Property Tax Appeal:
Do it Yourself. Do it Right.

How to find comparable properties for property tax appeal?

Gather similar properties

Start by gathering properties in your neighborhood that are similar to yours in terms of size, age, location, and other characteristics. Typically, they should bear the same neighborhood code as yours and should have similar features and amenities. If you don’t find enough properties in your neighborhood code, you can expand your search to your entire school district.

Perform Equal and Uniform Analysis

Equal and uniform analysis is a method used to determine whether properties in a certain area are being taxed fairly and uniformly. This involves comparing the assessments of different properties to ensure that they are all being taxed at a similar rate. To perform an equal and uniform analysis of properties. For each comparable property:

  1. Adjust the square footage of land and improvements. This is the normalization step.
  2. Adjust the Condition-Desirability-Utility (CDU). You can refer to the adjustment factors table in our sample evidence report.
  3. Calculate the net adjusted value per square foot for the comp.
  4. Now find the adjusted value of the comp if it were applied to the subject.

Repeat for each comparable property you have. Pick a set of five comparable properties where the adjusted value to subject is lower than your appraised value. Find the median of the adjusted values. This will be your opinion of your properties appraised value. Equal and Uniform analysis will help you arrive at a comp equity grid that will help you lower your property tax.

Perform Comparable Sales Analysis

Texas is a non-disclosure state. As such, sale prices are not publicly available to you. But, your local friendly neighborhood realtor has it! And most realtors are happy to provide you your neighborhood sales info. Make friends with a realtor of your choice and approach them for sales information. Once you gather information on properties sold in your neighborhood in the past year, you can select those that are similar to yours in terms of size, age, quality and other characteristics. Make adjustments as explained in the previous section. Arrive at a median adjusted value.

Tabulate the values from both Equity analysis and Comparable Sales Analysis and present them in a format easy for the assessor/ARB to review. You can read more on how to prepare for your ARB hearing.

It will take a couple of hours, if not days, to put together your comparables report. We are here to help you with that! We do the heavy lifting for you! We compare your property with hundreds of similar properties in and around your neighborhood and get you the best set of equity comps.

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Disclaimer

Articles presented here are for general information and education only. It is provided as a courtesy to the general public. SQD Taxtech LLC does not warrant that it is accurate or complete. Opinions expressed and estimates or projections given are those of the authors or persons quoted as of the date of the article with no obligation to update or notify of inaccuracy or change. This article may not be reproduced, distributed or further published by any person without the written consent of SQD Taxtech LLC. Please cite source when quoting.

SQD Taxtech LLC, its managed affiliates and subsidiaries, as a matter of policy, do not give tax, accounting, regulatory or legal advice. Rules in the areas of law, tax, and accounting are subject to change and open to varying interpretations. You should consult with your other advisors on the tax, accounting and legal implications of actions you may take based on any strategies presented, taking into account your own particular circumstances.