To challenge your appraised value with a property tax protest in Montgomery County, TX, file a Notice of Protest with the Montgomery Central Appraisal District (MCAD) by May 15 or within 30 days of the date on your appraisal notice, whichever is later.1State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.44 – Notice of Protest Filing is free, the form is one page, and most protests are resolved at an informal meeting before ever reaching a formal hearing.
The Deadline and How to File
The clock on the 30-day option runs from the date MCAD mails your Notice of Appraised Value, not the date it arrives.2Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appraisal Protests and Appeals Miss the window and your options shrink to a couple of narrow correction procedures, so treat May 15 as the hard date unless your notice was mailed late enough to give you extra time.
Use Comptroller Form 50-132, the version for counties with populations over 120,000.3Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Property Owners Notice of Protest for Counties with Populations Greater than 120,000 Download it from the Comptroller’s site or from MCAD at mcad-tx.org.4Montgomery Central Appraisal District. The Protest Process You need your property account number from the appraisal notice and a checkmark next to the grounds you’re claiming. No legal argument required on the form itself.
Submit by mail or in person to MCAD at 109 Gladstell Street, Conroe, TX 77301, or file through MCAD’s online system for a faster confirmation of receipt. The appraisal district cannot charge any fee to file a protest.5State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.41 – Right of Protest
What You Can Actually Protest
Texas Tax Code Section 41.41 lists the grounds for protest before the Appraisal Review Board.5State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.41 – Right of Protest For homeowners, two of them do most of the work.
Excessive appraisal means the district set your market value above what the property would actually sell for. You prove it with sales of similar homes that closed for less.
Unequal appraisal means your property is valued higher, on an apples-to-apples basis, than comparable properties nearby. You aren’t arguing about sale prices here; you’re arguing that MCAD’s own numbers are inconsistent. This is often the easier win because you only have to show that comparable neighbors carry lower per-square-foot values than you do.
You can also protest a denied exemption (homestead, over-65, disability), errors in ownership records, an incorrect property description, or inclusion in the wrong taxing jurisdiction. A catch-all provision covers any other action of the chief appraiser or district that adversely affects you.
The Homestead Cap Trap on Your Notice
If your property has a homestead exemption, Section 23.23 caps the annual increase in your appraised value at 10 percent, plus the value of any new improvements.6Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Valuing Property The cap starts on January 1 of the year after you first qualify.
Your notice shows two numbers: a market value and a capped (appraised) value. Your tax bill runs off the capped value, so a big jump in market value may not raise your taxes at all this year. It still matters. Next year’s cap is calculated from this year’s appraised value, so knocking the market value down now lowers the ceiling for years to come. Don’t skip the protest just because the cap absorbed the increase this cycle.
Evidence That Actually Moves the Number
The form gets you in the door. Evidence decides the outcome. Under Section 41.461, you’re entitled to the district’s evidence packet showing the comparables, adjustments, and formulas MCAD used. If the district doesn’t deliver its evidence to you at least 14 days before the hearing, it can’t use that evidence against you.7State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 41.67 – Evidence Request the packet the moment you file so that clock starts running.
For an excessive-appraisal case, pull three to five recent sales of homes with similar square footage, age, lot size, and features in your subdivision or nearby. For an unequal-appraisal case, use the MCAD online property search to gather appraised values of comparable homes and show that yours sits above them on a per-square-foot basis.
Condition evidence tips borderline cases. Photograph foundation cracks, roof damage, dated kitchens or baths, and any deferred maintenance. Contractor bids or engineering reports that put a repair number on paper give the appraiser or the board something concrete to price in. All evidence has to reflect the property’s condition as of January 1 of the tax year, not the day of the hearing.
The Informal Meeting
After you file, MCAD schedules an informal meeting with one of its appraisers before your formal hearing date. Most protests end here. You walk through your comparables and equity data, correct anything wrong in the district’s records (a bad room count, missing depreciation), and see what the appraiser will offer.
If your evidence holds up, the appraiser often proposes a lower value on the spot. Accept and you’re done for the year. If the offer isn’t enough, decline it and keep your ARB hearing.2Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appraisal Protests and Appeals Don’t settle for a number you’re unhappy with because the process feels intimidating. The formal hearing is a separate opportunity.
The Appraisal Review Board Hearing
The ARB is a panel of citizens that resolves disputes between taxpayers and the district.2Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Appraisal Protests and Appeals Hearings are informal, testimony is under oath, and you don’t need a lawyer. You get to choose whether to present your case before or after the district presents its own, which is a tactical call: go first to frame the narrative, or go second to rebut the district’s data directly.
The detail most owners miss: in a protest over value or unequal appraisal, the appraisal district carries the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence. If the district doesn’t meet that standard, the board must rule in your favor. That burden climbs to clear and convincing evidence if you submit a certified independent appraisal supporting your value on a property valued at $1 million or less and deliver it to the chief appraiser at least 14 days before the hearing. A few hundred dollars for a professional appraisal can force the district to clear a much higher bar.
Board members may ask questions. After both sides finish, the panel decides, and you get a written order by email or certified mail. That order ends the local administrative process.
Paying Taxes if You Plan to Appeal Further
If you intend to appeal the ARB’s decision to binding arbitration or district court, you have to pay your property taxes before the delinquency date or you forfeit the appeal.8State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 42.08 – Forfeiture of Remedy for Nonpayment of Taxes You don’t have to pay the full disputed amount. The required payment is the lowest of three figures:
- Taxes on the undisputed portion of the value (if MCAD says $400,000 and you claim $340,000, pay on $340,000).
- Taxes based on the value the ARB set in its order.
- Whatever you paid in property taxes the prior year.
If you pay based on the undisputed portion, include a written statement with your appeal specifying the amount you propose to pay.8State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 42.08 – Forfeiture of Remedy for Nonpayment of Taxes Skipping that statement is a common way to lose an otherwise valid appeal.
After the ARB: Arbitration or District Court
Two paths continue past the ARB. Binding arbitration through the Texas Comptroller is faster and cheaper.9Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts. Regular Binding Arbitration File the request within 60 days of receiving the ARB order and post a deposit tied to the property’s value and homestead status:
- Homestead valued at $500,000 or less: $450
- Homestead valued over $500,000: $500
- Non-homestead valued at $1 million or less: $500
- Non-homestead over $1 million but not over $2 million: $800
- Non-homestead over $2 million but not over $3 million: $1,050
The alternative is filing suit in state district court, which brings court fees, potential attorney costs, and a longer timeline. Most residential owners who go past the ARB choose arbitration. Either route requires that your tax payments stay current under the rules above.
If You Missed the May 15 Deadline
Section 25.25 provides two narrow late-correction options.
For clerical or factual errors (wrong square footage, a duplicate listing on the roll, property that doesn’t exist at the listed location, incorrect ownership), you can request corrections for any of the five most recently certified tax years, as long as your taxes aren’t delinquent.10State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 25.25 – Correction of Appraisal Roll This route fixes objective record errors; it can’t be used to reargue the appraiser’s judgment about condition or quality.
The second option covers appraisals that are significantly off. If it’s your homestead and the appraised value exceeds the correct value by more than one-fourth, or non-homestead property exceeding the correct value by more than one-third, you can file a motion to correct the roll any time before taxes become delinquent.10State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 25.25 – Correction of Appraisal Roll Those thresholds are high on purpose. For a homestead appraised at $400,000, the correct value would need to be $320,000 or less.
Using an Agent Instead
You can handle the whole protest yourself, and many owners do. If you’d rather hire help, Texas law lets you designate an agent to represent you in property tax matters by filing Comptroller Form 50-162 with MCAD.11State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Representation of Property Owner The designation takes effect once the form is on file, and you can have only one agent per property at a time.
Property tax consultants typically work on contingency, often around 30 to 40 percent of the first-year tax savings. Others charge flat fees. Before signing, ask whether the fee applies only if they lower your value, and whether it covers just the informal review or the ARB hearing too. The agent can’t sign the appointment form on their own behalf; you or someone authorized to act for you has to sign it.11State of Texas. Texas Tax Code 1.111 – Representation of Property Owner To end the relationship, file a written revocation with MCAD.