About 4,000 Tarrant County homes are expected to lose a homestead exemption because they lost eligibility this year, according to an Oct. 2 statement from Tarrant Appraisal District officials.
Most are because the owner died, multiple homesteads were claimed, or the properties were vacant longer than two years, Chief Appraiser Joe Don Bobbitt said in an email.
A 2023 Texas law requires appraisal districts to review homestead eligibility at least once every five years. This year Gov. Greg Abbott signed a bill requiring taxing bodies to clearly state why additional information is needed from homeowners who must reapply.
TAD issued the statement to correct reporting that county officials revoked thousands more homestead exemptions than they had. Appraisal district officials also stated that 513 properties were identified as owing back taxes.
The new system aggregates data and alerts TAD about properties that might be ineligible, Bobbitt said, adding that staff look into each alert.
“A property may be flagged for address changes at the post office, driver’s license address, voter registration address, and multiple other sources that individually may be explainable and not cause a reapplication or loss of exemption,” Bobbitt said.
What is a homestead exemption in Texas?
Homestead exemptions are tax breaks on property declared by homeowners as primary residences. While they vary amounts and benefits across Texas, the most significant is the $100,000 exemption school districts must give to primary residences. That means a $200,000 home would only be taxed at $100,000.
How many Tarrant County homes were reviewed?
About 30,000 of the estimated 424,000 homesteads in Tarrant County were flagged for review under the law.
Of those, 9,000 required additional examinations, Bobbitt said, most of which are still pending. About 93% of existing homesteads were automatically validated.
Some citizens received letters based on information from sources, such as state vital records or national obituary databases, suggesting the property owner may be deceased. These letters were to confirm deaths and prevent situations where owners later discover they owe years of back taxes, the statement read.
What can Tarrant County residents do if they face losing their homestead exemptions?
All properties at risk of losing the exemption will be notified, Bobbitt said.
A homeowner can protest the action, provide additional information or reapply for their exemption.
TAD officials will work with their auditing partner, TrueRoll, to identify those who are likely to qualify for the homestead exemption but don’t receive it, according to the statement.
What homestead measures are Texans voting on in November?
Voters will weigh several propositions to increase homestead exemptions during the Nov. 5 election.
Proposition 13 seeks to increase the homestead exemption for school districts to $140,000. Proposition 11 asks to raise the exemption for elderly or disabled Texans’ homes from $10,000 to $60,000.
Proposition 7 asks to give property tax breaks for un-remarried spouses of veterans who died in connection with their service.
Proposition 9 looks to raise the exemption for businesses’ inventory or equipment from $2,500 to $125,000. Proposition 17 seeks to prevent property values in border counties from increasing due to border security infrastructure and related improvements.
Drew Shaw is a government accountability reporter for the Fort Worth Report. Contact him at drew.shaw@fortworthreport.org or @shawlings601.
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