Texas Property Tax Checklist: 3 Things Every Homeowner Must Do to Keep Their Payment Low

Last Updated: March 2026

TL;DR: Texas homeowners can significantly reduce their monthly mortgage payment by doing three things every year: filing a homestead exemption (saves $700–$1,400+/year), shopping their home insurance annually, and protesting their appraised value before May 15. Most people skip at least one — and it costs them hundreds of dollars.

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✅ Your 3-Step Checklist at a Glance

🏠 1. File Your Homestead Exemption

Deadline: April 30 · Do it once · Saves $700–$1,400+/year

Removes $140,000 from your taxable home value for school district taxes. File online at your county appraisal district — takes about 10 minutes.

🛡️ 2. Shop Your Home Insurance Every Year

Do it 30–60 days before your renewal date · Saves $400–$800/year

Texas premiums commonly exceed $4,000/year. A broker who compares multiple carriers can find you a better rate without you doing any legwork.

📉 3. Protest Your Appraised Value Before May 15

Deadline: May 15 · File every year · Saves $400–$600+/year

When the county sends your Notice of Appraised Value in April, don't ignore it. Filing a protest with the right comparable sales data can lower your taxable value for the entire year.

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Key Takeaways

• Texas homestead exemption now removes $140,000 from your taxable home value for school district taxes — potentially saving $700–$1,400+ per year
• Home insurance premiums in Texas commonly exceed $4,000/year — shopping around annually can uncover savings most homeowners don't know they're leaving on the table
• You have until May 15 each year to protest your appraised property value — and presenting the right data can lower your taxes for the entire year
• These three steps are free and available to every Texas homeowner — but most people never do them
• Sully Ruiz, licensed Texas REALTOR® (TREC #0742907), helps her clients navigate all three of these steps as part of her ongoing homeowner support

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Table of Contents

1. Why Your Mortgage Payment Can Creep Up After You Close
2. Step 1: File Your Homestead Exemption
3. Step 2: Shop Your Home Insurance Every Year
4. Step 3: Protest Your Home's Appraised Value Before May 15
5. How Much Can You Really Save? A Real Example
6. Who Helps You With This?
7. FAQ

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Photo by Dennis Lamberth on Unsplash

Why Your Mortgage Payment Can Creep Up After You Close

One of the biggest surprises for new Texas homeowners is watching their mortgage payment go up over time — even though they have a fixed-rate loan.

How is that possible?

Your monthly mortgage payment is made up of more than just principal and interest. It also includes your property taxes and home insurance, collected through your escrow account. When those two costs go up, your payment goes up — automatically, with no warning.

The good news: you have more control over this than you think.

According to Sully Ruiz, a licensed Texas REALTOR® (TREC #0742907) with Sully Realty Group who has helped hundreds of families through the homebuying process in the Austin metro, "Most of my clients don't realize they can actively fight back against rising property costs. The three steps in this checklist are legal, free, and available to every homeowner in Texas. The ones who do all three consistently are the ones who keep their payment manageable year after year."

Here's your 3-step checklist.

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🏠 Step 1: File Your Homestead Exemption

Deadline: April 30 · One-time filing · Saves $700–$1,400+ per year

Your homestead exemption removes up to $140,000 from your taxable home value for school district taxes — saving most Texas homeowners between $700 and $1,400 or more per year. You only need to file it once, and it stays applied as long as the home remains your primary residence.

What Is a Homestead Exemption?

Texas law allows homeowners to reduce the taxable value of their primary residence, which directly lowers their property tax bill. Under Texas Tax Code Section 11.13(b), school districts are required to provide a $140,000 exemption on a residence homestead (as of 2025 — increased from the prior $100,000 limit). Seniors 65+ qualify for a $150,000 exemption.

Beyond the school district exemption, many local taxing units offer an additional optional local exemption of up to 20% of your home's appraised value.

Who Qualifies?

• ✅ You own the property
• ✅ It is your primary residence (not a rental or vacation home)
• ✅ You owned and lived in the home as of January 1 of the tax year

How to File

1️⃣ Go to the appraisal district website for your county:

• Travis County: traviscad.org
• Williamson County: wcad.org
• Hays County: hayscad.com

2️⃣ Download or complete Form 50-114 (Residence Homestead Exemption Application)

3️⃣ Submit with a copy of your Texas driver's license or ID (address must match the property)

4️⃣ File by April 30 to receive the exemption for that tax year

File as soon as you move in — you don't need to wait until the following year.

💡 Important: Late Filing Is Still Possible

Texas also allows late homestead exemption filings up to two years after the delinquency date. If you bought a home in 2023 and never filed, you may still be able to recapture those savings — contact your county appraisal district directly.

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🛡️ Step 2: Shop Your Home Insurance Every Year

Do it 30–60 days before renewal · Ask for 3 quotes · Saves $400–$800/year

Texas homeowners pay some of the highest insurance premiums in the country — commonly exceeding $4,000 per year according to a 2025 Texas 2036 affordability study. Shopping your policy annually with a broker who compares multiple carriers can reveal significant savings most homeowners don't know are available.

Why Insurance Costs Keep Rising in Texas

Texas sits in a high-risk zone for weather events: tornadoes, hail, hurricanes, and flooding. Insurance companies have been raising rates steadily, and your renewal price may be higher than what's currently available from competing carriers — even for the same coverage.

The Texas Department of Insurance (TDI) recommends consumers shop for coverage regularly. Most people don't.

Why You Need a Broker, Not Just One Quote

An insurance broker (as opposed to a single-carrier agent) can submit your home's information to multiple companies and return the best rates side by side. This matters because:

• 📈 The company that was cheapest when you closed may no longer be competitive
• 🏚️ Your risk profile changes over time (age of roof, claims history, etc.)
• 💰 Bundling home + auto with the right carrier can unlock additional discounts

Sully Ruiz connects her clients with Jorge Alatorre at Goosehead Insurance, a broker who shops multiple carriers and typically returns 3 competing quotes. "I tell every client — even those who have owned for years — to re-shop their insurance before their renewal date. It's one of the fastest ways to reduce your monthly payment," Sully says.

What to Ask Your Broker

• ❓ What is my current coverage vs. what's available from competing carriers?
• ❓ Am I carrying the right dwelling coverage amount (replacement cost, not market value)?
• ❓ What discounts am I eligible for — alarm system, new roof, claims-free history?
• ❓ Can bundling auto + home save me money?

✅ Action Step

Set a calendar reminder 30–60 days before your policy renewal date. Contact a broker and ask for 3 quotes. This takes about 30 minutes and can easily save $400–$800 per year.

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Photo by Jeff Le on Unsplash

📉 Step 3: Protest Your Home's Appraised Value Before May 15

Deadline: May 15 · File every year · Saves $400–$600+/year

Every spring, your county appraisal district sends a Notice of Appraised Value. You have until May 15 (or 30 days from the date on the notice, whichever is later) to formally protest that value. A successful protest can lower your taxable assessed value — which directly reduces your annual property tax bill.

What Is an Appraisal Protest?

Your property tax is calculated based on the appraised value set by your county's Central Appraisal District (CAD) — not the market value, and not what you paid for it. If the CAD overestimates your home's value, you pay more taxes than you should.

The protest process exists to challenge that value with evidence. And it works — thousands of Texas homeowners successfully reduce their appraised value every year.

Why It's Worth Filing Every Year

• 📊 Appraisal districts often use mass appraisal methods that can be inaccurate for individual properties
• 📉 Even a $20,000 reduction in appraised value can save $400–$600 in annual property taxes
• 🔒 Your homestead property value cannot increase more than 10% per year once the exemption is applied — but only if you've already filed (see Step 1)

How to Protest — Step by Step

1️⃣ Watch for your Notice of Appraised Value — typically arrives by mail in April

2️⃣ Don't ignore it. Deadline: May 15

3️⃣ File a protest online at your county CAD website or mail Form 50-132

4️⃣ Gather your evidence:

• Recent comparable sales (homes similar to yours that sold for less)
• Photos of condition issues, deferred maintenance, or structural problems
• Your purchase price if you bought recently and it's lower than the assessed value

5️⃣ Attend your Appraisal Review Board (ARB) hearing — or accept an informal settlement if offered before your hearing date

How Sully Helps

"I prepare market comparatives for my clients every spring — the same CMAs I use when pricing homes for sale," says Sully Ruiz (TREC #0742907). "When you walk into your ARB hearing with solid, current data, you dramatically improve your chances of getting the value reduced. I also look at the property details on file — square footage errors, incorrect improvement descriptions — because those mistakes cost homeowners money."

Contact Sully through her consultation page if you'd like help preparing your protest materials.

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💰 How Much Can You Really Save? A Real Example

Let's say you own a home in Round Rock, TX with an appraised value of $380,000 and a combined effective tax rate of approximately 2.1% (typical for Williamson County in 2026).

Without any action:

• Annual property tax: $380,000 × 2.1% = $7,980/year ($665/month in escrow)

After Step 1 — Homestead Exemption ($140,000 reduction):

• Taxable value drops to $240,000
• Annual tax: $5,040/year ($420/month in escrow)
• Savings: ~$2,940/year

After Step 2 — Insurance re-shop:

• Current premium: $4,200/year → After shopping: $3,600/year
• Savings: ~$600/year

After Step 3 — Successful protest (value reduced by $25,000):

• Taxable value drops to $215,000
• Annual tax: $4,515/year ($376/month in escrow)
• Additional savings: ~$525/year

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Step	Action	Est. Annual Savings
🏠 1	Homestead Exemption	$700–$2,940+
🛡️ 2	Shop Home Insurance	$400–$800
📉 3	Protest Appraised Value	$400–$600+
💰 Total	All 3 steps	$1,500–$4,000+

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Photo by Jakub Żerdzicki on Unsplash

Who Helps You With This?

Most real estate agents disappear after closing day. Sully Ruiz doesn't.

As part of her ongoing client support, Sully helps homeowners:

• 📋 File and track their homestead exemption applications
• 🛡️ Connect with trusted insurance brokers who compete for your business (not just one quote)
• 📊 Prepare comparable market analyses for appraisal protests every spring

"Buying a home is one of the biggest financial decisions a family will ever make. My job doesn't end at the closing table — it's making sure that investment keeps working for you," says Sully Ruiz, licensed Texas REALTOR® with Sully Realty Group / Keller Williams Austin NW.

If you own a home in the Austin metro and want help with any of these steps, book a free consultation here or check your buyer readiness at the screening page.

📲 Connect directly: WhatsApp Sully →

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FAQ

When is the Texas homestead exemption deadline? The deadline to file your homestead exemption is April 30. Texas also allows late filing up to two years after delinquency, so it's worth filing even if you missed prior years. Once filed, the exemption stays in place as long as the property remains your primary residence — you don't refile every year.

How much does the Texas homestead exemption save me? As of 2025, school districts must exempt $140,000 of your home's appraised value. For most Austin-area homeowners, this translates to $700–$1,400+ in annual tax savings, depending on your local school district tax rate. Seniors 65+ are eligible for a $150,000 exemption.

What happens if I don't protest my property taxes? If you don't protest, the county's appraised value stands — and you pay taxes on whatever they say your home is worth. There is no downside to filing a protest. The value cannot go up as a result of a protest (it can only stay the same or go down).

Can I protest my property taxes myself, or do I need a company? You can absolutely protest on your own — and many homeowners do it successfully every year. You'll need recent sales data for comparable homes (your REALTOR® can pull this for you), photos showing issues with your property, and a calm, factual presentation at your ARB hearing.

How often should I shop my home insurance in Texas? Every year, at minimum. Texas insurance premiums are among the highest in the country and change frequently. Set a reminder 30–60 days before your renewal date and ask a broker to compare rates from multiple carriers.

Does Sully help with these steps even after I've already closed? Yes. Book a free consultation or reach out directly on WhatsApp. Sully and her team help current and past clients with homestead exemptions, insurance introductions, and protest preparation every spring.

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Ready to protect your investment and keep your payment manageable? Book a free consultation with Sully →

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About the Author Sully Ruiz is a licensed Texas REALTOR® (TREC #0742907) with Sully Realty Group / Keller Williams Austin NW. A bilingual real estate professional serving the Austin metro, Sully has helped 46+ families purchase homes using ITIN loans and has secured up to $30K in grants for qualifying buyers. She is a member of NAR, Texas REALTORS®, ABOR, and NAHREP. Book a free consultation →

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Market data is for informational purposes only and is subject to change. Sources are believed to be reliable but are not guaranteed. Contact Sully Ruiz for a personalized market analysis.

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Sources

• Texas Comptroller — Property Tax Exemptions — accessed March 2026
• Travis Central Appraisal District — Homestead Exemptions — accessed March 2026
• Texas Department of Insurance — Homeowners Insurance Market Overview — accessed March 2026
• Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick Statement on $140,000 Homestead Exemption (SB 4) — February 2025
• Richey Insurance — Texas Home Insurance Statistics 2026 — accessed March 2026
• Harris Central Appraisal District — Property Tax Exemptions for Homeowners — accessed March 2026