Watchtower Protest is now Ballard Property Tax Protest. The same great, personalized service you expect.
Watchtower Protest is now Ballard Property Tax Protest. The same great, personalized service you expect.
Fort Bend County, Texas, residents are under the jurisdiction of the Fort Bend Central Appraisal District (FBCAD) for the purposes of property taxes.
Since there is no state-wide property tax, Texas relies on local property taxes for significant percentages of government and school budgets. Your taxes pay for roads, teachers, libraries, police and fire departments, and more.
Each Texas county has its own appraisal district. Every appraisal district is responsible for valuing all properties in the county, including residential homes. The appraisal district's tax valuation is then used to calculate actual property tax bills by multiplying the local unit's tax rates by the property's assessed value.
According to FBCAD’s website, there are 215 local taxing units and 376,000 individual tax accounts in Fort Bend County. FBCAD attempts to evaluate each property uniformly but cannot perform a detailed appraisal of every home due to the sheer volume of properties.
Instead, FBCAD uses mass-appraisal techniques to determine a valuation for groups of homes all at once. This method is prone to errors, including over-valuations that cause your home’s tax bills to be too high.
With a physical office in Rosenberg, FBCAD has staff on hand from Monday to Friday between 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. The office is located at 2801 B.F. Terry Blvd, Rosenberg, TX 77471 and can be reached at (281) 344-8623.
You can also email questions to FBCAD by using info@fbcad.org or by filling out its inquiry form at https://www.fbcad.org/contact-us-form/. Through the website, you can find answers to questions such as what to do when you move, how to correct errors, and when you will receive your tax bills.
A homestead exemption is one of the ways Texas tries to reduce property tax burdens on ordinary homeowners. Texas law requires all local school districts to offer a $40,000 homestead exemption for a homeowner’s primary residence. However, you must apply for a homestead exemption to receive the tax break.
To apply for your exemptions, you’ll need to submit Form 50-114 and provide a driver's license or ID card with an address that matches the home you're attempting to exempt. You will need to provide additional information if you apply for a disabled homeowner or disabled veteran's exemption.
While general homestead exemptions are a great way to lower your tax bills, further savings may be available through a property tax protest. By filing a protest, you challenge FBCAD’s assessment of your home.
Once you have filed a protest, you can request an informal conference regarding your home's valuation. You can also proceed to a hearing before the local Appraisal Review Board (ARB). During both stages, you will present evidence that your home should have a lower assessed value and, therefore, lower property taxes.
Once you receive a Notice of Appraised Value from FBCAD in the mail, you have 30 days to file your protest. However, you do not need to wait until April for your new Notice but can begin planning a protest now.
If you believe your property taxes are too high and the FBCAD misevaluated your home, preparing a protest in advance may be right for you. You can file the protest online come 2023, but gathering evidence may take more time.
Sign up with Watchtower Protest now to get ready for a protest next year. Our experienced representatives can explain the FBCAD protest process, evaluate your home, and determine why your valuation is incorrect.
The Watchtower team can also represent you in informal negotiations and at a formal ARB hearing. Best of all, Watchtower's services are offered to you risk-free. So, start the process now and sign up today.
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