State of Texas Property Taxes:
County Appraisal Protest: For most of us, the deadline for filing a property appraisal protest with the Travis County Appraisal District (TCAD) is May 15. In some cases, with strong evidence, a settlement can be reached quickly with TCAD representatives. Sometimes a settlement can be reached at an informal review. If the outcome of an informal review is unsatisfactory, then take the case to an Appraisal Review Board.
Appraisal districts typically use recent property sales (12 months) as comparables to determine your property appraisal. If you send me a text message or email with your address, size, and age of your home/property, I will be glad to send you details from the Austin Multiple Listing Service (MLS) on recent comparable sales in your county’s neighborhood. (The Austin MLS serves 18 area counties, including Travis, Williamson, Hays, etc.)
Homestead: Benefits of a General Homestead Exemption include a reduced tax rate, protection of your homestead from creditors, and a cap of 10% per year on increases in property appraisals.
If you know someone who recently purchased their primary home, remind them to apply for a General Homestead Exemption. They can apply in the first year they owned their primary residence on January 1.
Do you know someone who can benefit from other property tax exemptions? Over 65? Disabled veteran? Information on exemptions can be found at here.
United States Income Taxes:
If you sell your main home, the first $250,000 of profit for a single person ($500,000 for married/filing jointly) is not taxable. Costs for improvements, that convey with the sale of your home (for instance, room additions, landscaping, new roof, siding, insulation, and central air/heat) are part of the” total basis” that can be subtracted from your initial “amount realized” to determine if you have a taxable “net gain”. (IRS publication 523)