Protesting Taxes in Dallas County.

By now everyone should have received their new 2023 tax valuation from the Dallas Central Appraisal District. Everyone is in sticker shock so do not be surprised if yours increased as much as 50 percent. Your market valuation date is January 1, 2023. Market value is defined as if your property were put on the market today, the amount it would transfer for in cash or its equivalent with a reasonable time to procure a buyer.

It seems useless to not have a state income tax with property taxes ranking the sixth highest in the country (TRERC). Your market valuation date is January 1, 2023. For those that are unsure, market value is defined as if your property were put on the market today, the amount it would transfer for in cash or its equivalent with a reasonable time to procure a Buyer.

The dates are very important!

You will have until May 22 in Dallas County, May 15 in Collin County and May 17 in Denton County. From today until May 22, 2023, you as a taxpayer have the right to go down to the Dallas Appraisal District Offices and have an informal review to discuss what properties were used to value your property. No appointment is required. This can also be done through the Ufile Online Protest and through email. In person, appraisers are available to discuss their data. If you go in early May, it is not overly crowded, but the closer you get to the deadline, the more wait time you will encounter. At this time the property owner and appraiser may come to an agreement on the new property valuation and no formal protest is required.

When protesting on paper or online, you must check one of the boxes on the form you received in the mail as to why you are protesting. Only one is required to be checked so I would not recommend checking more than that. The two most common options to appeal your property’s value are:

1. Market Value

2. Unequal Value

If you select market value, you will submit sales of comparable properties with photographs and should include the property address, sales date and price. Your real estate agent can get these readily if they exist. A savvy agent will know to run homes that are like size, age and neighborhood. The DCAD appraisers are very well versed in this process so do not try to pull one from two miles away and expect them to believe you.

If you select unequal value, you are objecting that the condition of your property is not equal compared with others similar to yours. The best types of documents to prove physical defects, needed repairs and or the state of the home are repair estimates from contractors. These must be signed by the contractor and attested to repairs and photographs.

When they have contacted you to schedule your ARB hearing, it is best to ask what comps they are using. This is a totally appropriate question, and you will find that on the form under ‘open records request.’ Remember this is how the property was valued on January 1, 2023, so you cannot use 2021 comps or what has happened since January 1, 2021.

If you are in a flood zone or on a busy street, you will get a reduction and should see this on your valuation. For instance, if you live on a very busy street you may get a 40 percent reduction for market adjustment.

And one last piece of advice. There is nothing better than seeing someone in person to plead your case. They will try and do this over email or phone, but I would suggest asking for an in-person meeting. If you need any help with anything let me know! I am here to help.

Mary Alice AdairMay 1, 2023