Protesting property taxes is a Texan tradition—and more Texans are doing it than ever before. Not only have they been doing it from before Texas even became a state, but today’s property owners can see significant tax savings for keeping up the fight. Tracking increases in your property’s value, protesting new appraisal values every year, and ensuring you have all the exemptions your property is eligible for are key steps to protecting your home (and your neighbors’ homes) from steeply rising property valuations and tax bills.
But you don’t have to launch your protest alone. Instead, tax protest services are available that can handle filing the paperwork, gathering evidence, and presenting arguments in front of an appraisal review board. The question is—how do you find a company you can trust?
In this article, we step back in time to see how property taxes—and property tax protests—have shaped the history of homeownership across the state, both at the start of the state’s modern history and in recent years. Then we’ll examine today’s property tax protest processes and what you can do. Finally, we’ll give you some key factors to focus on if you’re looking for a tax protest service that can handle everything for you and fight for lower property taxes on your behalf.
Fighting Property Taxes Is a Part of Texas History
Back in 1830, before Texas was a state or even an independent country, tensions between President Anastasio Bustamante’s government and Texas settlers were high. Secession attempts, failed rebellions like the Fredonian Rebellion, and settlers’ refusal to comply with slavery reform policies resulted in the Law of April 6, 1830. Under this law, settlements across Mexican Texas were reabsorbed if they had under 150 settlers, and many ten-year exemption programs for recent immigrants were canceled. The law also banned any further immigration from the US and obtaining new slaves.
Those measures led Texas settlers to declare independence, fight to become an independent country by 1836, and join the United States in 1845.
While property tax exemptions were just a small part of the fight, property taxes remained an important aspect of governance and land ownership through the following decades. Across the latter half of the 1800s and throughout the 1900s, Texas’s decentralized tax collection system created a system of chaotic tax collection, poor adherence to property valuation rules, and no norms on property assessments or tax calculations. In fact, by 1982, Texas eliminated property tax at the state level altogether.
Instead, Texas has developed a system of local property taxes. Local governments and districts tax residents through the school district, city, and county levies to pay for local projects. While the state government mandates specific processes and norms, property appraisals, tax assessments, and related processes are handled locally. This is why a homeowner in Collin County will pay a different property tax rate than one in Fort Bend County, even if their homes are valued the same. Dallas City and Mesquite residents, both within Dallas County, may have drastically different tax rates due to the different localized levies that may apply to their properties.
Related: Homeownership in Texas: Mortgage Payments, Taxes, and Home Values
Why Modern-Day Homeowners Continue to Face High Property Taxes in Texas
Today, Texas homeowners still operate within a local property tax system. There is no state income tax, and local government bodies dispense Texas property tax bills every October. However, Texas has seen a new trend over the past several years; property values are skyrocketing, and the Texas legislature is passing higher and higher property tax exemptions to try and keep pace with the increases.
Before 2015, the property tax exemption for eligible homesteaders was $15,000, which increased to $25,000 that year. It was increased again to $40,000 in May 2022. This year, voters will weigh in on the largest property tax exemption increase yet: a meteoric rise to $100,000 for eligible properties. However, this anticipated legislation won’t be enough for many homeowners statewide. Property values have increased statewide by an average of 214%, most of that appreciation happened in the last four years. Increasing property tax exemption-based savings by approximately $600 a year when property tax bills have doubled over ten years doesn’t give enough tax relief, and many homeowners are looking for what other options are on the table.
What You Can Do to Fight for Lower Property Taxes Every Year
Fortunately, filing for property tax exemptions isn’t the only option available for property owners across the state. In addition, you can protest your property taxes to argue for a lower tax bill each year. In the spring, county appraisal districts send homeowners their Notices of Appraised Value if the property value increased—and most residents can check their annually released property valuations online. If you believe your appraised property value is too high, you can file a protest notice and start moving through each step of the protest process.
As a basic overview, here’s how the process works:
- Homeowners can file a “Property Owner’s Notice of Protest” before the spring deadline. This document requires details about your property, your reason for protesting, a counter-valuation amount, and evidence to support your argument.
- Once your notice of protest is processed, you may receive a second appraisal notice with a newly reduced amount. You can accept the amount or continue the protest process.
- Next, your county appraiser may schedule an informal meeting to discuss the valuation. At this stage, you might discuss your evidence, receive a new valuation, and be asked if you want to continue the protest.
- The final step is a formal hearing before an appraisal review board. You and the county appraiser will each present evidence to support your property appraisal. You can discuss the value of comparable properties, easements and other factors that should bring down your recorded property value and any other evidence that supports your protest. The review board will then make a final judgment, which will be entered into the appraisal district roll for tax calculation purposes. While it’s possible to appeal their decision later, this is typically the end of the process.
But this can be incredibly challenging for residents trying to manage their property taxes around their jobs, families, and a hectic schedule. Having your home reappraised and gathering sufficient evidence to support your counter-valuation can also be a challenge. Instead, many homeowners turn to property tax protest services that can manage everything from the initial filing to presenting arguments at the hearing. With the right service, you can fight for lower property taxes without missing a step or feeling overwhelmed.
Related: Is It Worth It to Protest Your Property Taxes?
How to Choose a Property Tax Protest Service That Can Represent You
Finding an affordable property tax protest service, you can trust is important for ensuring you see the biggest possible savings for your property. If you’re looking for a company but don’t know where to start, start by searching for options that meet these five criteria:
- Search for a Company Offering Comprehensive Services
Different tax companies offer different degrees of service. Some may file the paperwork for you, while others can appraise your property and help you gather evidence. Instead, look for options that handle the entire process for you, including:
- Using local data and AI to create a counter-valuation of your property
- Filing the protest notice and accompanying paperwork on your behalf
- Managing the entire protest process every year, including representing you at your hearing with local tax professionals
- Clearly communicating with you about the process, which can be long
- Choose a Service That Can Make a Strong Argument on Your Behalf
Look for a company that can adequately represent you and your property. Look at companies’ reviews, online ratings, and proven savings records to ensure they’re a good fit and do more than go through the motions. You can also investigate how they gather and present evidence. Do they reappraise your property by analyzing local data to determine a fair tax value? Do they represent you at an informal or formal hearing, or do they just seem to do the bare minimum?
- Only Pay a Fair Rate for the Service—And Look for Percentage-Based Payment Structures
While you want a company that does a great job arguing for a lower property tax bill, you don’t want an expensive service. If they charge too much, that can erode the savings you get on your property. On the other hand, if they charge too little, it could indicate they aren’t putting much effort into your case.
That’s why looking for a service that charges you a percentage rate and only a small flat fee is best. A percentage-based payment incentivizes the company to put in the right amount of work because they only make money when you save much more. A flat fee ensures that they take your property through the entire process.
- Look for a Company That Saves You Time
You should spend as little time as possible on your property taxes. That’s the advantage of hiring professionals! As you’re searching, focus on companies that:
- Offer easy online signup
- Can represent you on a recurring basis every year without you having to sign up again
- Is available to answer your questions
- Find a Company That’s Ready to Start Working for You Now
While 2023 property valuations have been finalized, there’s still plenty of time to prepare for 2024 property taxes. By signing up for a service now, you can ensure you’re ready to fight against high property valuations in the spring, even if the protest deadline slips your mind.
Take Up the Tradition of Fighting Property Taxes With Help From Home Tax Shield
Protesting property taxes is an important strategy for reducing your tax bill and ensuring you only pay a fair amount in Texas. At Home Tax Shield, we have a long history of representing homeowners and helping them get fair property valuations that keep their tax bills as low as possible. If you want to protest your taxes this spring but don’t want to deal with all the paperwork and hearing dates, sign up today to put Home Tax Shield to work calculating your home’s fair tax value and managing the paperwork.