Home address: 1017 N Church St

2021 Taxable Value: $158,106

Recent Sales Price: $98,000 – Over-taxed by 61%

Property tax assessments not carefully reviewed lead to paying more than your share of property taxes. One option to reduce you property taxes is to protest the market value. An unequal appraisal appeal is easy to prepare.  Just find neighborhood homes with a lower level of assessment (per square foot).  Summarize the data in a table. Woody Allen said “80% of success is showing up”.  The same is true of property taxes.  If you file an appeal and attend the hearing, your chance of reducing your property taxes is excellent.

Some homeowners do not appeal property taxes because they are not aware of this right.  You can and should protest both market value and unequal appraisal annually. Property owners are sometimes reluctant to protest their property taxes because the believe the appeal process is difficult.  It is not difficult and 60 to 80% of owners who appeal are successful. Mass appraisal models make it impossible for appraisal districts to accurately value most houses. Appraisal districts are receptive to settling property tax protests for houses at the informal level because it has only a nominal impact on the total tax base. Property owners have a duty and responsibility to appraisal property taxes annually.  It is not prudent or reasonable to rely on the appraisal district’s estimate.