Here's Exactly How to Win Your Texas Property Tax Protest

Every spring, Texas property owners get a Notice of Appraised Value from their county appraisal district. It sets what the district thinks your property was worth on January 1.

This matters because that value gets multiplied by your local tax rates to set your bill for the year.

Roughly every $1,000 of appraised value costs you about $20 a year, though the combined rate varies by district and by the exemptions you hold.

It may not surprise you, but districts appraise millions of parcels with software, not visits. Somewhere between 30% and 60% of properties end up over-assessed as a result.

Every owner has the right to protest. So why do only about 5% file, and why do so many of those walk away with little to no reduction?

Why Many Owners Fail

The truth is, convincing a district appraiser or a review board that your property is worth less is not easy, for a few reasons:

• Limited access to comparable data. Owners don't usually have MLS sales records or the full county appraisal roll, which is exactly what the district is working from.
• Owners are not appraisers. District staff run thousands of valuations a season, with software, training, and a defined method behind them.
• Administrative burden. Filing the right form on time, tracking a hearing date, messaging through a county portal, and assembling evidence the way the district accepts it.
• Intimidation and confusion. The first time facing an appraiser or a board is scary, and building your evidence doesn't come with a training manual or blueprint.

But fortunately, you don't need to go it alone. Professional property tax consultants, like the team at TaxDrop, have won millions for our clients across thousands of cases.

So how do professionals, and even experienced homeowners, protest for the fairest valuations?

Know Your Deadline

Before anything else, find your date.

In Texas, your protest deadline is May 15, or 30 days after your notice was delivered, whichever is later. A handful of districts mail late, which pushes your personal deadline past May 15. A few special property categories run on their own dates.

Miss it and you have almost no options for that tax year. Check the date printed on your own notice and work back from there.

Here's the whole process, start to finish:

1. Your notice arrives, generally April into early May.
2. You file a Notice of Protest by your deadline.
3. The district schedules you, and you request their evidence.
4. You try to settle informally with the appraiser assigned to your property.
5. If that fails, you present to the Appraisal Review Board (ARB).
6. The ARB issues a written order. If you still disagree, you have routes past it, though that is not commonly done.

Most protests never get past step four.

Determine Your Actual Valuation

There are two ways the district must fairly value your property, and you can argue one or both. Always go with the lower.

1. Equal to market value. Your value can't be higher than what your property would actually sell for. You prove it with comparable sales, meaning recent arm's-length sales of similar nearby properties. (Tax Code 41.43(a).)
2. Equal appraisal to similar properties. Even if the market backs up their number, you can't be valued higher than comparable properties that are appraised lower. The test uses the median value of a reasonable number of comps, adjusted for differences. (Tax Code 41.43(b)(3). Texans call this unequal appraisal or equal and uniform.)

To check both, look at recent sales near you and the appraised values of similar homes on your district's website.

Unless your home has very similar comparables, you'll need to make adjustments for things like square foot, bed/bath counts, lot size, age, condition, and features like pools or garages.

Then factor out your exemptions and consider whether the savings is worth the effort. A $15,000 reduction is worth roughly $300 a year. A $2,000 reduction probably isn't worth a morning off work.

💡 TaxDrop has a free tool where we check about 20 assessments and 7 recent sales to see if you're fairly valued. It's free, and results are shown in under two minutes - try it at app.taxdrop.com

If your value is higher than it should be, you have a case. File your notice of protest with the district (or sign up for TaxDrop to do it for you).

Build Your Evidence Pack

You'll want an organized "opinion of value" to document why your lower value is supported. See an example of a well built opinion of value document here.

At a minimum, this should include:

• Property address
• Property ID (PID)
• Appraised value
• Opinion of correct value
• Summary of findings
• 7+ appraisal comps and/or 5+ sales comps in a comparison table, and ideally in a map view
• Notes on any adjustments made

Show your adjustments. An unexplained number reads as a guess, and a guess is easy for an appraiser to set aside.

Informal Settlement

🔑 Most protests can be settled informally. Roughly 80% to 90% of Texas cases that win a reduction get it here, before any board ever sees the file.

An informal settlement is simply negotiating with your appraiser so they reduce the value without the need for a board hearing. This is much easier for you and saves them time as well.

Here's how it works:

1. Figure out who your appraiser is. In a small district there are just a few. In Harris or Dallas there can be dozens or more. IMPORTANT: as soon as you reach them, request their valuation evidence for your review. They are required to share it, and it has to be available at least 14 days before your hearing (Tax Code 41.461). Read it closely, because weak comps on their side are the fastest path to a reduction on yours.
   
   1. Online portal. If your district has a protest portal, it often has a messaging feature or lists their name and contact info.
   2. Call. Have your notice handy and call the district. Ask for your appraiser using your property ID.
   3. Email. Find the general email on the district website and ask them for your appraiser's contact info.
   4. Go to their office. If local, walk into the office and ask the reception for your appraiser, showing them your letter.
2. Send your evidence and opinion of value. Often a meeting isn't even needed if your evidence is strong and the district wants your protest off their books. Send them your evidence and requested value, and offer to set an informal call to review it.
3. Take the meeting. When the appraiser will meet you, or you can reach them on the phone, be polite and friendly. Take the position that you want a fair value, not just to drive down your own tax bill. Be realistic and stick to the facts, not emotions or frustration. Try to be brief, this is their busiest time of year, and make a direct ask and why.
4. Settle & Waiver. If you reach an acceptable value informally, always ask for a settlement and waiver form to have it in writing. You and the appraiser sign it, then you're done!

Formal Hearing

If you can't reach a satisfactory value informally, you'll make your case to the ARB: a panel of local residents, not district employees, who hear both sides and vote on a value.

Here's how it works:

1. Get a hearing date. After you file your notice to protest, you'll get a date and time. Most districts offer in-office, phone, or virtual options. Do not miss your date!
2. Get your evidence in early. Send your packet ahead of the hearing so the panel has read it. You do NOT need a notarized affidavit to attend. That requirement (Tax Code 41.45(b)) only applies when you want your evidence considered without showing up. If you're attending, just bring your documents.
3. Prepare to present. You'll only have a few minutes, so know your stuff. Know your three strongest comps cold, and know the weakest comp on the district's list.
4. Make your case. Speak confidently and stick to the facts, not frustration. The panel usually votes at the end of the meeting, and you'll get a written order afterward.

If the Board Says No

An ARB order isn't the end of the road, though what's left costs money and time.

• Binding arbitration. Available under Chapter 41A for properties under the statutory value cap. You pay a deposit, most of which comes back if you win.
• Appeal to district court. Realistically, this means hiring a lawyer.
• Refile next year. A weak case this season is often a strong one next season, especially if the market moved.

Do It Yourself, or Hand It Off

Filing yourself is free and entirely doable, especially if your district has a decent portal and your neighborhood has clean comps. The steps above are the whole job.

If you'd rather not, that's what we do. TaxDrop's full-service protest covers 17 Texas counties. We build the evidence, negotiate the informal, and represent you at the ARB. The fee is 1% of the assessment reduction we win, and you owe nothing if we don't reduce your assessment. See how pricing works.

Either way, start with the free check. Knowing whether you're over-assessed takes two minutes, and it tells you whether the rest of this is worth doing at all.

County guides: Harris, Dallas, Tarrant, Bexar, Travis, Collin, Denton, Fort Bend, Williamson, Montgomery.