Ector County property tax protests as of June 2023 have resulted in property owners saving more than $2.2 million thus far.
The market value of both residential and commercial properties and personal property within Ector County is determined yearly by the Ector County Appraisal District. Whether or not the value is increased, property owners have the ability to challenge those valuations every year. Based on original and current tax rolls (hearings completed by June 30, 2023) supplied by the Ector County Appraisal District, O’Connor explains this data.
Considering analysis of prior years’ property tax savings data published on Ector County Property Tax Trends, O’Connor forecasts that total 2023 property tax savings as a consequence of Ector County property tax protests have the potential to reach around $12 million.
According to the Ector County Appraisal District, there have been 3,268 tax protests for residential property where hearings have affected accounts with lower valuations. Based on a 2.7% tax rate which excludes homestead exemptions, the average assessment decrease is $19,406 and results in a $524 average reduction for property taxes. The homeowners have already saved over $1.7 million through property tax disputes.
A drop in the starting valuation from $23 million to $13 million as a consequence of the tax appeals for apartments that have been concluded so far in 2023 has resulted in a reduction in tax assessments with a total of $9 million. Based on a typical tax rate of 2.7%, the total property tax savings for apartment owners are anticipated to be around $243,597. In Ector County, tax appeals for apartments resulted in a decrease of 39.2%, saving an estimated $24,360 for every apartment tax appeal. These numbers reflect the verdicts of the ten hearings on apartments that have been held so far in 2023.
Ector County hotel property has effectively reduced from $11.7 million to $7.1 million in assessed valuation as a result of these appeals. This provided a $4.6 million reduction in the tax assessment, saving the taxpayers $126,074 in taxes at a 2.7% tax rate. This includes the results of two hearings for hotel property taxes, which resulted in an average decrease in property taxes of $63,037 for each hotel when the hearings with the reductions were completed. Hotel tax and property tax appeals have resulted in a decrease of 39.6% YTD, on average.
The owners of two office buildings in Ector County have already had their tax appeals settled, saving them a collective total of $109,555 in property taxes. A $4 million reduction in the tax assessment was made possible by the fall in valuation from the original $17.4 million to $13.4 million. A $54,778 average reduction in property taxes was realized based on a 2.7% tax rate. The amount of the assessment reduction for properties used as offices is 23.2% for tax appeals that were successful in getting the tax amount decreased.
As of June 2023, property owners in Ector County had completed filing property tax objections, which led to a reduction for 3,312 properties and a $594 million to $513 million decrease in original assessed value, or an average decrease of 13.71%.
Over 28 employees work for the Ector County Appraisal District, which values properties in the county. The aforementioned instances serve as illustrations of the substantial property tax reduction options available through the property tax appeal system.
Owners of real estate should carefully review their annual property tax assessments and submit an appeal each year. In Ector County, on average, over Ector 60% of property tax appeals are successful.
