Harris County Appraisal District - Preparing for your Property Tax Protest on Unequal Appraisal
prepared and presented by O'Connor & Associates
Harris County Appraisal District maintains a database regarding the 1.6 million parcels of real estate in Harris County. It includes over 50 fields of data including land size, building size, year built, effective year built, quality of construction and condition. Harris County Appraisal District has good intentions, but with 150 appraisers it is impossible to accurately assimilate a database this size.
Property tax assessments are compiled using the Harris County Appraisal District database mentioned above and mass appraisal (a computer generated estimate of value). Because it uses a large database and a computer model to estimate market value for 1.6 million parcels of real estate, it is impossible for Harris County Appraisal District to accurately and consistently value real estate.
Unequal appraisal occurs when one property is assessed at a higher level than comparable properties. Consider the following example: There are 10 identical houses on a street, all worth $100,000. Nine are assessed for $90,000 and the 10th (which is coincidentally just sold) is assessed at $100,000.
Research unequal appraisal for your property as part of your annual property tax protest. For homes, start with houses on the same street (and as close to yours as possible). Obtain data from the Harris County Appraisal District web site regarding the address, year built, lot size, building size, grade (quality of construction) and condition. Summarize this data in a chart or table with information on your property at the top. Also include a field that summarizes the overall market value (not the assessed value or capped value for houses) and on a per square foot basis. Try to include 5 - 10 assessment comparables in your analysis. Some analysis includes all the homes in a certain area and others include only the properties, which support a reduction in property taxes. The Texas Property Tax Code suggests using a reasonable number of appropriately adjusted assessment comparables.
Finding assessment comparables for commercial properties can be more difficult. One option is an advanced search on the Harris County Appraisal District web site www.hcad.org. Another option is to visit the customer service staff at the Harris County Appraisal District (13013 Northwest Freeway, Third Floor). Review the hearing evidence you obtain from the Harris County Appraisal District; it may support a reduction in value. Other options are commercial real estate web sites such as Commercial Gateway and Loopnet.
If your primary appeal is on unequal appraisal consider skipping the informal hearing with a Harris County Appraisal District appraiser. At the time of writing (September 2006) they are reluctant to make changes based on unequal appraisal evidence. However, the Harris County Appraisal Review Board members will consider appeals on unequal appraisal. Bring five copies of your evidence (3 for ARB members, 1 for Harris County Appraisal District appraiser and 1 for you). You will likely reduce your property taxes with an appeal on unequal appraisal at the Harris County Appraisal Review Board.
Property Tax Tip #1: Appealing Property Taxes for Your Home
Property Tax Tip #2: Preparing for Your Property Tax Hearing
Property Tax Tip #3: The Hearing Process
Hire O'Connor & Associates to appeal high property taxes. You pay NOTHING unless we save you money!
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