We have been paying property taxes and live outside the city limits!

[MyFoxG]

Wow! What great information! I will definitely check into these statements. I know the mortgage co. didn't provide a breakdown. Yes, we do need to see that we are being taxed fairly. And it is very true that although we would not being paying city taxes we would still be required to pay property taxes etc. And because we have never seen the actual breakdown, we don't know who is getting what, nor how much.

I will look into this and follow the links provided. I'm sure this info can help some others too! I'll keep you posted as to my success in understanding.

[TexasRedneck]

You can search your property online at:

Bexar CAD - Property Search

Compare your property valuation w/that of your neighbors - if it's grossly higher, protest it. Also, contact them and advise them that you haven't been receiving a copy of the appraisal (which they are required to mail to you). A LOT of folks mistakenly think that an increasing appraisal is "good" for them - it's not - it's good for the taxing entities, which charge you taxes based on the appraised value of the property. It's in your best interest to keep that appraisal as low as possible. If you go to sell the house, the appraisal district valuation has zero relationship to the selling price.

[ged_782]

Originally Posted by TexasRedneck

Also, contact them and advise them that you haven't been receiving a copy of the appraisal (which they are required to mail to you).

Just to clarify - The Bexar Appraisal district only mails out appraisal notices when they are proposing a change in your property value from the previous year. If no change, you won't hear from them.

I think the longest I've gone without a change in valuation has been three years. I didn't receive appraisal notices for those years. Of course, tax rates could change during those years, so you wouldn't necessarily owe the same amount in taxes from one year to the next. But BCAD will argue they don't have anything to do with tax rates; they just appraise the property.

[TexasRedneck]

Originally Posted by ged_782

But BCAD will argue they don't have anything to do with tax rates; they just appraise the property.

Yeah....an' pigs fly, right?

[BillyH]

Originally Posted by ged_782

Just to clarify - The Bexar Appraisal district only mails out appraisal notices when they are proposing a change in your property value from the previous year. If no change, you won't hear from them.

I think the longest I've gone without a change in valuation has been three years. I didn't receive appraisal notices for those years. Of course, tax rates could change during those years, so you wouldn't necessarily owe the same amount in taxes from one year to the next. But BCAD will argue they don't have anything to do with tax rates; they just appraise the property.

I have not received a notice in the last two years and in those two years the appraisal has gone down a few thousand. I have received them when the appraisal has gone up. When as an example NEISD proposes a budget and where to set the tax rate for the coming year I can't see BACD having any input one way or another on that process.

[TexasRedneck]

Really? Look at how the Chief Appraiser almost lost his job recently when he went after the so-called "low income" apartment complexes after he found that they were, in fact, NOT providing the level of discounts they were required to in order to maintain their favorable tax status. You would have THOUGHT that he would've been commended for being proactive - instead, he got called on the carpet and likely would've lost his job if the media hadn't jumped on it and reported it. Once the public eye was on 'em, it was hard for them to punish him for revoking the tax exemptions of some very politically powerful folks in SA.
Also - remember that his IS a politically-charged position - if the appraisals are too low, the taxing entities lose tax revenue, and trust me, they WILL be unhappy w/him! Right or wrong, that's the way it is.

[Steel Man]

Originally Posted by MyFoxG

Wow! What great information! I will definitely check into these statements. I know the mortgage co. didn't provide a breakdown. Yes, we do need to see that we are being taxed fairly. And it is very true that although we would not being paying city taxes we would still be required to pay property taxes etc. And because we have never seen the actual breakdown, we don't know who is getting what, nor how much.

I will look into this and follow the links provided. I'm sure this info can help some others too! I'll keep you posted as to my success in understanding.

Bexar County Tax rate info:

TAX-Prop1 (http://www.co.bexar.tx.us/links/taxoffice/Tax-About/TAX_-_Property/tax_-_property.htm - broken link)

Here is one more Bexar County link that shows the different tax entities in Bexar County, their 2009 (and prior years at bottom) tax rates and exemptions.

Tax Rate1 (http://www.co.bexar.tx.us/links/taxoffice/Tax-About/TAX_-_Property/Tax_Rate/tax_rate.htm - broken link)

[aguadiano]

when did Bexar county tax office start collecting city taxes for San Antonio ?

[ged_782]

Originally Posted by aguadiano

when did Bexar county tax office start collecting city taxes for San Antonio ?

I think it was around the mid to late 1990s.