It’s tax appraisal time again. Homeowners, you should have received one of these in the mail this week. This is not an actual appraisal. This is just the county’s estimated tax value for your home, which is the amount the home is taxed on. It’s not an accurate indicator of value.

Take a look at the two lines I’ve highlighted.
Page 1: Total Market Value. This is the county’s estimated value for your home. If this value is significantly higher than the actual value of your home, you’ll want protest it. Keep in mind that our market values have shot up in the past year, so unless your market value increased more than 10%, you probably won’t win a protest. Deadline to protest is May 15, and instructions are included.
Page 2: Exemptions: These are your tax exemptions which reduce your taxable amount. If this is your primary residence, you should have the homestead exemption, which will show as “HS.” If you’re disabled, you should also see some variation of “DV” or “DP,” And if you’re over 65, you should see OV65. If you qualify for an exemption and it’s not listed, you need to have it added. Call the tax office at (254)939-5841 or www.bellcad.org for instructions on how to apply for exemptions. DO THIS! It’s easy, free, and can save you hundreds or thousands of dollars per year.