Harris County Appraisal District News Release For additional information contact Jack Barnett, Communications Officer, 713-957-5663 ________________________________________________________________
April 20, 2016
Productivity Appraisal May Lower The Property Taxes On Your Farm, Ranch Or Timberland
Houston — Texas law allows farmers, ranchers, wildlife managers and timber growers to pay property taxes based upon the productivity value of their land rather than on market value. This means qualified land is taxed based on its ability to produce crops, livestock or timber – not on its value on the real estate market. And it can mean substantial property tax savings. If your land has never had a productivity appraisal or you are a new owner, you must apply to the Harris County Appraisal District by May 2 to take advantage of this benefit on your property taxes. You may get up to 60 extra days if you have a good reason and ask for it before May 2. If you miss this deadline, you may still be able to apply, but you will pay a penalty. If your land already receives agricultural or timber productivity appraisal, you normally don’t need to reapply unless the chief appraiser requires you to do so. If a new application is required, the appraisal district will notify you by mail. To qualify ranch, farm or timber land for productivity appraisal for the first time, you must meet three criteria. The agricultural use must meet the degree of intensity standards specified by the appraisal district. You must demonstrate that the property was used for agriculture or timber production, as applicable, on January 1. Finally, you must show that the land was used for agriculture or timber production in five of the seven preceding years.
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Land already qualified for one of these forms of productivity appraisal may be converted to wildlife management. Land under wildlife management is appraised as if it were still devoted to the qualifying agricultural use. Acreage size and use restrictions apply. If you apply for and receive productivity appraisal, you must continue to use the land for the qualifying use from year to year. If you change its use to a non-qualifying use, an additional “rollback” tax will be imposed. Usually, the additional tax recaptures the last five years of tax savings. For more information about productivity appraisal and application forms, contact the Harris County Appraisal District’s Agricultural Appraisal Section at 713.957.7402 or visit the district’s offices at 13013 Northwest Freeway in Houston. Information is also available on the Comptroller’s Property Tax Assistance Division’s website at www.comptroller.texas.gov/taxinfo/proptax/ .
About HCAD The Harris County Appraisal District is a political subdivision of the State of Texas established in 1980 for the purpose of discovering and appraising property for ad valorem tax purposes for each taxing unit within the boundaries of the district. The district has more than 1.7 million parcels of property to assess each year with a total market value of approximately $526 billion. The appraisal district in Harris County is the largest in Texas, serving approximately 500 taxing units, and one of the largest appraisal districts in the United States. For further information, visit www.hcad.org. ###