Real Estate Support Systems of Texas

05/10/2026

IMPORTANT - Deadline Approaching

Remember the changes in the post office before you mail a property tax Notice of Protest.

USPS machine-applied postmarks reflect the date processing begins at a regional facility, not necessarily the day of deposit, meaning mail dropped in a blue box may be postmarked a day or more late.

So, if you are mailing a property tax protest, remember that sending it on MAY 15 may not be a timely delivery of your protest.

The date on your envelope is the day the mailpiece is first processed at a postal facility, which often occurs on a different day than when it was deposited in a mailbox or picked up.

For important documents, request a postmark at a retail counter to ensure the postmark matches the date you want the protest mailed.

Electing to use Certified or Registered Mail provides official evidence of the actual mailing date.

05/06/2026

HOT 🔥 topic in Montgomery county this year:

Omitted Property

Omitted property is property the appraisal district was unaware of in prior years, but now they know.

And to make it worse, you received a supplemental Notice of Appraised Value.

What should you do?

First of all, the Texas Tax Code speaks to this topic.

Texas Tax Code § 25.21:

It says if the chief appraiser discovers:

Real property was omitted from the appraisal roll in any one of the three preceding tax years, or personal property was omitted in one of the two preceding tax years, the chief appraiser must appraise it as of January 1 for each omitted year and enter it into the appraisal records.

So, yes, there is a law allowing this to happen.

Do not panic.

Review the prior year(s) values and decide if they’re reasonable. You may protest the values if you disagree with the proposed numbers - but you must do it by the deadline imposed on the notice.

If you have new construction, compare the construction costs to the value attributed to the improvements on the notice.

Are they close? If so, then accept the reality.

When this has happened to my clients for taxes imposed for 3 prior years, they were given a year to pay.

Finally, if you are not sure, contact RESS if you need help.

03/13/2026

You can follow the Houston Chronicle, or contact our office to review your account.

Let the experts determine if your property value is reasonable, or needs to be protested!

02/13/2026

We are seeing a big change in the housing market in the Houston area. As a property tax agent, this is critical when examining property values in 2026. This may not apply to every neighborhood, but I am seeing it as a pervasive trend in Harris and surrounding counties.

Realtors say Houston homes selling for less but sitting on housing market for longer

07/14/2025

Friendswood-based developer, Tannos Development Group, is planning a 200-acre, $1 billion development project for Magnolia in Montgomery County!✨️ https://shorturl.at/j18yK

07/02/2025

What is it worth?

09/01/2024

RESS Principal Andrea Fahrenthold is pictured below, collaborating with two speakers during the 37th Annual Legal Seminar on Ad Valorem Taxation this week in San Antonio.

Attorney John Brusniak (left) and Property Tax Consultant/Instructor Randy McKechnie (right) were a team with Andrea, and they spoke on the topic of Property Tax Arbitration.

Over 400 attendees at the conference gathered to hear speakers present various topics in the profession relating to property tax consulting and law.

06/29/2024

37th ANNUAL LEGAL SEMINAR ON AD VALOREM TAXATION

August 28-30
Hyatt Regency Riverwalk Hotel

“I am very honored to be in the company of so many esteemed colleagues at an upcoming conference in August at one of my favorites places on Earth! Even more exciting is that I will be collaborating and speaking on the topic of Property Tax Arbitration with Randy McKechnie, a notable, well-respected leader and educator in the real estate industry.”

- Andrea Fahrenthold, MAI
Principal
Real Estate Support Systems of Texas

Legal seminar on ad valorem tax Ad valorem legal Seminar Seminar on ad valorem tax San Antonio legal seminar Property tax seminar

05/16/2024

Did you miss the deadline to protest your proposed value for 2024?

If so, there is still one more possibility to have your case heard!

There is a little-known alternative called Motion to Correct that may help you.

In my experience, it is generally more applicable to land and commercial properties simply bc appraisal districts are often not ⅓ higher on the market value than they should be for single-family homes in development communities (ie platted subdivisions).

There is some tricky math involved, so I do not recommend you trot down this path alone. Professional guidance is highly recommended.

Basically, if your property is at least ⅓ overvalued, you can file Form 50-771 anytime prior to February 1, 2025.

The issue is how do you know how f you are at least ⅓ overvalued? Unless you are in the real estate profession and have access to sales data, you don’t know for sure. That’s why you need professional guidance.

Here is the link to the form.

Messsge RESS for additional guidance.

05/10/2024

Major changes with Montgomery Central Appraisal District

The Montgomery Central Appraisal District will undergo a leadership overhaul after the board of directors fired its chief appraiser in April.

05/02/2024

In light of the recent flooding, it occurred to me to offer this advice:

Take pics of your property for a protest if it flooded today on your property. Flood plain maps don’t always show true flooding, and sometimes Appraisal Review Boards won’t believe it floods on your property if the flood plain map does not identify the tract in a flood zone.

No need to take 37 pictures to a tax protest - 4-5 pics is sufficient.

Be proactive in your protest.