Texas Property Tax Tips
Posts by jkutner
Rise In New Home Starts in N. Texas May Lift Values
First quarter new home starts in North Texas were up almost 60 percent from the previous year at March 31 and an increase is expected for the second quarter of 2010 as well. It would mark the third consecutive increase in starts and could signal a recovery in home values.
For taxpayers the current protest season, which begins in May, may be the last best opportunity to reduce their taxable value. Waiting until 2011 may be too late because . . .
Flip This Home? Now You Can
The FHA is about to suspend for a year a rule that discouraged speculators from “flipping” a home — buying cheap and selling dear within 90 days to an owner occupant who finances through FHA.
Your Rising Tax Rate: Second Shoe to Drop
Dallas County’s $56.5 million expected revenue shortfall is only the latest in a string of announcements preparing the public for an increase in property tax rates. It’s a statewide problem . . .
Underwater? A lower taxable value can help you qualify for relief
If your mortgage balance is more than your home’s value, the government’s recently announced assistance program can help bail you out. But your taxable value can influence your ability to qualify. Lower is better. That’s why it pays to protest to your Texas Appraisal Review Board in May.
Arbitration: A Texas Taxpayer’s Last — and Best — Resort!
Arbitration can be even more productive than the Appraisal Review Board process — and the reductons larger — because it’s an uneven playing field tilted in the owner’s favor . . .
Time Lies: The Delayed Closing Factor in Valuing Commercial Property for Taxes
Commercial properties don’t close quickly . . . that can be a factor in valuing a newly acquired property for tax purposes.
Adjustments to Comp Sales: Neighborhood
Here we’ll discuss Neighborhood adjustments to comparable sales when you present a property tax protest to your Texas Appraisal Review Board.
Adjustments to Comp Sales: Logic and Lot Value
Logic can make a difference when presenting your property tax protest before your Texas Appraisal Review Board. Consider two identical homes, one backing to a golf course and the other across the street . . .
Does the Decline in New Home Starts Portend Recovery?
Recovery of home values in Texas is going against the national continuing down trend caused by the overhang of a “shadow inventory” of homes coming on the market nationwide. For Texas homeowners, it means 2010 is the year to protest your property tax valuations; 2011 may be too late.
Refinancing: Rates as Low as 2%
Refinancing is available through the government’s Home Affordable Modification Program at rates as low as 2% and for borrowers whose total debt payments — including credit cards and other debts — can be as much as 60% of pre tax income.
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