San Antonio Express-News (Sunday)
Property tax workshop ‘is about educating our community’
With a hot housing market that has sent San Antonio property values soaring, homeowners searching for ways to cut their tax bills spent part of their Saturday getting the ins and outs of tax exemptions and appraisal protests.
About 75 people turned out for the property tax workshop, airing their concerns and frustrations while asking what they can do. For their part, local officials provided them with tips on what to do along with websites and offices to visit and phone numbers to call to help them navigate their options.
How to apply for tax exemptions and protest property appraisals were among the most discussed topics.
The average value of a home in Bexar County jumped up 28 percent from last year to this year, according to Michael Amezquita, chief appraiser at the Bexar Appraisal District. Other surrounding counties saw percentage increases in the 40s and 50s. Earlier this month, Amezquita said this year’s increases were the highest he has seen in his 18 years on the job.
“We’re really just reflecting what’s going on in the real estate market,” he said Saturday.
A person’s property taxes are calculated by multiplying the assessed property value by the tax rate and then dividing by 100, Bexar County AssessorCollector Albert Uresti explained to attendees.
The tax assessor-collector’s office collects taxes on behalf of taxing jurisdictions while the Bexar Appraisal District sets property values.
Properties are valued as of Jan. 1 every year. Amezquita said that property value is looked at by neighborhood and even by street level. He said square footage, the quality of construction, sales prices of properties in each neighborhood and the location of the property all factor into the val
“It’s our job to go out
and inform people how to protest and how to get those
exemptions.” District 4 Councilwoman Adriana
Rocha Garcia
ue of a person’s home.
Residents who feel like their assessment was not correct have until May 16 to protest it. People who protest by mail will have a time scheduled to meet informally with an appraiser. People also can protest online if they prefer to not meet in person.
If someone protesting their assessment does not come to an agreement after that initial meeting, a hearing can be scheduled with the Appraisal Review Board, which will make a decision on the case.
Amezquita said people can protest based on either market value or equity. Someone who protests based on the market is saying they believe their home is not worth what other homes around them are selling for. Someone protesting based on equity is saying their property value is too different from the other properties in the area.
When protesting, Amezquita said photographs can help bolster a person’s case.
“If you’re in a neighborhood where homes are being remodeled, and your home has been the same for the last 25 years, pictures of that is going to be very helpful in helping you reduce your value,” he said.
Amezquita said the sooner people sign up to protest the better since he expects there to be about 160,000 appeals this year, up from last year’s 141,000.
Visit bcad.org or call 210-2242432 to file a protest.
Exemptions, payments
Exemptions can lower taxable value, which then reduces the tax bill. There are multiple options people can look into, including exemptions for people who are more than 65 years old and veterans with disabilities.
A homestead exemption is also an option, and though the deadline to apply for one officially was on Saturday, Amezquita said people can still apply outside of that time frame. According to the comptroller website, a late homestead exemption application can be filed up to two years after the delinquency date, which usually falls on Feb. 1.
People can call the tax assessor-collector’s office at 210-3352251 to find out if they have all the property tax exemptions they are eligible for.
For those who can’t pay large lump sums for their property taxes, Uresti said there are property tax payment plans available. Any taxpayer can have a halfpayment plan, which allows people to pay half in November and half in June.
There is also a quarter-payment plan and a 10-month payment plan, but there are more stipulations a person must meet to be eligible for those.
Workshops
Denise Lozano, 39, attended the event with her wife, Jacie Lozano, 36, who protests their appraisal each year and has even started helping others learn how to go through the process. The couple lives on the Southwest Side in a neighborhood they say is mostly made up of people with property tax exemptions but who don’t typically protest the appraisals. Denise Lozano said others not protesting around them can make it more difficult for them when they try to make their case.
Denise Lozano said the event was helpful for her and her wife to think about how to help others in situations like theirs.
Saturday morning’s workshop at the St. Vincent de Paul Knights of Columbus Banquet Hall on Ray Ellison Boulevard was hosted by District 4 Councilwoman Adriana Rocha Garcia. District 5 Councilwoman Teri Castillo held a similar property tax panel and resource fair later in the day at San Antonio Independent School District’s Harris Middle School.
“We’ve heard from everyone across the city in general that their their property taxes went up,” Rocha Garcia said. “So it’s our job to go out and inform people how to protest and how to get those exemptions. And it really is about educating our community.”