HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — Harris County property owners who believe there is an error in the market value set by the appraisal district have until Friday, May 15 to protest the value of their property.
The Harris County Appraisal District said some property owners may not have received their value notice yet. If that is the case, they will still have 30 days to file their protest, and that later protest deadline will be printed on their value notice.
Chief Appraiser Roland Altinger encouraged property owners to use the appraisal district’s online options for filing and settling a protest.
“Using iFile to submit your protest and then selecting iSettle is the quickest and easiest way to file and resolve your protest without having to appear at HCAD’s offices, especially this year in light of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Altinger said. “With iSettle, you can submit electronic documentation to support your opinion of value, and an appraiser will review it. If the appraiser responds with a new value and you accept, you’re protest is done for the year.”
Altinger noted that unique iFile numbers are printed on the face of the 2020 value notices near the property account number in the upper right. For security reasons, the iFile system cannot be used for filing a protest without this iFile number unless the property owner has an existing electronic owners account.
Owners who have misplaced their value notice can use HCAD’s free mobile app to quickly retrieve their iFile number by scanning their Texas driver’s license. The name and address on the license must match the property address in the HCAD system.
Property owners who have opted in to iSettle may choose to upload evidence through the owner’s website. Property owners will have five days to submit their documentation, such as a closing statement, repair estimates, comparable sales information, deeds or photos, electronically from the date they filed their protest online.
Questions concerning iSettle may be directed to isettle@hcad.org.
If a settlement through the online system isn’t possible once HCAD makes an offer, the homeowner will be scheduled for a hearing with the Appraisal Review Board.
A video explaining how to file an online protest and use the residential iSettle system is available on the district’s website at www.hcad.org under the HELP heading.
“HCAD must operate under the guidelines and deadlines set out in the state Tax Code, so we do not have the flexibility to change the protest deadline despite the closures and social distancing caused by the pandemic,” Altinger said.
The chief appraiser also reminded property owners that they are protesting the market value of their property, and that value is based on their property’s condition on Jan. 1, 2020.
Any value changes caused by an economic downturn from the pandemic would be reflected in the value on Jan 1, 2021.
“The purpose of the appraisal is to allocate the tax burden fairly among all owners of taxable property,” Altinger said. “The actual amount of tax due is determined by the tax rate set in the fall by the governing body of each jurisdiction such as county, city, school district or MUD. The appraisal district has no involvement in the rate setting process.”
For those property owners who do not want to file their protest electronically, a green protest form is included in the property value notice HCAD is sending to each property owner.
A Notice of Protest form may be downloaded from the district’s web site at www.hcad.org under the FORMS heading.
Protests may be brought to HCAD’s office at 13013 Northwest Freeway, or mailed to P.O. Box 922004, Houston, TX 77292-2004, but must be postmarked by May 15.
Business personal property and some real property accounts may have later protest deadlines. If a later deadline applies to a particular account, the property owner will be mailed an official HCAD value notice on which the later protest deadline will be listed.
If you have any questions concerning protesting your market value, please call the appraisal district’s information center at 713.957.7800 or email help@hcad.org.
Below is some additional information and answers to the most frequently asked questions.
Did COVID-19 affect my market value this year?
State law sets January 1 as the appraisal date for all Texas appraisal districts. Your value was already determined by local market data as of January 1, 2020, and your value notice was likely in the mail by mid-March. Changes in your market value caused by the current health crisis will be taken into consideration as of January 1, 2021.
Why did my market value change?
Home values constantly change and are reviewed annually by HCAD appraisers. Sales prices in an area can go up or down due to various changes in the market and sales of similar nearby properties.
Is the protest deadline going to be the same?
The protest deadline will stay the same. State law sets the protest deadline as May 15 or 30 days after your value notice is mailed. Your protest deadline is listed in bold type on your value notice.
How can I protest if the HCAD building is closed?
Employees are still working so we encourage you to take advantage of our online services such as iFile or iSettle for filing and settling a protest. Selecting iSettle will allow you to submit your opinion of value and upload documents for an appraiser to review. To use these services, simply create an owner account. The owner account also will allow you to view notices, documents and comparable properties used in determining your value. Your protest could be resolved without coming to the HCAD building.
How can I get my homestead exemption application to HCAD?
The easiest way is to use the HCAD mobile app, which asks a few questions and requires a picture of the front and back of your driver’s license – just make sure the property you are applying the exemption to matches your driver’s license. Download the app from the Apple App Store or Google Play.
You can also submit a paper application found on our website – form 11.13. The same Homestead Exemption form can be used for the General Residential Homestead, Over-65 Homestead, Disability or Over-55 Surviving Spouse. You can mail it to the address on the upper left of the form or submit it to HELP@HCAD.org
How will I know my exemption application has been accepted?
The easiest way is to check your account online using either your name, property address or account number. The exemption will be listed on the left side of the Real Property Record under Exemption Type. If you have applied for any other exemption other than General Residence Homestead, your exemption will be listed as Residential Homestead (Multiple). Because of the number of exemption applications we receive at the beginning of each year, it may take up to 90 days for your exemption to be processed.
Do I have to submit my exemption application by April 30?
You can submit your exemption application throughout the year, and it will still be processed. The reason we encourage you to do it as early as possible is so we can process it and submit the exemption to the taxing units to be factored into this year’s tax bill.
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