How accurate is the Dallas County Property Tax Estimator? (Austin: sales, real estate)

[CoastieOnTheMove]

Newbie/hopeful home buyer here. I've found the Dallas County Property Tax Estimator: https://www.dallascad.org/TaxRateCalculator.aspx

But am unsure how accurate this is. For market value, is this considered to be the purchase price of the home in Dallas County? I've also read here on this forum that people can dispute tax appraisers. Would someone with experience mind explaining/linking this process?

[rabbit33]

If you buy a house, the assessed value the next year is going to be very near the purchase price. You might as well use that in your estimation.

I've never used the "calculator"; you can do just as well by taking the tax rate for each taxing entity and summing them all up, plus considering the (well explained) homestead and over-65 exemptions, plus any others you may be eligible for.

To be exact about it, just take the tax assessment of the house next door to the one you're interested in; that'll show you which are the taxing entities that apply to the specific property you're considering.

You can dispute the assessment of your house, but you're going to have a heck of a job convincing them that your actual market value is less than what you just paid for it. I mean, what you just paid for the house IS the actual market value! Disputing is a lot more likely to work if you have an older house in worse condition than nearby houses and you can document this.

Keep in mind, too, that land doesn't depreciate, so if your assessed value is mostly in the land, it'll be based on the size of the lot and you won't have much hope of disputing that.

[tcualum]

i was able to dispute it once by showing that there was major work that needed to be done. I provided extensive documentation including photos.

[TurtleCreek80]

You can calc your taxes using the rates on their site and the exemptions you will qualify for (homestead, over 65, etc). Just be sure to use the price you’re paying and not what the home is currently appraised for as their could be a big gap there. Assume DCAD will know what you paid & be happy if the tax bill comes in lower.

You can dispute the value - say if you pay $600k and then your home has $80k of damage from a strong windstorm or fire, or if you pay $600k and they appraise it at $800k that same year. But you will not be able to argue that it’s worth $525k b/c that’s what the next door neighbor’s identical house is appraised at if you just paid $600k. Generally, you have better luck contesting the value once you’re been there a few years and the repairs start to rack up…

[Rakin]

And they only set / adjust values 1 time a year in the spring depending on when you close on the house you may get the 1st year of taxes at the Sellers value. If it falls just right it may take them 15+ months to reappraise the house. They will also sometimes skip a year of reappraising. They usually reappraise a home 2 out of 3 years but with Inflation here it's probably yearly.

And yes that Calculator should be very accurate if you plug in the right information.

[TX Rover]

It’s a pretty solid estimate based on current tax rates. It’s highly likely that your assessed value will be slightly lower than sales price and you will have to factor the homestead exemption. If you use your projected sales price that’s a solid number.

[albert648]

Originally Posted by Rakin

And they only set / adjust values 1 time a year in the spring depending on when you close on the house you may get the 1st year of taxes at the Sellers value. If it falls just right it may take them 15+ months to reappraise the house. They will also sometimes skip a year of reappraising. They usually reappraise a home 2 out of 3 years but with Inflation here it's probably yearly.

And yes that Calculator should be very accurate if you plug in the right information.

Based on historical data it looks like values are adjusted every 3 years in my area unless the house changed hands and it was adjusted in the owner's favor.

Your first year's property taxes are most likely going to be on the lesser of whatever the current appraised value is or your purchase price.

[DFWNRH]

Could someone help me estimate mine.. my lot value is close to 300k, and house is worth 450k, do they count lot value as part of the property tax? I am new to the area. lot is only 10,000 sqft. Thanks.

[albert648]

Originally Posted by DFWNRH

Could someone help me estimate mine.. my lot value is close to 300k, and house is worth 450k, do they count lot value as part of the property tax? I am new to the area. lot is only 10,000 sqft. Thanks.

Your taxable value is $750k less whatever exemptions you would qualify for.

[AustinExPat]

The bizarre thing about real estate in Texas is that the price a piece of real estate actually sells for is not in the public record. I'll give you a moment to let that sink in. Instead of the actual sales price, the public record will say that the property sold for "10 dollars plus other valuable consideration."

The Texas real estate industry *does* know what properties actually sold for, so some county appraisal districts (including mine) tried hiring a consulting company to take out a subscription to the multiple listings service in order to pass along actual sales prices to the county. That went on for a while, but it was a violation of the MLS terms of service and was eventually stopped. So, officially, the appraisal district is supposed to make a stab at what your home is worth based on information that *is* in the public record, and since none of that information is definitive, it can be worthwhile to appeal. For example, if you've just bought your house and the appraisal district proposes a value that's more than you paid, you can appeal to have it reduced to what you paid by using your closing papers as documentation.

Now, if you're bound and determined to minimize your RE taxes every year, you can sign up with one of the many companies that will appeal your appraisal on your behalf every year. They will get information from you and from their own sources and file the appeal for you. If there's an in-person hearing, they'll attend and speak on your behalf. You don't have to go to the hearing yourself. They typically charge a percentage of whatever they save you in taxes plus (maybe) a base fee. I used one of these services for years in Austin, and for a while they saved me money year after year. Eventually they could no longer get my appraisal reduced. The appraisal district finally had enough good information to set a defensible value.