I looked at every comparable property (bungalow) for sale one street over on each side E-W and three blocks in either direction N-S on HAR. There are a total of six (6) properties for sale, none of which are on a lot larger than 4,500 SF. The listing prices range from $58.69 to $97.22 per lot SF. The average per SF is $73.50.

My lot is 6,000 SF, so using that range, my property would list for $352,140 to $583,320. Using the average puts me at $441,000.

Oak forest lots are going for $350K to tear a house down.. depending on few factors. I would assume for the most part hcda is finally catching up true market values. For years they have always been too low. I mean i am not happy about it.. but I also cannot complain about the great appreciation my homes are having!

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I looked at every comparable property (bungalow) for sale one street over on each side E-W and three blocks in either direction N-S on HAR. There are a total of six (6) properties for sale, none of which are on a lot larger than 4,500 SF. The listing prices range from $58.69 to $97.22 per lot SF. The average per SF is $73.50.

My lot is 6,000 SF, so using that range, my property would list for $352,140 to $583,320. Using the average puts me at $441,000.

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Unless each of those 6 properties are similar in construction/size/condition(or are vacant land) to your house, it seems like a poor way to arrive at a reasonable value of your house.

Why did you use lot SF vs improved SF?

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I looked at every comparable property (bungalow) for sale one street over on each side E-W and three blocks in either direction N-S on HAR. There are a total of six (6) properties for sale, none of which are on a lot larger than 4,500 SF. The listing prices range from $58.69 to $97.22 per lot SF. The average per SF is $73.50.

My lot is 6,000 SF, so using that range, my property would list for $352,140 to $583,320. Using the average puts me at $441,000.

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Unless each of those 6 properties are similar in construction/size/condition(or are vacant land) to your house, it seems like a poor way to arrive at a reasonable value of your house.

Why did you use lot SF vs improved SF?

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In my neighborhood, every one would be considered tear-downs, even my house.

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I looked at every comparable property (bungalow) for sale one street over on each side E-W and three blocks in either direction N-S on HAR. There are a total of six (6) properties for sale, none of which are on a lot larger than 4,500 SF. The listing prices range from $58.69 to $97.22 per lot SF. The average per SF is $73.50.

My lot is 6,000 SF, so using that range, my property would list for $352,140 to $583,320. Using the average puts me at $441,000.

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Unless each of those 6 properties are similar in construction/size/condition(or are vacant land) to your house, it seems like a poor way to arrive at a reasonable value of your house.

Why did you use lot SF vs improved SF?

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In my neighborhood, every one would be considered tear-downs, even my house.

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You dont believe the sellers of those 6 houses you're comping are attempting to capture value made up of the improved space? That they're literally selling at land value?

Are they truly in unlivable shape and being marketed as lot sales, or would someone be able to buy those 6 properties and generate monthly rental income from them?

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You dont believe the sellers of those 6 houses you're comping are attempting to capture value made up of the improved space? That they're literally selling at land value?

Are they truly in unlivable shape and being marketed as lot sales, or would someone be able to buy those 6 properties and generate monthly rental income from them?

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I'm sure they are livable, but some are being marketed as tear-downs. Someone could generate rental income, but in their condition, they would not be able to pull in sufficient rent to break even on the initial investment for a long time.

Don't get me wrong - I'm not saying they guarantee any sort of value for my house, just doing the math of what those numbers would extrapolate to if I applied them to mine. Based on the MLS listings, I would say my house is in a lot better shape than those listings except for a couple of projects I'm finishing, and none of them have an additional rental unit on site like I do.

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Oak forest lots are going for $350K to tear a house down.. depending on few factors. I would assume for the most part hcda is finally catching up true market values. For years they have always been too low. I mean i am not happy about it.. but I also cannot complain about the great appreciation my homes are having!

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you must enjoy paying excessive taxes

I do not enjoy paying any taxes to be honest.. but to read about people complaining because the appraisal district has raised their values to the true market prices cracks me up. If you pull comp sales on majority of the homes, I would bet most people still have values on hcad under the market value they are selling for. I am willing to bet that hardly anyone has hcad values that are higher then the comps are showing.

Oops. One lot is 5,280. It's listed for $309,900 and is option pending. It was the lowest list price/SF at $58.69 and is listed explicitly as a lot to be built on.

Sitting out here in Kingwood in my 2800 square foot home with a market value of $175,000, capped at $166,000. Remodeled kitchen, 5 BR, 4 bath, new AC, great schools, spacious outdoor patios...worth $60/ft^2. I hate taxes too; the only thing I hate more is paying other peoples' taxes. So, for those of you who wanted half million dollar shoe boxes in The Heights, all I can say is "pay up." I ought to get some benefit for living in a perpetually flat market.

Paying fair taxes is one thing. Hcad moving value to land where it can't be disputed and dragging their feet on adjusting appraisals (both up and down) is another. I think a lot of anger goes to the windfall that is occuring and seeing little improvement to the communities. Schools are still being closed others are lackluster, streets are in disrepair etc.

I don't pretend to know where property taxes are allocated on the city and state level but Im curious and would like to see what improvements our taxes are creating.

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Haha, no way I could sell my oak forest home for close to $417k "market value". I would sell for $30k less in a heartbeat right now on the spot. And it's a pretty nice home all around. What a freaking joke.

$309k to $417k in one year. AWESOME!

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It does seem like they over shot you by a bit. You should have some good ammo to protest so let me know when you're ready to do that.

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I am willing to bet that hardly anyone has hcad values that are higher then the comps are showing.

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you would be wrong there. They have shot way over market value in some cases.

I was looking at an active listing today that's been sitting at $700K and HCAD has it close to $800K. My guess is that whole neighborhood is overvalued now. They also overshot Boo W's, place as I just mentioned. I'm sure I could find a lot more but those are a couple I've noticed so far.

+100K 2 years in a row. Insane. Luckily I'm capped this year 100K below market. Not so lucky last year.

yes there can be some cases that hcad is over.. But I would guess there a very few of those compared to prices that are still under or right on. If hcad is over, then simply go protest. It's just funny that people are so happy their values are going up but complain about taxes going up. People that bought homes in Oak Forest for example 5 years ago have seen their homes go up 50-75% or more in value. They could cash out $200K in profits in many situations.

I protest all of mine every year. It would be stupid not to protest them. What do you have to lose? I agree completely on where all of this extra tax money is going!

It's hard to get ecstatic about all of your appreciation when you're not planning on moving anytime soon.

As I've mentioned, HCAD has traditionally trailed on values so that became the normal. So of course, the fact that they've overshot in a lot of places is going to piss people off.

I also don't think it's as rare as you say. If they overshot Boo's place, they've likely overshot Oak Forest in general. It's hard to defend appraisers going over market value when prices have shot up this much. It just comes off as greedy.

With the revenue cap, it does mean the City of Houston tax rate should come down, so it's not as big of a tax hit as it could be.

We have plans of possibly moving OOS within the next year or so, so part of me hopes we could get at least w/in $30-40k or so of what they're valuing us at. But I still doubt it...

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With the revenue cap, it does mean the City of Houston tax rate should come down, so it's not as big of a tax hit as it could be.

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Jurisdictions 2013 Rate 2014 Rate

HOUSTON ISD 1.186700 1.196700
HARRIS COUNTY 0.414550 0.417310
HARRIS CO FLOOD CNTRL 0.028270 0.027360
PORT OF HOUSTON AUTHY 0.017160 0.015310
HARRIS CO HOSP DIST 0.170000 0.170000
HARRIS CO EDUC DEPT 0.006358 0.005999
HOU COMMUNITY COLLEGE 0.097173 0.106890
CITY OF HOUSTON 0.638750 0.631080

Don't hold your breath.

That's why I only mentioned COH.

HISD went up because of the bond proposal I think.

I do not know Boo's address. But I do know that people are paying $350K and more to tear down a house in Oak Forest. If it is in 77018 zip it could be worth close to the $400K range. So what position is better.. you bought a house 5 years ago for $200K and it is still worth $200K. But your taxes are the same. Or you bought a house for $200K and it is worth $400K now. Taxes (estimate) went up $6K a year but you are sitting on $200K of equity. I think I would take the $200K of equity all day long. Most people will not stay put for over 10 years so they will cash out when they move.

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HISD went up because of the bond proposal I think.

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Yes.

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Paying fair taxes is one thing. Hcad moving value to land where it can't be disputed and dragging their feet on adjusting appraisals (both up and down) is another. I think a lot of anger goes to the windfall that is occuring and seeing little improvement to the communities. Schools are still being closed others are lackluster, streets are in disrepair etc.

I don't pretend to know where property taxes are allocated on the city and state level but Im curious and would like to see what improvements our taxes are creating.

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This is what happened on my house, they increased my improvements 2.5x because they knocked it down to almost nothing last year because they kept my land price the same but knocked the whole thing down to my purchase price, so the improvements were purchase-land. They only raised land 10% but had to **** me on the house to get me up.

Problem is my house is definitely almost a tear down or would need $40,000 in improvements to be worth what they say it is.

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That's why I only mentioned COH.

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CITY OF HOUSTON 0.638750 0.631080

A whopping 1.2% decrease. I guess we can celebrate at Pancho's with all the money I "saved" after I pay my tax bill.

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I do not know Boo's address. But I do know that people are paying $350K and more to tear down a house in Oak Forest. If it is in 77018 zip it could be worth close to the $400K range.

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In his area, lots are going for closer to $300K than $350K.

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I do not enjoy paying any taxes to be honest.. but to read about people complaining because the appraisal district has raised their values to the true market prices cracks me up. If you pull comp sales on majority of the homes, I would bet most people still have values on hcad under the market value they are selling for. I am willing to bet that hardly anyone has hcad values that are higher then the comps are showing.

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you'd lose your bet.

Do ISD tax rates ever go down? I wouldn't expect it, since I already know that my ISD tax dollars are siphoned off to subsidize poorer districts, but I'm curious if there is a precedent.

I pay to four taxing authorities: Harris County, the MUD, The Woodlands Township, and Tomball ISD. The ISD taxes are about 1/2 of my total tax bill. The Woodlands Township and the MUD have already lowered tax rates and have announced plans to continue to lower them again this year. But I've heard nothing regarding the ISD, which is my single largest tax bill.

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Do ISD tax rates ever go down?

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2009: 1.15670
2010: 1.15670
2011: 1.15670
2012: 1.15670
2013: 1.18670
2014: 1.19670

Our plan is to maintain our property as a rental property with the house and garage apartment both generating income. I figure the taxes will just be an investment toward retirement.

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Do ISD tax rates ever go down?

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2009: 1.15670
2010: 1.15670
2011: 1.15670
2012: 1.15670
2013: 1.18670
2014: 1.19670

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Is that HISD? Ours in Tomball ISD are currently 1.36.

My market value went up 13%, but appraisal capped at 10%. In the Heights. I don't think I could sell my house for market value, but could easily justify appraised value with comps. No value in protesting I guess...

Only thing higher values do for me is raise my taxes.

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That's why I only mentioned COH.

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CITY OF HOUSTON 0.638750 0.631080

A whopping 1.2% decrease. I guess we can celebrate at Pancho's with all the money I "saved" after I pay my tax bill.

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I saved enough for the buffet AND dessert.

21% market capped at 10%, hard to argue when the house 500 sq feet smaller then mine that hasnt been updated since the 80's sold for $35k more then my HCAD market value.