Home appraisals are being sent out, experts recommend protesting property valuation

SMITH COUNTY, Texas ( KETK ) – Homeowners are starting to receive their 2024 home appraisal based off their property value and experts say people can protest.

“The market isn’t as aggressive as it has been, but prices are still rising,” Smith County chief appraiser Carol McNeil, said.

The county’s appraisal district is charged at 100% of market value, that means if the market value has increased, then a homeowners property tax could also.

“However, they only do it once a year, so when you’re in a fast changing market, sometimes that value that they come out with isn’t accurate,” Chandler Crouch, a senior property tax consultant, said.

Experts like Crouch are encouraging homeowners to protest their appraisals.

“For most people, you just take your value notice, turn it over, fill that sucker out, or if you don’t have one, you can just write on a sheet of paper that you’re protesting,” Crouch said.

The information used to determine property taxes is a “mass appraisal.”

A mass appraisal is when a group of houses is assessed instead of each individual home.

“There’s no one that knows their property any better than the property owner or their area, so if they would come in and share their information, share their data, a lot of times that really helps us,” McNeil said.

After the form is filled out, Smith County encourages homeowners to speak to an appraiser and come to an agreement.

“You can take photos of the condition of your house to demonstrate that it’s not in pristine condition, so it can’t sell for the price that they think it could sell for because this it needs to be fixed up a little bit,” Crouch said.

Crouch said it’s a win-win situation even if there’s not an agreement on the number, the tax will not increase.

“I think one of the most important things people need to realize is that there’s just no downfall to protesting,” Crouch said.

The last day to submit a protest form is May 22 or 30 days after the appraisal is received.

Appraisal Review Board hearings are scheduled to start May 23 and certified by July 20.

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