I'm looking for guidance from those who have dealt with this before.
I purchased a six acre raw rural parcel ten years ago in a county adjacent to Brazos. It was appraised at 26k that year and has steadily crept up to 130k. During that same time I hand built a 384sf pier & beam cabin, and a similar sized pole barn that I 'paved' with hand-mixed non-reinforced cement for a floor. There is no well and just a temporary electric pole on the property. There is also a hand built 8'x12' portable storage building and a 'bar' structure that is just some tin nailed to the top of a 2x4 frame to cover the bar. It's heavily wooded and gated so none of the structures can be seen from the road. There is also an 8'x16' pier & beam shed under construction on the back part of the property.
The county relied on 'aerial observation' to make this year's assessment. The property jumped up 10k to 140k but the non-homesite improvements were assessed at $410k.
I don't know if I should hire an appraiser, hire a firm that specializes in protests, take this on myself or sell.
What's the optimal path forward to get this amount reduced? Feel free to get creative; I could use a good laugh right about now, but ultimately I want to make a sound decision.
I purchased a six acre raw rural parcel ten years ago in a county adjacent to Brazos. It was appraised at 26k that year and has steadily crept up to 130k. During that same time I hand built a 384sf pier & beam cabin, and a similar sized pole barn that I 'paved' with hand-mixed non-reinforced cement for a floor. There is no well and just a temporary electric pole on the property. There is also a hand built 8'x12' portable storage building and a 'bar' structure that is just some tin nailed to the top of a 2x4 frame to cover the bar. It's heavily wooded and gated so none of the structures can be seen from the road. There is also an 8'x16' pier & beam shed under construction on the back part of the property.
The county relied on 'aerial observation' to make this year's assessment. The property jumped up 10k to 140k but the non-homesite improvements were assessed at $410k.
I don't know if I should hire an appraiser, hire a firm that specializes in protests, take this on myself or sell.
What's the optimal path forward to get this amount reduced? Feel free to get creative; I could use a good laugh right about now, but ultimately I want to make a sound decision.