How to Protest Your TCAD Property Tax Assessment
A Travis County property tax protest challenges the appraisal recorded by the Travis Central Appraisal District (TCAD). Start with your notice, check the property facts, and support your requested value with evidence for the same tax year.
Check the notice and the right value
Look up your account in the TCAD property search. Market value estimates the property’s value as of January 1. A residence homestead appraisal cap can limit appraised value; exemptions then affect taxable value. A lower market value does not always reduce this year’s bill if a cap already limits your taxable assessment.
File by the deadline on your notice
The ordinary Texas deadline is May 15 or 30 days after the appraisal notice is mailed, whichever is later. As of September 4, 2026, the ordinary May filing date has passed. Check your own notice and TCAD’s instructions for your circumstances before relying on a later filing route.
Use the TCAD online protest portal and the owner ID and PIN supplied with your notice. Review the grounds for protest, submit the filing, and save its confirmation. TCAD’s protest instructions also explain filing alternatives.
Build a focused evidence packet
- Verify living area, year built, condition, land, and any changes to the home.
- For a market-value challenge, select relevant sales and explain differences in location, size, age, and condition.
- For unequal appraisal, compare appropriately adjusted appraisals of similar properties. A price-per-square-foot difference alone is a starting point, not a complete adjustment analysis.
- Include dated photographs and repair estimates for condition issues that existed on the valuation date.
- State a requested value and show how the evidence supports it.
Review TCAD’s evidence and any offer
Check your online account for TCAD evidence, messages, appointments, and settlement offers. Read an offer’s terms before accepting it. An unresolved protest can proceed to the Travis Appraisal Review Board; follow the hearing notice for attendance and evidence submission.
Prepare for a Travis ARB hearing or learn how to select comparable properties.
Sources and evidence for Travis County
Prepared by Travis Value. Filing resources checked September 4, 2026.
Start with the Travis Central Appraisal District property record and your current notice. Our property pages organize imported public assessment records and available comparable evidence. Check the tax year and data dates shown on each page: a prior-year record is useful history, but does not establish the value on a new notice.
Comparable homes are candidates for review. Verify their size, age, condition, location, and sale details before using them. Value per square foot helps screen candidates; it does not account for every difference. Estimated savings depend on the final assessment, exemptions, assessment limits, and applicable tax rates.
Texas filing and valuation checks
For 2026, the ordinary May 15 filing date has passed. A notice mailed later can have a later deadline. Confirm the date on your notice and the TCAD filing instructions. Review Texas Comptroller protest guidance for procedures and owner rights.
Separate a market-value argument from unequal appraisal, and compare the same tax year. A homestead cap or exemption can make taxable value differ from market value; lowering market value may not change the bill immediately. Texas sales coverage is incomplete because sale prices are not universally disclosed.
Check the source before filing
Travis Value is an independent research tool. Verify the current procedure with Travis Central Appraisal District, save a copy of your evidence, and retain your filing confirmation. The appraisal authority or review board decides the outcome.