LOCAL REALTORS, APPRAISAL DISTRICT DISCUSS DIFFERENCES BETWEEN APPRAISED VALUES, HOME SALES
Property valuations for tax purposes are up again this year in Washington County, but market conditions do not seem to correlate with that increase.
County for April 2024.
(courtesy Texas Realtors)
Preliminary numbers released by the Washington County Appraisal District in April show that the average homestead market values in most local taxing entities grew between 5-9 percent from last year. Meanwhile, April’s Washington County housing report from Texas Realtors says the median home sale price is down 12.3 percent when compared to April 2023.
KWHI spoke with professionals in the real estate market and with the appraisal district to see how values placed on properties by appraisal districts compare to sales history.
Bradley Bevers, founder of Legend Texas Properties and Bevers Real Estate Group, said 2023 already experienced a cooldown compared to what was seen in 2022 or 2021, and this year seems to be continuing that trend.
Bevers stated that Washington County is a luxury market for many people, such as weekenders or retirees, who often are content to wait it out when selling, rather than lowering their prices to move the property. That in turn, according to Bevers, can lead to a significant slowdown that can affect property appraisals from a market perspective.
Bevers said a combination of factors, including higher interest rates, the incoming heat of the summer and 2024 being an election year, may mean it could take several months before the market swings back upward.
Roger Chambers, founder of Market Realty and a state-certified general appraiser and property tax consultant, also said the feverish market has generally subsided, with prices per acre on average seeing a decline.
Chambers said the conversations he has had with many chief appraisers indicate they, too, agree that the market is down, but inconsistencies arise due to the mass appraisal methods that appraisal districts are required to use by the Texas Comptroller’s Office. He said appraisal districts are not provided access to the larger datasets that independent appraisers have for property sales. This, combined with the fact that appraised values need to meet school funding ratios while also being used by all taxing entities within the school districts, leads to a system that he believes creates a disadvantage for the property owner while tying the hands of the appraisal district.
Chambers noted that higher appraised values do not necessarily lead to higher taxes, as what property owners pay ultimately depends on what tax rates their local government entities set and if they choose to implement a “no-new-revenue” rate.
Chief Appraiser Dyann White said the appraisal district’s average homestead values are not the same as the realtor data for median home sale prices. She said the district looks at all properties in the county with a homestead to come up with an average. Concerning new home construction, she said there is essentially none under $200,000, while she is seeing more and more over $500,000.
White said values are not driven by any force of the Comptroller, but by the sales data the appraisal district collects. The district is governed by laws that require appraisals to be at market value.
White encourages any property owners who feel their appraisals are not consistent with what they could sell their property for to reach out to the appraisal district.
The deadline to file a formal protest for residential and non-commercial land is tomorrow (Friday). White said property owners are still able to communicate with the appraisal district on an informal basis until mid-July.
The appraisals are not consistent I look at the website and see homes that get Reappraised every year and then that have not been for at least 5 to 10 years , Also when someone makes an improvement to the property like we did by adding a pool, they raise the appraisal to the amount the pool cost, But ask any real Estate agent and they will tell you a pool only adds about 20 to 40 percent of what it cost to the overall value of your home. I am sure it is the same with other improvements such as decks or Garages . We added a 3×4 cement pad to place a BBq grill on and the tax appraiser came out and on our next tax bill it said we had added a “Patio” I did get it taken off but that is just stretching it for the sake of getting more money from hard working people,
What a joke. If you can’t sell your property for the appraisal amount, then the appraisal is wrong. Let me tell you, I went to the appraisal district with just that comment. They told me well that’s what we have. Also Dyann White failed to tell the public the whole truth about the 20% increase. It’s doesn’t apply to anyone with a homestead or agriculture exemption. So in other words it only helps non Washington County people. Thanks legislature for NOT helping residents. This kind of help we don’t need when our property values increased 50% this year on top of a 40% increase last year. I think the goal is to chase current residents out so the rich can take over. Dyann White needs to tell the whole truth. Not partial truth. If the comptroller is to blame, why are Dyann White and Lois Kolkhorst not trying to do something about it?