real estate tax appraisal protest agent/lawyer ?

[Trainwreck20]

Is this your homestead? If so, they can't legally raise the tax appraisal over 10% in any given year.

Your appraisal can go up (or down) any amount per year, even if it is homestead exempted property. Your assessed taxes can only be based on a 10% increase in appraised value from the previous year.

[cls88]

Originally Posted by austin-steve

Well, TCAD doesn't have pictures of their comps, so I don't see how they can require them. I've never heard of that.

If you contact a new Realtor, you have no obligations. They can either agree to do you a favor or not. You might get added to a newsletter list or something though.

Steve

Thank you very much.

One of the comp we have was sold for $199k (closed around the end of last year or Jan this year) while ours is praised for $240 on the same street and about the same sq ft. Our house has the old (original 1950s) tiles and everything else. We showed the picture of these original bathes and kitchen (including the cracked tiles) and an estimate of foundation repair to the informal, the guy said he we have to show that the comp has the same or better internal conditions. He marked a few hundreds down from the original appraisal , and advised us to get some pictures of the comps for the formal.

Thanks again.

[cls88]

This is something I'm confused. How an old 1950s house of 1800 sq ft on east side of I35 (so many posts about how bad the area is) without any updating and with some foundation problems worth $240k? The appraisal officers get to live in this town and know the reputations and real market values of these areas. If the house could sell for that much, I’d sell it right away.

Do they follow some kind of guidelines and keep marking everything up as high as they can, or can they use some common knowledge and look at what the house real market value? They get to be experts in housing market, right?

[mm57553]

Frankly, I haven't figured out how TCAD comes up with it's numbers. I'm really starting to think they just pull numbers out of a hat (or elsewhere).

One of the comps I used (same floorplan, same year, same section of Steiner as my house) was appraised at $350,000 for 2009. It sold 2 months ago for $300,000.

Seriously, how do they come up with the actual market value if they don't/can't use previous sale prices in their assessment?

[chickenfry]

i used to do my own protests. a couple years ago i didn't have the time to get to the meetings so hired one of the firms. i have stayed with them since because i realized that the law firms develope relationships with the appraisers. it just seems to work well. i do however participate myself as well, which isn't the norm in those relationships. (I have a unique property that doesn't lend itself to the "cookbook" approach that both the law firms and the appraisal district use).
i just spoke with my law firm representative yesterday. he said that the place is nuts. no were to park, no where to have his off the record chats. he said that on average only 40% of folk that file a protest actually show up for the hearing. this year that number is approaching 80%!
if you are doing your own call and ask them to send you the comps they are using 834-9138. then run by there and ask for their "field card" on your property. they won't mail this to you, you have to go in person. it is a little set of facts "as they see them" specific to your house.
good luck!