, and the purchase price was lower than your appraised value, bring a copy of your settlement statement.
Present Your Evidence
There are a couple of things to keep in mind for the day of your hearing:
- The Appraisal District is responsible for setting appraised value. They have nothing to do with the tax rate. You are not going to the hearing to protest your tax rate or how much you are paying in taxes. You are only appealing the counties assessed value of your home.
- Be polite and courteous.
- Bring an extra copy of your supporting documentation to leave with the county
For more information on the process, contact the Travis Central Appraisal District at 512.834.9138 or visit their website at http://www.traviscad.org/. For information on the Williamson County appraisal and appeal process, visit http://www.wcad.org/ or call 512.930.3787.
If you found this article valuable or have any further questions, please post your thoughts here. We will get back to you right away. And, if you successfully appeal your appraised value, we want to hear about that too.
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What percentage of appeals by homeowners are successful? Would you recommend homeowners use a professional service such as Texas Protax Austin, Inc., to do this for them?
Nancy — I don\’t know the percentage of appeals by homeowners that are successful — but I will see if I can find that number. I do not recommend you pay for a service to protest your appraisal. You simply need a market analysis that you can defend. We are happy to provide you that for free. Call my office at 892.9473 if we can help.
Do you always need a hearing before the value will be changed e.g. if it’s a fairly obvious error then could they change it without a hearing?
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