Notices of Appraised Residential Real Estate Values Are Out, and Our Tax Doctor is IN

We welcome our new Tax Doctor on Candy’sDirt.com, Rob Wheelock of PropertyTaxManagers.com. (His ad is on this page, click on it and wander over to his website.) Rob is a tax fighting veteran with more than 10 years of experience who also works on special assignment for the Texas State Comptroller’s Office as an Arbitrator, settling property tax disputes between property owners and Appraisal Districts throughout the State. So he definitely has “an inside edge”.  He will be here throughout the next couple crucial tax rendition weeks to help you whittle that tax bill down as much as humanely possible.

CD: Rob, there is always good news and bad news. Our property values are going up in Dallas but that means, our property taxes be may heading north, too. Have you seen any evidence that valuations are jumping this year?

Rob: Notices of Appraised Value are just beginning to hit property owners mailboxes and an early review shows pretty mixed results. After several years of declining values the DFW area has turned around and the slide in values is over. Most properties that were revalued in 2013 will remain the same or show a slight increase. I haven’t seen any valuations that declined, but have heard many did. The ones that did increase, seemed to get tagged pretty hard. I’ve seen several with 15%+ increases, but so far for the most part there running in the 5% to 8% range.

 CD:What areas of town do you think will be hit the hardest?

Rob: The Dallas County Appraisal District is responsible for 4500 residential neighborhoods, and by law, have to reappraise each property every three years. They do that by working a portion of each area (approximately 1/3) each year rather than trying to do the whole area at once. According to DCAD, this year out of approximately 642,000 properties, approximately 140,000 properties will see a decreased value, 415,000 did not change, and about 87,000 will see an increase. There’s no data available to indicate which areas are hit or missed, but from what I’ve seen it’s real spotty. I think if you protested in the past couple of years you are more likely to see an increase to bring your property back up and in line with those who failed to monitor and protest their values. I have a couple of properties in Highland Park that received increases of over $500,000, that we had worked down in 2011 and 2012.

CD: OK, so what, if anything, can homeowners do?

Rob: I recommend that every property owner have their valuation looked at every year by a professional that knows the Tax Code and the system. Way too many property owners get their Notice and put it aside to check on later, but don’t check on it in time to file a protest. If you fail to file a protest by the deadline, you’re stuck with the proposed value for another year. By allowing a licensed property tax professional to handle it there’s no more missing the deadline, or wondering if you’re paying more than your fair share. We work on a contingency basis so there’s no fee earned unless we save the property owner something.

CD: Should we call you the moment that notice comes in the mail?

Rob: Yes, but we’ve tried made it even easier than that! Our goal is to become the property owners’ Property Tax Watchdog. Sign up once, and we will monitor the valuation each and every year, comparing the proposed valuation with recent sales and neighboring properties using aggressive appeal strategies to save our clients’ money. Commercial property owners have been doing this for years and it make good sense. Most high end properties have used the services of property tax consultants for years. We want to bring that same service to all property owners.

CD: So our property tax moniroing would be on autopilot?

Rob: Yes. Also, the Appraisal District does not mail out Notices of Appraised Value unless the value increases. Just because you don’t receive a notice doesn’t mean your property is valued fairly. You still need to have a professional Property Tax Consultant review and monitor your value.

CD: OK so my house didn’t go up this year, does that mean I’m in for a double whammy next year?

Rob: Some properties were reappraised and didn’t go up. Section 25.18 of the Property Tax Code states that the Appraisal Districts have to reappraise all real and personal property in the district at least once every three years, so you may get lucky and get skipped again next year. Then again, maybe not. If sales continue at their current pace, the appraisal districts will have more reasons to increase valuations next year.