Did you protest property values in Tarrant County? It might take a while to resolve.
Tarrant County property owners who have protested valuations are encouraged to work out a settlement over the phone or expect delays for in-person hearings as the Tarrant Appraisal District works to balance safety in the midst of rising coronavirus cases while it processes the 158,000 protests that were filed.
“We will not deny anyone their right to protest,” said Jeff Law, the chief appraiser. “We are trying to be as cautious as possible.”
He said his goal is to certify the property tax rolls, as required by law, by July 25. To do that, at least 90% of the protests filed must be resolved.
The certification gives cities, counties, school districts and other taxing entities information about the revenue they’ll have before they set tax rates that will be used to calculate tax bills later in the year.
Law said workers are focusing first on the 103,000 protests filed by tax agents on behalf of property owners and then will move on to the 55,000 protests filed by property owners.
If there’s no resolution, hearings may begin in August or September. And those hearings will either be on the telephone or in person. TAD offices are closed to the general public.
Law said anyone who chooses in-person hearings should expect some delay because of social distancing requirements. Tarrant County’s mask requirement order that runs through 6 a.m. Aug. 3.
About 74,000 of the protests have been resolved.
Law encourages property owners to create an online account at tad.org so they can see the status of their account or any protest they filed.
Property owners had until June 1 to file a protest. Last year, about 208,000 protests were filed.
If someone is concerned they haven’t heard from TAD after filing a protest, Law encourages people to reach out to the district.
To speak to a residential appraiser about your property value, call 817-284-3925 or email res@tad.org. To speak to a commercial appraiser, call 817-284-2025 or email com@tad.org. For questions about exemptions, call 817-284-4063 or email exempt@tad.org.
This story was originally published July 7, 2020 at 6:00 AM.
