Texas Property Tax Appeal Guide 2026
To protest your property taxes in Texas, you file with your county Appraisal Review Board (ARB) by the deadline on your assessment notice (shown below). This guide covers how the protest works, the assessment ratio, what evidence helps, and where to file. General information, not legal advice.
Deadline: May 15, or 30 days after your Notice of Appraised Value is mailed — whichever is later.
Missing the deadline permanently waives your protest for that year. Confirm the exact date on your own assessment notice before acting — it varies by county.
How to protest your property taxes in Texas
You file with your county Appraisal Review Board (ARB), using Form 50-132. Start by reviewing your assessment notice, gather evidence that your value is too high (recent comparable sales, an appraisal, or condition issues), and submit by the deadline above. Review the official process and forms here: Texas official filing information.
What is the Texas assessment ratio?
100% of market value. Texas appraises property at full market value as of January 1 (Tex. Tax Code §23.01) — there is no fractional assessment ratio.
Texas property tax at a glance
| Process | protest |
|---|---|
| Deadline | May 15, or 30 days after your Notice of Appraised Value is mailed — whichever is later. |
| You file with | your county Appraisal Review Board (ARB), using Form 50-132 |
| Median home value | about $303,000 |
| Median effective tax rate | about 1.40% |
A worked example
Suppose a home is appraised at $330,000 but recent comparable sales point to about $300,000 — a $30,000 over-appraisal. Because Texas taxes at 100% of market value, the entire $30,000 is taxable. At the state's roughly 1.40% median effective rate, that gap is worth about $420 a year ($30,000 × 1.40%) if a protest brings the value down to $300,000. This is a hypothetical illustration, not a prediction — your actual rate, taxing units, and any homestead cap determine the real outcome.
What makes Texas different
Texas has no state income tax and no state property tax, so the entire property-tax burden falls on local districts. That's the main reason protest rates here run high. The 2019 SB2 and 2023 HB2 reforms cap homestead taxable-value growth at 10% per year, but the appraisal itself is uncapped, so a protest is still the primary way to contest a high valuation.
Outcomes: In Harris County — the state's largest — the majority of formal and informal protests result in a value reduction (Harris Central Appraisal District data). Results vary by property and year — past outcomes don't predict yours.
Frequently asked questions
When is the Texas property tax protest deadline?
Generally May 15, or 30 days after your Notice of Appraised Value is mailed, whichever is later. The date varies by county and year — always confirm the deadline printed on your own notice, because missing it waives your protest for that year.
How do I protest my property taxes in Texas?
File a Notice of Protest (Form 50-132) with your county Appraisal Review Board by the deadline. You can present evidence at an informal meeting with the appraisal district and, if unresolved, at a formal ARB hearing. After the ARB you may pursue binding arbitration or district court.
What is the Texas assessment ratio?
Texas assesses at 100% of market value — there is no fractional ratio. The appraisal district's job is to estimate what your property would sell for as of January 1.
Official sources
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Check your address →This page explains how property-tax appeals work in Texas in general. This is not legal advice and is not a substitute for a licensed property-tax consultant or attorney. Deadlines and procedures change — confirm the details with your county assessor or tax authority before acting. TrueOwn does not file appeals on your behalf.