Smith County Appraisal District

Protesting Appraised Values

The Right to Appeal

The right to protest to the appraisal review board is the most important right you have as a taxpayer. You may protest if you disagree with any of the actions the appraisal district has taken on your property. You may discuss your concerns about your property value, exemptions and special appraisal in an informal session with an impartial panel of your fellow citizens.

Most appraisal districts informally review your protest with you to try to solve problems. Check with your district for details.

If you lease property and must pay the owner's property taxes (required by lease contract), then you may appeal the property's value to the ARB. You may appeal the property' s proposed value only if the property owner does not appeal. This appeal right includes leasing land, buildings or personal property. The appraisal district will send the notice of appraised value to the property owner, who is required to send a copy to you. If you appeal, the ARB will send any notices to you.

An ARB is a group of citizens authorized to resolve disputes between taxpayers and the appraisal district.

ARB members are appointed by the appraisal district's board of directors. An individual must be a resident of the appraisal district for at least two years to serve on the ARB. Officers and employees of the appraisal district, the local taxing units or the State Comptroller's office can't serve on the ARB. ARB members also must comply with special conflict of interest laws.

The ARB determines taxpayer protests and taxing unit challenges. In taxpayer protests, it listens to both the taxpayer and the chief appraiser. The ARB determines if the chief appraiser has granted or denied exemptions and agricultural appraisals properly. The ARB's decisions are binding only for the year in question. The ARB begins work around May 15 and finishes by July 20.

ARB meetings are open to the public. Notices of the date, time and place of each meeting must be posted at least 72 hours in advance at the appraisal district office and at the county clerk's office. The ARB's hearing procedures must be posted in a prominent place in the room in which hearings are held. For cost savings, the ARB typically meets at the appraisal office. It does not usually have its own staff or office.

Deciding To Protest

The ARB must base its decisions on evidence. It hears evidence from both sides--the taxpayer and the chief appraiser.

Following is a list of protest issues that an ARB can consider and suggestions on evidence you may want to gather.

Ask one of the district's appraisers to explain the appraisal. Be sure the property description and measurements for your home or business are correct. Gather blueprints, deed records, photographs, a survey or your own measurements.

Are there any hidden defects, such as a cracked foundation or inadequate plumbing? Get photographs, statements from builders or independent appraisals.

Ask the appraisal district for the appraisal records on similar properties in your area. Is there a big difference in the values? This comparison may show that your property wasn't treated equally.

Collect evidence on recent sales of properties similar to yours from neighbors or real estate professionals. Ask the appraisal district for the sales that it used.

Consider using an independent appraisal by a real estate appraiser. Insurance records also may be helpful.

If you decide to use sales information to support your protest, you should:

• Get documents or sworn statements from the person providing the sales information.
• Use sales of properties that are similar to yours in size, age, location and type of construction.
• Use recent sales. Sales that occurred closest to January 1 are best.
• Weigh the costs of preparing a protest against the potential tax savings.

If you protest the agricultural value of your farm or ranch, find out how the appraisal district calculated your value. Compare its information with that of local experts on agriculture, such as the county extension agent, the Agricultural Stabilization and Conservation Service, the Soil Conservation Service, the Texas Crop and Livestock Reporting Service, the U.S. Department of Agriculture or the agriculture department of a nearby university. The Comptroller's Manual for the Appraisal of Agricultural Land may be helpful.

See if the value of your property is closer to market value than other similar properties. For example, your property may be appraised at 100 percent of market value, while your neighbors' properties may be appraised at 90 percent of market value. A protest based on the level of appraisal may require more evidence. For more information about appealing an unequal appraisal or evidence to gather for such an appeal, see the Comptroller's Appraisal Review Board Manual or call the Comptroller's property tax hotline at 1-800-252-9121.

First, find out why the chief appraiser denied your exemption.

• If the chief appraiser denied your homestead exemption, get evidence that you owned your home on January 1 and used the home as your principal residence on that date.
• If the chief appraiser denied a homestead exemption for part of the land around your home, show how much land is used as a yard.
• If the chief appraiser denied you an over-65, a disabled person's or a veteran's exemption, read about the requirements for these exemptions.

First, find out why the chief appraiser denied your exemption.

Gather your ownership records and management records or get information from local agencies that provide services to farmers and ranchers.

If you took only part of the land out of agricultural use, you may need to show which parts still qualify. If you are letting land lie fallow, show that the time it has been out of agricultural use is not excessive.

Provide records of deeds or deed transfers to show ownership.

If you acquired the property after January 1, you may protest the property's value until the ARB approves the records. The law recognizes the new owner's interest in the taxes on the property.

An error of this sort is often simply a clerical error. For example, the appraisal records show your property is located in one school district when it actually is located in another school district.

Some kinds of taxable personal property move from place to place quite regularly. Property is taxed at only one location in Texas. You can protest the inclusion of your property on the appraisal records if it should be taxed at another location in Texas.

You have the right to protest if the chief appraiser or ARB failed to give you a required notice. But unless you disagree with your appraisal, there is no point in protesting failure to give a notice. Be sure that the appraisal district has your correct name and address.

You can't protest failure to give notice if the taxes on your property become delinquent.

A notice is presumed delivered if sent by first-class mail with a correct name and address. Your failure to receive a properly mailed notice does not give you the right to a late hearing.

You may protest only actions that affect your property.

The Protesting Process

Filing a Protest

The appraisal district may charge for copies of materials you request. However, the charge may not exceed $15 on a residential property or $25 on a non-residential property.

When you present your protest to the ARB, you may appear in person, send someone to present the protest for you or send a sworn affidavit containing the evidence to support your protest. See Appointing an Agent.

The ARB members are prohibited from communicating with another person about a property under protest. Each ARB member must sign an affidavit stating he or she hasn't discussed your case. An ARB member who discussed your case outside the hearing must remove himself or herself from your hearing.

The ARB may adopt a policy to place a time limit on hearings.

The ARB has no control over the appraisal district's operations or budget, tax rates for the local taxing units, inflation or local politics. Including these topics in your presentation isn't helpful to you.

Stress key facts and figures. Write them down in logical order and give copies to each ARB member.

The ARB listens to both the taxpayer and the chief appraiser before making a decision. It is not a case of the taxpayer against the ARB and the chief appraiser. The ARB will ask you to take an oath (either by swearing or by affirming) before you present evidence. Should you refuse to take the oath, the ARB will note this fact and may take it into account as the ARB weighs the evidence. The ARB may decide to end the hearing. Appraisal district staff must take an oath.

Errors Found After the Filing Deadline

The law provides for a late ARB hearing to correct errors, including property appraised more than one-third above its correct value. The ARB has limited authority after approving the original appraisal records. Property owners must file a written request and meet certain requirements for the ARB to grant a late hearing on an approved value.

For the current and previous four tax years, the ARB may correct a clerical error, multiple appraisal of a property or including non-existent property on the appraisal roll. A "clerical error" is a mistake in writing, copying, transcribing, or entering data, but is not a mistake in reasoning or judging a value. A clerical error does not include a property owner's mistake. "Multiple appraisal," also called double taxation, is taxing the same property more than once in the same tax year. "Non-existent property" is property that does not exist at the location or in the form described in the appraisal record.

For the current tax year, the ARB may grant late hearings to correct one-third overappraisals, to correct values based on a joint motion of the property owner and chief appraiser and to hear from owners who weren't sent a required notice. These types of late hearings require property owners to file written requests before the delinquency date of February 1. Pending an ARB decision on a late hearing, the owner must pay some current taxes, usually the taxes not in dispute. If the owner wins a value reduction in a late ARB hearing, the taxing units will refund the difference in the tax payment. For a hearing on one-third overappraisal, the property may not have had an ARB hearing earlier in the year. The owner must show that the approved appraised value exceeds the correct value by more than one-third. If the owner proves that the value is in error, but less than one-third wrong, the ARB may not order a value reduction. For a joint motion hearing, the ARB must approve a change when the property owner and chief appraiser have agreed to the change in writing.

Appealing to the District Court

Once the ARB rules on your protest, it sends you a written order by certified mail. If you are dissatisfied with the ARB's findings, you have the right to appeal its decision to the state district court in your county.

You should consult with an attorney to determine if you have a case. Within 45 days of receiving the written order, you must file a petition for review with the district court.

You also are required to make a partial payment of taxes--usually the amount of taxes that aren't in dispute--before the delinquency date. You may ask the court to excuse you from prepaying your taxes. You must file an oath of "inability to pay" the taxes in question and argue that prepaying the taxes restrains your right to go to court on your protest. The court will hold a hearing and decide the terms or conditions of your payment.

If your property's value exceeds $1,000,000, you or your attorney also must file a written notice of appeal with the chief appraiser within 15 days of the date you received the written order.

At the district court, you may ask to have your appeal resolved through arbitration.

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