If your Texas property tax appraisal went up this year, you're not alone — and you don't have to simply accept it. Texas law gives every property owner the right to protest their appraised value, and the majority of owners who protest receive at least some reduction. This guide walks through the entire process, from the notice in your mailbox to the final certified value.
01 Check your appraisal notice
Every spring, your county appraisal district (CAD) issues a Notice of Appraised Value. Read it carefully — appraisal districts manage hundreds of thousands of parcels and frequently get details wrong: square footage, bedroom or bath count, lot size, condition, even features that don't exist. Each of those errors is a potential argument. If you never received a notice, look your property up directly on your county CAD's site — HCAD for Harris, TCAD for Travis, DCAD for Dallas, and so on.
The honest question to ask: would this property actually sell for the noticed value today? If the answer is no, a protest is worth filing.
02 Know your deadline
This is the step that costs people the most money, because missing it ends the conversation for the year.
03 File your protest
You can file three ways: through your county's online portal (look for "File a Protest" or "eFile"), by mailing Form 50-132 from the Texas Comptroller before the deadline, or in person at the appraisal district office. When you file, you choose your grounds — and this choice matters more than most owners realize.
The two strongest grounds, which should almost always both be selected, are market value (the property is assessed above what it would sell for) and unequal appraisal (it's assessed higher than comparable properties, even if the value seems "fair"). Filing both at the outset preserves every argument; the decision of which to lead with is best made later, once you've seen the district's evidence.
04 Gather your evidence
This is where protests are won or lost. The most persuasive evidence, roughly in order of weight:
Comparable sales
Recent sales of similar properties that sold for less than your assessed value. The single most persuasive argument in most hearings.
Unequal appraisal data
Similar properties assessed lower than yours. Texas law entitles you to the median value of a comparable peer set.
Your purchase price
A recent arm's-length purchase below the assessed value is direct, hard-to-dismiss evidence.
Condition & defects
Photos of deferred maintenance, foundation issues, roof or system problems the district valued from the curb.
For commercial property, evidence shifts to the income approach: reconstructed net operating income, market rents and expenses, and the capitalization rate implied by the district's value tested against the market. A district's mass-appraisal model rarely reflects a property's actual economics — and that gap is the case.
05 The informal review
Before any formal hearing, most counties offer an informal review with a single appraiser. A large share of protests resolve here. Bring your evidence, stay factual, and lead with your strongest comp. If you reach a number you're satisfied with, you sign a settlement and you're finished. If not, the case proceeds to the Appraisal Review Board.
06 The ARB hearing
The Appraisal Review Board is a panel of independent citizens authorized to rule on your protest. A few principles that consistently help:
- Arrive on time — missed hearings are dismissed outright.
- Be concise; you typically have only a few minutes.
- Lead with comparable sales and unequal appraisal — the arguments panels find hardest to dismiss.
- Present your evidence first, then address the district's. The most effective approach leans on the district's own records wherever possible.
- Be respectful. ARB members are volunteers, not adversaries.
Under Texas Tax Code §41.43, when you protest on unequal appraisal the burden of proof can shift to the district — a legal anchor that's easy to underuse if you're representing yourself.
07 If you still disagree
An ARB decision isn't necessarily the end. Binding arbitration is faster and lower-cost than court for many properties under the statutory threshold, and a judicial appeal in district court can make sense for higher-value commercial assets. Both have strict deadlines that run from the date of the ARB order.
08 Is it worth it?
For most owners, yes. The reductions can be worth hundreds to thousands of dollars a year, and because Texas values compound — this year's certified value becomes next year's starting point — a single good outcome protects you well beyond the current bill. The catch is that doing it well takes research, the right evidence, and knowing which arguments carry weight with your specific county.
Don't want to do it yourself?
TruRate handles every step — filing, evidence, informal review, and the ARB hearing — built by an attorney-led team using the district's own data. 25% of savings only. Nothing if we don't reduce your value.
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