Homeowners in Texas are rushing to file protests against their appraised property tax amounts before the deadline Tuesday.
While previously, homeowners had until the end of May to file their protest, they must now file by either May 15, or 30 days after they receive their tax notice, whichever comes later.
Last year, the number of protests surged in some major Texas counties including counties in the Dallas/Fort Worth area, which saw increases of about 20%, according to Dave Lieber, an investigative reporter columnist for The Dallas Morning News. In just five Dallas-area counties, Dallas, Denton, Collin, Rockwall and Tarrant, 45,000 additional homeowners protested their tax appraised values.
As home price continue to surge, it’s no wonder homeowners are increasingly concerned with the amount of taxes they are paying on their home. The latest report from CoreLogic shows nationally, home prices increased 7% from March 2017 to March 2018.
And in Texas, which holds some of the nation’s top housing markets, including Dallas, Austin and even Houston, that increase is much higher. In fact, both Houston and Dallas are in the list of top five metros with the highest home price increase from their pre-recession peaks with increases of 69% and 67%, respectively.
And now, this year, homeowners have even more reason to file a protest against their property tax. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed into law at the end of 2017, caps the itemized deduction of property taxes at $10,000.
