Bexar Property Taxes Cut in 99% of Informal Hearings
The Bexar Appraisal District (BCAD) is running like a scalded dog from taxpayers that know how to stand for their rights. In 2024, when challenged with basic informal protest, BCAD granted value reductions in 99.05% of total cases. This can be broken down to 99.19% for homeowners, and 98.69% for business owners. In total, an unbelievable $4.58billion in taxable value was cut, quintuple that of a decade ago. Ensure your best appeal when you join O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program™ today. You never pay an upfront cost, hidden fee, or any other surprise charge, and you only pay when you win. Enroll, relax, and save.
Resolved Informally Bexar CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Thousands | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 44.716 | 59.949 | 66.614 | 71.446 | 73.034 | 84.693 | 98.099 | 103.815 | 130.122 | 145.012 | 145.394 | |
| Single Family | 24.821 | 37.744 | 42.242 | 47.484 | 51.621 | 60.106 | 69.981 | 73.438 | 95.239 | 105.707 | 105.906 | |
| Commercial / Other | 19.895 | 22.205 | 24.372 | 23.962 | 21.413 | 24.587 | 28.118 | 30.377 | 34.883 | 39.305 | 39.488 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Most appeals are resolved with a reduction at the informal level.
Bexar County Property Tax Protests Resolved Informally
Texas counties tend to favor one type of administrative appeal or another when it comes to value and total protests. Bexar County is an outlier, in that it is relatively balanced between formal and informal protests. There is, however, a strict binary when it comes to property type, as homeowners favor the initial appeals by a large margin. O’Connor is here to help with your informal appeal or any other type of property tax protest. A premier property tax consulting group, O’Conner has been helping Texans protect themselves from high property taxes for over 50 years.
BCAD Informal Settlements
Any tax protest launched against the Bexar Appraisal District (BCAD) must have its origins as an informal appeal. This is a basic and free step that can be taken to hopefully bring a good settlement to a taxpayer that wishes to reduce what they owe. This hearing is a major fork in the road, where the taxpayer can either choose to take a settlement, or they can move on to a formal appeal before the appraisal review board (ARB).
In Bexar County, there were 145,394 appeals resolved informally in 2024, the highest yet seen. Of these, 105,906 protests were for single family homes. Single family homes strongly favor ending at this settlement phase, while commercial properties will go on to an ABR hearing, even after winning their case.
Resulted in Reduction Through Informal Process Bexar CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Thousands | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 31.763 | 47.890 | 52.278 | 59.929 | 62.387 | 75.711 | 90.290 | 93.224 | 121.493 | 143.715 | 144.019 | |
| Single Family | 20.074 | 33.479 | 37.516 | 42.914 | 47.178 | 56.990 | 68.109 | 71.081 | 92.155 | 104.881 | 105.050 | |
| Commercial / Other | 11.689 | 14.411 | 14.762 | 17.015 | 15.209 | 18.721 | 22.181 | 22.143 | 29.338 | 38.834 | 38.969 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since It is the world’s safest wager. No cost and a 60% chance of savings annually.
Bexar County Informal Hearing Reductions
Informal appeals in Texas can be mercurial between counties. Some appraisal districts are supreme misers when it comes to these appeals, while others are total cakewalks for taxpayers. Fortunately for the people of San Antonio, BCAD is the latter in most cases. 144,109 protests resulted in a reduction of appraised value, a staggering number when compared to the 145,394 appeals resolved.
Percent That Resulted in A ReductionSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Percent | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 71.030% | 79.880% | 78.480% | 83.880% | 85.420% | 89.390% | 92.040% | 89.800% | 93.370% | 99.110% | 99.050% | |
| Single Family | 80.880% | 88.700% | 88.810% | 90.380% | 91.390% | 94.820% | 97.320% | 96.790% | 96.760% | 99.220% | 99.190% | |
| Commercial / Other | 58.750% | 64.900% | 60.570% | 71.010% | 71.030% | 76.140% | 78.890% | 72.890% | 84.100% | 98.800% | 98.690% | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Errors in the appraisal districts records for your property often artificially inflate YOUR property taxes.
Bexar County Percent of Informal Hearings with Reduction
When confronted with informal appeals, BCAD completely caved under pressure. 99.05% of all initial hearings ended in a reduction of some kind. This percentage is essentially unheard of in Texas. The statewide average is 73.38%, already a solid gamble for taxpayers. Things got even better for homeowners, where 99.19% of them got a reduction. Even the ever-elusive commercial property initial appeal was easy to get, seeing 98.69% of businesses receiving some kind of deduction on their taxable value.
$ Value Reduction From Informal ProcessSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Billions of $ | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| $ Reduction Total | 0.9708 | 1.5989 | 1.7404 | 1.6494 | 1.8669 | 2.4991 | 2.5577 | 2.7131 | 4.3614 | 4.8564 | 4.5812 | |
| $ Reduction Single Family | 0.2606 | 0.5246 | 0.5407 | 0.5905 | 0.6659 | 0.8357 | 1.1476 | 1.2449 | 2.5092 | 2.6546 | 2.4390 | |
| $ Value Commercial / Other | 0.7102 | 1.0742 | 1.1997 | 1.0589 | 1.2010 | 1.6633 | 1.4101 | 1.4682 | 1.8522 | 2.2017 | 2.1421 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Property taxes are the only type that can be negotiated based on subjective factors and judgment.
Bexar Appraisal District $ Value Reduction from Informal Process
Informal appeals in the San Antonio area may be easy to get, but they are also mighty when it comes to getting value reductions. Initial appeals in 2024 tallied $4.58 billion in appraised value reductions, $2.44 billion of that being for single family homes. All other properties followed with $2.14 billion in value reduction. This was the third year in a row that single family homes won more cuts than commercial and related properties, showing that 2022 was not an anomaly.
When looked at historically, it can be seen that informal appeals in Bexar County are reaching a rate of efficacy never seen before. A decade ago, these appeals amounted to $970.80 million. By 2023, this number had quintupled to $4.86 billion. This reflects both the staggering growth in property values and the steadfast pursuit of early protests by taxpayers.