Tax appraisal protest specialists

[pb4uski]

We're coming up on our first year anniversary of living in Texas and I'm getting solicitations from companies that file property tax appraisal protests. I guess it is a thing over here and I haven't run into it anywhere that I have lived before. They file the protest and do all the work and their fee is a percentage of your savings... from what the pitches say, if there are no savings then you don't owe anything.

I protested our appraisal last year but it was pretty easy because the appraised value was more than what we had recently paid for the property. I send in some documents and my rationale why appraisal was wrong and the board agreto reduce the appraisal to the purchase price.

This year is a different kettle of fish. I've grieved appraisals before... sometimes successfully and sometimes not. If I can subcontract all that work to a pro for 25% of the savings and no downside risk it sounds pretty good to me.

Do any of you have experience with these firms? Any gotchas to be looking out for? Any good or bad experiences? Any recommendations for a property in Austin, TX area?

 

[audreyh1]

Yes, I’ve done it a couple of times down here when it looked like our appraisal jumped a lot. You sign up for 3 years. It seems to help although in 23 we also had a drop in property taxes overall. A lot of folks in my neighborhood use the same company, so neighbor referral helps.

 

[Marc]

pb4uski, you're property taxes are frozen. Assessments will probably go down again this year. Exemptions will probably be increased. It is so easy to fight appraisals here that I think those companies are rip-offs. Remember, even when we go back to increasing values the max is 10% and it doesn't help if you fight your appraisal from a higher level if assessment is still capped you have had zero impact on taxes but one of those companies might still want their pound of flesh.

Marc

 

[Dtail]

Very glad that the maximum FLA property tax increase is limited to 3%.

 

[Mark1]

We never use these companies when we lived in TX, but our neighbor used them frequently (if not ever single year) and never had a problem. It seemed like their business model was to go after a small amount of savings, which the tax appraiser would easily concede with minimal work for each party. I refused to use them, as I always figured whatever funds that these companies siphoned off ultimately had to be made up by us tax payers at some point.

 

[aja8888]

pb4uski, you're property taxes are frozen. Assessments will probably go down again this year. Exemptions will probably be increased. It is so easy to fight appraisals here that I think those companies are rip-offs. Remember, even when we go back to increasing values the max is 10% and it doesn't help if you fight your appraisal from a higher level if assessment is still capped you have had zero impact on taxes but one of those companies might still want their pound of flesh.

Marc

Isn't only the school tax portion frozen for seniors over 65? If I recall, the other taxed entities can increase based on the appraisal. And, if you are in a M.U.D. system (municipal utility district), those taxes are not subject to the over 65 (or also Homestead?) exemptions.

 

[pb4uski]

I think they are, but 2025 will be our first year homesteaded (we bought in 2024 but after the Jan 1 homestead date) so since this assessed value will be frozen I figure this is the one that I want to get as low as possible. Does that make sense?

 

[Cobra9777]

I've been a homeowner in Texas since 1985. I never protested until 2004. After that, for about 10 years, I protested whenever I thought I had a convincing case. I did it myself usually using the informal process. My results with the Appraisal District were definitely... "mixed."

I started using an agent in 2013. Their results have been consistently favorable, sometimes by surprisingly large amounts. But usually just sort-of... as-expected. I've used the same agent every year since then.

I found them a few years prior, which is an interesting story... Their name kept coming up when I was researching property values in my area. The CAD website shows the agent, if any, representing a specific property (or at least it did back then). Their name consistently popped up on specific properties in my area that I thought were under-valued. I used many of those properties in my own protests.

It's a large company, which I think has some advantages over smaller, local outfits or individuals... scale, access to large datasets, expertise in valuation methods, relationships with appraisers, etc. But not much one-on-one interaction. Not even sure if they negotiate my property individually or as part of some big group. Plus, they are at the higher end of the fee scale at 50%. I've stuck with them for convenience and the consistent savings.

 

[Texas Proud]

pb4uski, you're property taxes are frozen. Assessments will probably go down again this year. Exemptions will probably be increased. It is so easy to fight appraisals here that I think those companies are rip-offs. Remember, even when we go back to increasing values the max is 10% and it doesn't help if you fight your appraisal from a higher level if assessment is still capped you have had zero impact on taxes but one of those companies might still want their pound of flesh.

Marc

Not all taxes are frozen... I know the school tax is but there are some local taxing authorities that are not... and some that do not give any reduction for over 65 or homeowner...

So, if your appraisal is out of whack it is still a good thing to protest... I did last year and saved like $150 to $200... that is actual savings as the company get nothing on the frozen part...

 

[scfr]

We used Texas Protax when we lived in the Austin area and were very happy with them.

I remember thinking that some of the fine print wording in another company's contract was suspicious but I don't remember the details.

 

[Marc]

In Williamson County our School, City of Georgetown, County, and County Fire are all frozen. I don't know about road districts since I am not in one. I have protested twice and easily won the first time and the second time I had to go to the appeals board and won there; of course it wasn't much of victory as it did not affect the amount of taxes I owed.

I got very lucky on when I turned 65; I had paid as much as $7,802 (when I didn't have homestead) but now pay $4,567. We will see if it goes even lower next year.

Marc

 

[jazz4cash]

When I decided to pursue an appeal in MD, I contacted two tax surrogate companies and they ghosted me. I assumed that meant the potential savings were not worth the effort but the fact that they ghosted me was very unprofessional. I called some realtors for feedback and I was discouraged from even trying. I did it on my own and it was very rewarding. Saved a lot of money and learned alot about the process. I believe there is a lot of faulty info in the databases they use to assess properties going back to the subprime days probably.

 

[PlayinwithFIRE]

Interesting..whats the downside of doing this ? Does it potentially affect resale value?

 

[Marc]

Interesting..whats the downside of doing this ? Does it potentially affect resale value?

The downside is giving away 25% of your savings to some company for no value added.

 

[Montecfo]

We're coming up on our first year anniversary of living in Texas and I'm getting solicitations from companies that file property tax appraisal protests. I guess it is a thing over here and I haven't run into it anywhere that I have lived before. They file the protest and do all the work and their fee is a percentage of your savings... from what the pitches say, if there are no savings then you don't owe anything.

I protested our appraisal last year but it was pretty easy because the appraised value was more than what we had recently paid for the property. I send in some documents and my rationale why appraisal was wrong and the board agreto reduce the appraisal to the purchase price.

This year is a different kettle of fish. I've grieved appraisals before... sometimes successfully and sometimes not. If I can subcontract all that work to a pro for 25% of the savings and no downside risk it sounds pretty good to me.

Do any of you have experience with these firms? Any gotchas to be looking out for? Any good or bad experiences? Any recommendations for a property in Austin, TX area?

When we lived in Texas I always did it myself. It was not difficult as I recall. At the moment I can't recall where I got the comparables but probably from real estate agents or recent home sales. It seemed like there was pretty good access to that data through county websites.

Now it could be you're at a disadvantage these days when it's become a business. That was a lot less common in those days.

 

[Texas Proud]

Interesting..whats the downside of doing this ? Does it potentially affect resale value?

IMO there is no downside....

You can do it on your own but they know what to do and you might not get as much lower than you hope...

I hired mine out the last time and did not think they would get anywhere... but they did... easy money for me and them... they do hundreds of them at a time... probably they get a certain pct off and go to the next one... a few minutes for each property...

 

[HarveyS]

The downside is giving away 25% of your savings to some company for no value added.

Their value add is doing all the work so you can do other things.

 

[pjigar]

No downside. The way system is setup, if you don't protest with a professional then you are the other side of pie covering the short fall taxes in the future as a whole.

PS: If you find a good one with 25% commission then PM me. We are paying 50% commission but this company has kept things in check so I am happy overall.

 

[racy]

Alternatively, you could pay just pay the taxes Support your local schools, police, firefighters, roads, public health, parks.

 

[Montecfo]

No downside. The way system is setup, if you don't protest with a professional then you are the other side of pie covering the short fall taxes in the future as a whole.

PS: If you find a good one with 25% commission then PM me. We are paying 50% commission but this company has kept things in check so I am happy overall.

well you do not have to have a professional. You do need to understand what you're doing. But it is not rocket science.

 

[Texas Proud]

I used this company... you can check your zip..

Ownwell: Pricing Information

Explore Ownwell's transparent pricing plans designed to save you money. No hidden fees, just straightforward savings. Find the perfect plan for homeowners and investors alike.

www.ownwell.com

 

[pb4uski]

^^^ Those are the folks that sent me a flyer and are at the top of the list.

 

[pb4uski]

So, we bought in 2024 for $375,000. The 2024 appraised value, in theory was as of Jan 1, 2024, was higher. I grieved it and provided our settlement statement and they readily agreed to reduce the 2024 appraisal to $375,000 and I was content with that.

We homesteaded Jan 1, 2025 so the 2025 property tax appraisal will be critical since it will become the base for the future. I won't know the Jan 1, 2025 appraisal for a couple months.

Based on online sources, it looks like values are unchanged or perhaps even a little lower than a year ago.

So I'm thinking that I would go with Ownwell for 2025. if they can lower it then I pay 25% of my 2025 tax savings and if they can't then I'm not out anything. I expect that they have better access to the intelligence needed to get the lowest result and having grieved 3-4 times over the years the 25% is a reasonable price to pay to avoid the hassle of DIY.

 

[troutnut1]

Only three things can happen. It can be reduced. It can stay the same. It can be raised. The objective will be to make it right.

Do your homework. Is the actual value lower, the same, or higher? Then act accordingly.

 

[pb4uski]

Over my adult lifetime I've done 4 grievances and am 2 for 4. The benefit of using a service is that they likley have access to better comparables infomation than I do, they are more knowledgable about what comparable adjustments to make and the magnitude of those adjustments and also what the appraisal board is most likely to accept.

So while I could do it, I'm not sure that I want to bother to when there is a more skilled person available and I only pay if they produce savings.