Valuation of Property, you get your notice and now what?
PROPERTY TAXES IN EL PASO
Central Appraisal District and the Protest
Of course when it comes to taxes everyone thinks they are high. Some are and some are not.
Important Dates
· April 1 Last day (or as soon as possible) for Chief Appraiser to mail notices for single family residences
· April 15 of every year is deadline for filing exemptions. Exemptions are
Residential Homestead Exemption
Over-65 Exemption**
Over 55 Surviving Spouse of a person who received the Over-65 Exemption
Medical Disability Exemption**
Veteran’s Disability Exemption
Widow of Disabled Veteran Exemption
DO NOT PAY ANYONE TO DO ANY OF THESE FILINGS, THEY ARE FREE AND A SERVICE TO YOU.
· May 1 Last day (or as soon as possible) for Chief Appraiser to mail notices to properties other than single family residences
· May 31 Last day for property owners to file protest with ARB (or by the 30th day after notice of appraised value is delivered, whichever is later)
· Oct 1 Last day (or as soon as possible) for Chief Appraiser to mail tax bills
Forms for these can be found at http://www.epcad.org/forms.htm You can take into the office or fax. Keep your copies.
5801 Trowbridge
El Paso, TX 79925
Phone: (915) 780-2000
Fax: (915) 780-2130
Got the notice, now what
Of note: Generally the value does not change when you get the tax bill in October and many years the estimated tax rates have also gone down.
Choices accept or file protest
· Is it what you expected, no change from last year and you are satisfied, put notice in your file.
· Value cannot go up more than 10%, if more you can protest
Title 1. Property Tax Code
Subtitle D. Appraisal and Assessment
Chapter 23. Appraisal Methods and Procedures
Sec. 23.23. Limitation on Appraised Value of Residence Homestead.
(a) The appraised value of a residence homestead for a tax year may not exceed the lesser of:
(1) the market value of the property; or
(2) the sum of:
(A) 10 percent of the appraised value of the property for the last year in which the property was appraised for taxation times the number of years since the property was last appraised;
(B) the appraised value of the property for the last year in which the property was appraised; and
(C) the market value of all new improvements to the property.
· Value is more than you paid for house and you bought since 2003 you might consider a protest
· Neighborhood has changed and you feel is a downward change in value, you might consider a protest
· Neighborhood is decorated with vacant houses, for sale sign have become yard art, lots of renters, you might consider a protest
· You just never paid attention to notices before and wow my property is worth what, you might consider a protest
· You have no idea what the market value is for you home today, you should get a market evaluation, if lower than the latest value, you might consider a protest
· If the information on your property is incorrect, you might consider a protest
· If you cannot afford to pay your taxes, protest will help, you have to be current on taxes due to file a protest
· You have lived there a long time and your property is not capped
Protest Process
You think your valuation should be lower and you can support information
It is your right to protest. Many have not protested because they think they will not win, it is too much work ….. and it is not difficult.
There are three levels in the protest and you may well accomplish your goals in the first level. Central Appraisal District is not your enemy just doing their job.
So to begin, return the bottom portion of your notice stating you want to file a protest, this must be done no later than May 31.
You will be notified of an appointment with Central Appraisal District Employee. If time is not what you can do you can reschedule and there are evening and Saturday appointments.
1. You will sit down with employee and tell them what you think property is worth and why and they will either concur and change value or refer you to next level. Employee has minimum guidelines for change but are polite and educated by Central Appraisal District trainings. Employee takes notes and meeting is not recorded. Employee may also decide to send their appraiser out to see your property or information which the results of will be presented at the ARB meeting.
2. You will schedule to appear before the Appraisal Review Board (ARB). ARB members are interviewed by Central Appraisal District and its board before appointment. They do not work for CAD but receive wages for services from CAD. Some are highly skilled professionals in the industry and some are very nice citizens. Their decisions are personal and can be further protested by Arbitration. Meeting is recorded
a. You will appear in front of the board. They will do everything to make you feel comfortable and process is not as formal as it sounds. There will be 2 or 3 ARB personnel and a representative from CAD in the room. You will present the information to support your protest and state an amount your believe is fair. CAD employee will present their basis for valuation in rebuttal. ARB personnel will discuss amongst themselves and give you a decision. The decision as given and recorded will be put into the CAD system and mailed to you at a later date.
b. You do not agree you can tell them that you want Arbitration and they will give you a form to fill out
3. Arbitration of property taxes. You will have to file with a $500 fee. The arbitrator is certified and registered with the state of Texas. Both you and CAD must agree on the Arbitrator and method of arbitration (in person, by mail, telephone conference etc.) You present your facts and CAD presents their facts. You can request the recorded ARB hearing be made available. You and CAD can update your information to be beneficial in presenting your case. The loser pays for the hearing in the amount of $450.00 $1 off of valuation will have CAD paying for arbitration and property owner receives check in the mail for $450.00
If you did not receive a estimated valuation in the mail you can call CAD 780-2131 to find out value, get a copy and even file for a protest hearing.
Understand that CAD does not have all the sale values as Texas does not allow public access to this data. It is only the MLS (Multiple Listing Service) and must be obtained by a professional that is licensed to have access. Access is restricted, requires registration and dues, and individuals swear that they will not share their access usage codes and privileges with others. Many internet sites give values but do not have any way of collecting information to have accurate values.
Preparation for the protest
· Get a market appraisal from your favorite REALTOR®, maybe even pictures of comparables and recent sales. Sold information should be kept in 2009 because you are protesting 2009 values.
· Collect the last several years of CAD taxing information off of the tax bills. If you do not have you can go to CAD and they will happily print one for you. You may be surprised what you have not kept track of.
· Take pictures to support your rationale. Graffiti, rentals, for sale signs, deterioration of your home and neighborhood, etc.
· Newspaper or internet articles.
· Professional written opinions
· Discuss your thoughts and supporting information with neighbors and/or professionals
· Be positive, you have prepared and you know you can support your valuation request