All Forum Posts by: Pete Harper

@Eric James That only works if the property is appraised for more than you paid. In most cases the appraised value is much much lower than sales price. I never tell the county how much I paid for a property. You are under no legal obligation to report sales price in Texas.

In this case a more accurate assessment is to look at comparable properties. Are you assessed more per square foot than comparable properties in your neighborhood?

@Dan Maciejewski. That has been my experience too. Tenants are often the best source of information. I try to tag along on the property inspection. While waiting for the inspector to do his thing I chat with the tenant. “How do you like living here?” You will be amazed what people will share.

@Darald Berger I just hired O’Conner and associates to protest my taxes in Killeen. I tried to protest myself last year and lost. O’Conner charges 50% of the savings with no upfront fees. O’Conner came recommended from another BP thread.

@William Hughes I bet not a lot of people even know where Sulphur Springs is. Lol

I face a similar problem where I live. Just not a lot of investors in these small east Texas markets.

Here are a couple suggestions. You can set up Zillow searches based on zip code and property type. Zillow will give you daily updates if anything new is listed on MLS. I've purchased a 4-plex and duplex this way. Search on the county website for multifamily properties. In the advanced search use the multifamily property code and you can pull a list of every multifamily property in the county. I did this last year and sent yellow letters to all the listings ( less than 30, fewer if you account for owners with multiple properties). We purchased a 12 unit complex off-market last year.

Are there any REI meetups in South Dallas? We are about an hour and a half south of town on I45 but I'm willing to drive.

@Fernando M.

My property is a 4-plex with a common floorplan. I looked up all the recent sales and tax records for similar properties in the same neighborhood. I summarized in a letter and sent in to tax adjuster. I think I was dinged because of recent purchase.

I’ve taken similar approach on other properties and have almost always won. I hear bell county is tough.

This year I’m thinking of hiring O’Conner and associates to protest for me.

@John Morgan

That was going to be my follow up question. I was looking at using O’Conner. They sent me a packet and I was reading through the material this morning. Thanks

@Mike Hanna

Have you ever used a tax protest service? There are several that advertise that there fee is half your reduced tax savings.

Bell county has raised my appraisal for the third straight year. I protested myself last year and lost. I had comps and everything.

Bell county Texas Appraisal District has raised our taxes on a fourplex for the third straight year. I protested last year but was not successful in getting a reduction. I’ve seen adds for companies that specialize in tax protests. I would like to hear any experiences both good and bad.

Thank you

@Greg H. I've been to a couple of these auctions looking for a good deal. We found a unicorn in Bell County. Newer 4BR in a nicer neighborhood. It only needed light reno. Back taxes were $35k. Bidding started at $35k. I stayed in until $125k, then the pros jumped in. I can't remember the final price. ARV was $250k.