Lois Kolkhorst, R-Brenham, filed a bill in the State House which seeks to ward off what she calls “aggressive appraisals”. Generally promoting a cap on taxable property valuations, she is seeking to assist property owners in keeping appraisal increases to a minimum. The bill would also serve in assist those who challege their appraisal amounts. Currently a challenge to shifts in appraisal values is a lot like swimming upstream. It may be worth it to try, but its probably not going to happen.
I personally get concerned with the secondary effects we may begin to see from all the developments within Fort Worth realty. How far up can some of the commercial developments push our appraised values? Would the government slow increases to match the limited growth of the economy? I doubt it.
Appraisal districts play a large role in your annual tax bill, but what a lot of people don’t understand is that they do not set the tax rates. Rate increases can easily outstrip a 5% annual increase in appraisal values. Personally, because of the way Texas taxes are structured, I have always felt it most prudent to live well below your means when it comes to purchasing a home. We have no state income tax so our property taxes compensate. If you are living in a home that costs about twice as much as your annual income, you are doing great on a relative scale.
I can certainly always applaud an effort to lower taxation on the masses, but at some point it really does come down to decisions made on at an individual level.
