As North Texas homeowners prepare to receive their property appraisal notices, real estate experts say they should expect to see increased property tax values. Data from the Texas A&M Real Estate Research Center found that, in 2021, the average home value in North Texas increased by 23.55% over the previous year.
Alvin Lankford, president of the Texas Association of Appraisal Districts, told WFAA that the housing market in the state has been growing exponentially.
“The Texas real estate market is growing as fast as we have ever seen it in the state’s history. We have all seen the countless stories about people moving to Texas from other states. This increase in population contributes to a shortage of homes available and to the increase in prices paid for homes,” Lankford said.
In 2021, Collin County homeowners paid the most in property taxes in North Texas, with an average of $7,107, according to information from ATTOM Data Solutions. The 2021 Dallas County average was $6,033 for a single-family house, while the average in Tarrant County was $5,438. The average in Denton County for 2021 was $6,731.
Chandler Crouch, the owner of Chandler Crouch Realtors, told WFAA that homeowners should be protesting their property tax values.
“Everyone should protest every single year for a few reasons,” Crouch said. “Number one, you just don’t have anything to lose.”
In 2021, Crouch’s agency protested the property taxes of 22,000 homeowners with a 90% success rate.
Crouch said many homeowners are hesitant to do this because they don’t want to negatively impact the value of their home or be blacklisted. However, there are laws to protect homeowners in these cases, and local governments expect appeals, according to Crouch.
Once homeowners decide to protest their home values, they must inform the appraisal district of their intentions before the deadline passes. Crouch said this can easily be done by filling out the back of the property tax notice and mailing it back. The district will then set a hearing date for the case.
“Ask the appraisal district for the evidence that they’re using against you that has justified an increase in your value,” Crouch advised. “You can take that evidence and do the work that they can’t do, and that’s just drive by the houses and look to see if those houses actually compare to yours.”
Crouch added that homeowners should document anything that could lower the home’s value, such as broken windows or foundation issues.
He said, “Take those photographs, send them in and get repair estimates from contractors. They may give you a dollar-for-dollar reduction based on the repair estimate of that issue.”
Crouch said the first step for homeowners feeling the pinch of increased property taxes is to look for online resources. There may be homestead exemptions or deductions available for seniors, disabled persons, or people facing hardship. Some local government agencies and charities may offer help with the tax burden.
He advises clients with an escrow shortage to try and arrange lower monthly payments with their lender.
“A lot of times, you can just call your mortgage company and ask them if you can spread out that escrow shortage over a 2-year period instead of that default 1-year period,” Crouch explained.
Dallas County mailed out notices on April 15, and Denton County mailed its first batch of 350,000 notices on April 18.