Every year, Texas property owners are shocked by the number on their Notice of Appraised Value. Because county appraisal districts rely on "mass appraisal" systems, they use automated algorithms to value entire neighborhoods at once. The reality? Your initial assessment is likely wrong.
While many property owners turn to cookie-cutter, automated tax protest companies, relying on an algorithm to fight an algorithm often leaves money on the table. If you want to know how to protest property taxes and win in Texas, you need actual legal strategy. Here are the exact property tax protest steps you need to follow.
Around mid-April, your local appraisal district will mail your Notice of Appraised Value. Review this document carefully. Pay attention to two main numbers: your Market Value (what the county thinks your property would sell for) and your Assessed Value (the value you are actually taxed on, which may be capped by exemptions).
Ensure all your eligible exemptions (like the Homestead Exemption) are actively applied. If the Market Value seems higher than what you could reasonably sell the property for, you have strong grounds to file a protest.
To initiate the property tax appeal process, you must file a Notice of Protest (Form 50-132) with your county's Appraisal Review Board (ARB). On the form, you generally want to check two boxes for the reasons for your protest: "Value is over market value" and "Value is unequal compared with other properties." This preserves your right to argue both legal angles.
You must file this form by May 15th, or within 30 days of receiving your notice—whichever is later. Missing this deadline means forfeiting your right to appeal for the year.
You cannot simply tell the appraiser your taxes are too high; you must prove it. The strongest evidence falls into two categories:
Your first step is an informal meeting with a county appraiser. You will present your evidence, and they will present theirs. Often, the appraiser will offer a settlement to resolve the dispute right then and there. If the offer is fair, you can accept it. If insufficient, you can decline it and proceed to a formal hearing.
If you don't settle informally, you will present your case to the ARB. This is a formal, timed hearing before a panel of citizens. You will swear an oath, present your evidence, and the county appraiser will do the same. The ARB will then deliberate and make a binding decision.
If the ARB denies your reduction, standard protest companies have hit a brick wall. They are not lawyers and cannot take your case to court. By hiring a Property Tax Attorney, you preserve your right to take your case to binding arbitration or district court. The county knows this, which often forces them to negotiate more fairly from the start.
Yes. You have nothing to lose. Under Texas law, your property value cannot be increased simply because you filed a protest.
Standard protest companies that rely on volume and software are better than doing nothing, but they often miss the nuance of custom properties or complex commercial assets. A dual-licensed Property Tax Attorney and Senior Tax Consultant provides a much higher level of advocacy and legal leverage.
Don't risk your appeal on automated software. Get a free review from a dual-licensed Property Tax Attorney.
Start Your ProtestBrandon and his team have proven they can perform with any product type we give them,
from industrial and office property to single and multi-family residential.
At a critical time when a property was in lease-up, we were faced with an unreasonable and unjustified assessment.
Brandon’s tenacity and responsiveness resulted in a fair assessment and the largest value change I've seen in my career.
Outstanding!! These guys are pros - they are great at what they do and great to work with.