How do I protest my Tarrant County property appraisal?
By Andrew ChavisUpdated November 8, 20268 min readFile a written notice of protest with the Tarrant Appraisal District by May 15 or the 30th day after your notice of appraised value was delivered, whichever is later (Texas Tax Code section 41.44(a)(1)). Protest on the grounds section 41.41 lists, most often market value and unequal appraisal, and ask in writing for the district's evidence: at least 14 days before the hearing the chief appraiser must tell you that you are entitled to a copy of the data, schedules, formulas and everything else the district will use, and anything you requested that was not delivered 14 days ahead cannot be used as evidence at the hearing, except to rebut something you raise (sections 41.461 and 41.67(d)). You can appear in person, by phone or video, or by affidavit. If you lose on value, binding arbitration is open for a homestead or any property at $5 million or less, on a deposit of $450 to $1,550, requested within 60 days after you receive notice of the order. This page is general information, not legal or tax advice.
The Calendar, Written Into the Code
The notice of appraised value is the trigger. Under section 25.19(a), the chief appraiser delivers it by April 1, or as soon after as practicable, for a single-family residence with a homestead exemption, and by May 1, or as soon after as practicable, for other property, when the appraised value went up, when it exceeds what you rendered, when the property is new to the roll, or when an exemption was canceled or reduced. The protest deadline follows it: section 41.44(a)(1) requires the written notice of protest "not later than May 15 or the 30th day after the date that notice to the property owner was delivered to the property owner as provided by Section 25.19, whichever is later." Miss it and subsection (b) still leaves a door: a late filer gets a hearing on showing good cause to the appraisal review board, if the protest is filed before the board approves the appraisal records. The district cannot charge you to protest (section 41.41(d)). The hearing itself is scheduled within 90 days after the board approves the records (section 41.45(a)), and an owner with no agent gets one postponement without having to show cause, if the request is made before the hearing date (section 41.45(e)).
What You Can Protest
Section 41.41(a) lists the grounds. The two that carry most residential protests are (1) "determination of the appraised value of the owner's property" and (2) "unequal appraisal of the owner's property." The rest cover inclusion of the property on the records, denial of an exemption in whole or part, and a catch-all for "any other action of the chief appraiser, appraisal district, or appraisal review board that applies to and adversely affects the property owner." Market value says the district's number is higher than the house would sell for on January 1. Unequal appraisal says the district valued your house higher than comparable houses it appraised, even if the market would bear the number. You can protest on both, and the evidence is different for each: closed sales of comparable houses for market value, the district's own appraised values on comparable houses for unequal appraisal. Through the end of 2026 the list also includes the 20 percent circuit-breaker limit on non-homestead property under section 23.231; that ground drops out of the statute on January 1, 2027 unless the Legislature acts.
The Evidence Rule Written Into the Code
Section 41.461(a) requires the chief appraiser, at least 14 days before the hearing, to inform you that you are "entitled on request to a copy of the data, schedules, formulas, and all other information the chief appraiser will introduce at the hearing to establish any matter at issue," and section 41.461(b) bars charging you for the copies. Then section 41.67(d) gives the request teeth: information you requested that "was not delivered to the protesting party at least 14 days before the scheduled or postponed hearing may not be used or offered in any form as evidence in the hearing, including as a document or through argument or testimony," except to rebut something you raise. The request can be made in writing at any time; an owner who makes it when filing gets the district's case with the most time to read it. What comes back is the district's case: the comparable sales it used, its adjustments, its land and improvement schedules. An owner's own evidence is built against it: closed sales of houses like the owner's, as close to January 1 as the data allows, with the differences adjusted; photographs and bids for condition problems the district's model cannot see; and for unequal appraisal, the appraised values the district itself assigned to the comparable houses.
The Hearing: Informal, Then the Board
Tarrant Appraisal District offers an informal review before the formal hearing, where an appraiser can agree to a number or hold; the district's notice of protest form is where the process starts. If the number holds, the appraisal review board hears the protest. Section 41.45(b) lets a property owner "offer evidence or argument by affidavit without personally appearing" and "appear by telephone conference call or videoconference to offer argument," with evidence by affidavit if you appear remotely; under (b-1) the board must hold the hearing by phone or video when you ask for it in the notice of protest or in writing at least five days before the hearing (ten days with an agent). Under section 41.66(i), if the hearing has not started within two hours of its set time the board postpones it on your request. The board rules by written order. Nothing about the hearing requires an agent or an attorney; protest companies sell convenience, often for a share of the savings.
After the Board: Arbitration or Court
If the board's order is on market or appraised value, section 41A.01 opens binding arbitration for any property that is the owner's residence homestead, or any property with an appraised or market value of $5 million or less. The request and deposit go to the Comptroller within 60 days after you receive notice of the order (section 41A.03(a)), and the deposit is set by value: $450 for a homestead at $500,000 or less, $500 for a homestead above that or for other property at $1 million or less, then $800, $1,050 and $1,550 up the scale to $5 million. Strict compliance is required (section 41A.03(b)): a late request waives the right, and so does filing a value appeal in district court under chapter 42. A defective request is handled differently: the Comptroller cannot reject it without written notice of the defect, and the owner has until the 15th day after that notice is delivered to cure it (section 41A.05(c), (d)). The other route is that chapter 42 appeal, which is a lawsuit and a conversation for an attorney.
What a Win Is Worth, and What It Cannot Touch
A successful value protest lowers the appraised value for that year; what that does to the bill depends on the limits that sit between market value and taxable value. On a rental house with no homestead exemption and no applicable cap, a reduction in appraised value comes off the taxable value at the full combined rate: the reduction times the rate. On a homestead, section 23.23 limits the yearly increase in appraised value to 10 percent plus the value of new improvements, so a protest that lowers market value may or may not lower this year's capped appraised value; it still matters, because the capped value chases the market value in later years. For qualifying non-homestead real property, the 20 percent circuit-breaker limit in section 23.231 does similar work through the end of 2026, and it expires after that unless the Legislature extends it, which is one more reason the 2027 protest season will matter for every rental in the county. A value protest does not grant an exemption; an exemption denied in whole or in part is its own protest ground under section 41.41(a)(4), and a new exemption is an application to the district. And no protest changes the tax rate, which the taxing units set in the fall. This page is general information about Texas law as of November 2026, not legal or tax advice. The district's own protest page and a Texas property tax consultant or attorney are the places for your specific case.
Common Questions
- When is the deadline to protest property taxes in Tarrant County?
- May 15, or the 30th day after your notice of appraised value was delivered, whichever is later (Tax Code 41.44(a)(1)). A late protest can still be heard on good cause if it is filed before the appraisal review board approves the records.
- What can I protest on a Texas property appraisal?
- Tax Code 41.41(a) lists the grounds: the appraised value, unequal appraisal compared with similar properties, inclusion on the records, denial of an exemption, and any other district action that adversely affects you. Market value and unequal appraisal carry most residential protests.
- Can I get the appraisal district's evidence before my hearing?
- Yes, on written request. At least 14 days before the hearing the district must tell you that you are entitled to its data, schedules and formulas (41.461), free of charge, and anything you requested that was not delivered 14 days ahead cannot be used as evidence at the hearing except to rebut something you raise (41.67(d)).
- Do I have to attend the protest hearing in person?
- No. Under Tax Code 41.45(b) you can submit evidence by affidavit without appearing, or appear by telephone or videoconference, and the board must hold the hearing remotely if you ask in your notice of protest or in writing at least five days ahead, or ten days if an agent represents you.
- What happens if I lose my property tax protest in Texas?
- On a value protest you can request binding arbitration through the Comptroller within 60 days after receiving notice of the order, with a deposit of $450 to $1,550 by property type and value (41A.03), or appeal to district court under chapter 42. Filing the court appeal waives arbitration; a defective arbitration request gets written notice and 15 days to cure (41A.05).
- Does a protest lower my taxes if I have a homestead exemption?
- A successful protest lowers the appraised market value for the year. The 10 percent homestead limit in 23.23 may already be holding your capped appraised value below market, so the saving this year can be smaller than the reduction, but the lower market value still matters because the capped value chases it in later years.
Sources
- Texas Tax Code chapter 41 (41.41, 41.44, 41.45, 41.461, 41.66, 41.67), taxpayer protests
- Texas Tax Code chapter 41A, binding arbitration (41A.01, 41A.03)
- Texas Tax Code 25.19, notice of appraised value
- Texas Tax Code 23.23 (homestead cap) and 23.231 (circuit-breaker limitation, through 2026)
- Tarrant Appraisal District, protest information
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