Bexar County Property Appraisal District - Legitimate?

GeorgeS · Jan 15, 2019

We closed on our house in September and just got a form letter from the above company requesting information on the type of sale and purchase price.

Is the Bexar County Property Appraisal District a legitimate official entity? If so, shouldn't they have access to the transaction records?

toddnjoyce · Jan 15, 2019

BCAD is legitimate. Check with your realtor or mortgage broker.

studenygreg · Jan 15, 2019

Interesting question. I just bought a house 28Dec18. I will be on the lookout for this. Thanks

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AustinN4 · Jan 15, 2019

toddnjoyce said:
BCAD is legitimate. Check with your realtor or mortgage broker.

Heck, just look it up on Google. FYI, I believe every county in Texas has an appraisal district.

wakal · Jan 15, 2019

I have received the same sort of letter when I sold houses. No legal requirement to reply. Bloodsucking parasites are to be ignored when possible.

toddnjoyce · Jan 15, 2019

OP can visit BCAD.org for info on the appraisal district.

And yes, it’s a Texas thing. Everybody gets a bite of property tax. Nobody gets any income tax.

oldag · Jan 16, 2019

Yep, you have no legal obligation to respond. I always put those straight into the trash.

GeorgeS · Jan 16, 2019

Thank you. The realtor told me to disregard it.

Renegade · Jan 16, 2019

oldag said:
Yep, you have no legal obligation to respond. I always put those straight into the trash.

Unless of course you bought it for 1/2 market value. Then you make sure they know and adjust their appraisal.

toddnjoyce · Jan 16, 2019

Renegade said:
Unless of course you bought it for 1/2 market value. Then you make sure they know and adjust their appraisal.

That ain’t gonna happen. The tax man only cares what he assesses it at, not what someone paid for it.

AustinN4 · Jan 16, 2019

toddnjoyce said:
That ain’t gonna happen. The tax man only cares what he assesses it at, not what someone paid for it.

THIS in spades!

Renegade · Jan 16, 2019

toddnjoyce said:
That ain’t gonna happen. The tax man only cares what he assesses it at, not what someone paid for it.

Sales price is #1 determination in assessments. In my AO (Collin County), assessments go up or down base on recent sales. I have been on both ends of this.

toddnjoyce · Jan 16, 2019

Renegade said:
Sales price is #1 determination in assessments. In my AO (Collin County), assessments go up or down base on recent sales. I have been on both ends of this.

Interesting. I don’t know the math used by my appraisal district, but my appraised value is much lower than my purchase price and that’s before the exemptions kick in.

I do know they can only assess what they can see and BCAD uses some overhead imagery to identify improvements behind fences (pools, etc) and roof tops (solar).

Renegade · Jan 16, 2019

toddnjoyce said:
Interesting. I don’t know the math used by my appraisal district, but my appraised value is much lower than my purchase price and that’s before the exemptions kick in.

I do know they can only assess what they can see and BCAD uses some overhead imagery to identify improvements behind fences (pools, etc) and roof tops (solar).

The only issue is a single sale will probably not amount to much. But 2/3/4 home sales in your neighborhood that are below will get likely trigger a lower assessment. My assessment went down after the housing crash years ago as so many homes nearby were dumped on the market.

toddnjoyce · Jan 16, 2019

I just found this excellent primer on how property taxes across Texas are determined.

Though it’s hosted on the McClennan Appraisal District, it’s produced by the Texas Comptroller.

http://www.mclennancad.org/data/_uploaded/file/taxinfo/96-1425 Property Tax Basics-1.pdf

Every property owner should read this to better understand the system.

ETA: our state Constitution specifically states appraised value cannot exceed market value.

oldag · Jan 17, 2019

I have successfully protested an appraisal twice (2 for 2). Both times on "equity". I researched how very similar homes on the same street were appraised on a per ft2 basis. Both times mine was significantly higher. Both times mine was cut to match.

"Market value" is not a single hard number, so appraisal districts are not too concerned on that front.

In the unlikely event that sales price was less than current appraisal, you will have grounds to protest. And the district might even lower the appraisal on the next round of their own accord.

But if you send that form in with a sales price higher than the current appraisal, the district will immediately assume that the sales price constitutes "market value" and will jack up the valuation to match.

mroper · Jan 17, 2019

The only form you should fill out is your homestead exemption

GeorgeS · Jan 17, 2019

mroper said:
The only form you should fill out is your homestead exemption

That is in process. Thanks!

Hoji · Jan 17, 2019

toddnjoyce said:
That ain’t gonna happen. The tax man only cares what he assesses it at, not what someone paid for it.

Not always.

If you were able to get it at substantially lower than the similar properties in the area because it needs $xxxxx in repairs, then you can successfully dispute the appraisal and get your taxes lowered
This is a fact, not an opinion.

You will have to show estimates on repairs, and any surveys/assessments that have been made.

toddnjoyce · Jan 17, 2019

Hoji said:
Not always.

If you were able to get it at substantially lower than the similar properties in the area because it needs $xxxxx in repairs, then you can successfully dispute the appraisal and get your taxes lowered
This is a fact, not an opinion.

You will have to show estimates on repairs, and any surveys/assessments that have been made.

Correct.

Bexar County Property Appraisal District - Legitimate?

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