DALLAS — It's that time of year -- property appraisals are coming in for homeowners. And for some people, their new appraisal may not be what they were hoping for.
The assessed value of your property multiplied by the tax rate is what determines your property tax bill. Because of that, a higher valuation means a higher property tax bill at the end of the year, which some aren't happy about, causing many to protest their appraisals.
So, what do you do if you want to protest your appraisal? Well, there's a few options.
The first thing to do is take your value notice, turn it over, fill it out and mail it in. That satisfies the legal requirement of filing a protest.
Mass appraisals are done using computer programs. Appraisers didn’t make a detailed study of your individual house. Appraisals are based on other homes around you. You can ask the appraisal district for the comparisons they are using, and they have to tell you which houses they are comparing to determine your appraised value.
Also, any realtor can help you find sales of nearby homes comparable to yours. Make sure they look at sales that go back to Jan. 1, 2022, since your value is based on all of 2022.
Take pictures of any damaged or worn parts of your home. And if you need some expensive repairs done, you should consider getting estimates to prove to the appraisal district your home needs work.
Some options to help you protest your appraisal include freetaxprotest.com/ and dallastaxdispute.com/.
Something else to look into, if you don't have it already, is a homestead exemption. The general homestead exemption is $40,000 for school district taxes, and other entities like counties, cities and utility districts have an option to offer up to a 20% exemption of a property's appraised value. That amount of your home’s appraisal value is exempted from taxation. Once you have that exemption, your appraisal can't go up more than 10% every year. That also helps keeps your property taxes in check, at least somewhat.
To qualify for the homestead exemption, the tax code says an individual must have an ownership interest in the property or use it as their principal residence. They are also required to state they don't claim an exemption at another residence homestead in Texas or anywhere else.