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ZB'Tejas

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Posts posted by ZB'Tejas

  1. 20 minutes ago, Tailgate said:

    Gotcha...how can the appraised value go to 10% since that is what you would be taxed on...so a 10% increase? Where does the 2.5% come into play? Thanks for clarifying...not a math guy just trying to figure it out for this years Ass kicking.

    I took it to mean that the underlying tax rate could only increase by 2.5%. For example the City of Austin tax rate is .4431%. That could go up only 2% but your appraised/taxable amount on your house could still increase from 500K to 550K. 

    I also think that was only on City and maybe county taxes. It might not apply to the School District tax which is the highest rate anyway. (Austin ISD was 1.122% last year)

  2. 49 minutes ago, Tailgate said:

    Wasn’t there a cap passed in legislation last year where values can only go up by x amount? Like 2% I think I remember hearing.

    Taxes rates can only go up by 2.5% without voter approval. I think appraised values on homes can still go us as much as prior years (capped at 10% for ones with Homestead exemption)

  3. Quote

    The new fee structure is as follows:

    Advance Administrative Fee:

    To begin each year, Client will pay Texas Protax a non-refundable administrative fee of $150 per parcel per year protested by Texas Protax.  The advance Administrative Fee will be billed annually each tax year and must be received by Texas Protax by March 31 or 30 days after billed.

    This Advance Administrative Fee will be sent through DocuSign and will be required to be paid at the same time you are signing the DocuSign Agreement and Appointment of Agent Form. 

    Failure to remit the Administrative Fee cancels the agreement between Protax and the Client for the tax year in which the administrative fee is not paid.  Protax will not represent Client’s property, without the Advance Administrative Fee paid.

    Performance Based Fees:

    The Performance Based Fee compares two formulas; A) The Taxable Savings Fee versus B) The Market Value Reduction Fee.  At the end of the protest process, both formulas are calculated. The totals are compared and the greater of the two will be the Performance Based Fee

    The Administrative Fee is taken off when the Performance Based Fee is greater than $150.

    For instance, if the Performance Based Fee is $180, then the Administrative Fee is credited off of the final bill. This makes the final bill only $30. If the results of the Performance Based Fee are less than $150, Texas Protax keeps the Administrative Fee to cover costs. No more is charged to the client. 

    Taxable Savings Fee: Protax shall be paid 40% of all tax savings to client resulting from the efforts of Protax in excess of the amount of administrative fee paid.

    Example only of fee calculation on a taxable value reduction from $1,100,000 down to $1,000,000.

    (Notice Taxable Value minus Final Taxable Value) divided by 100 times Current Year Actual Tax Rate times Performance Based Rate = Total Fees in excess of administrative fee.  

    (Notice Taxable $1,100,000 – Final Taxable $1,000,000) / 100 x 2.20 Tax Rate x 0.4 = $880 Performance Fee - $150 Administrative Fee = $730 due at conclusion of protest process.

    Market Value Reduction Fee: For properties with a capped market value or a special use valuation, Protax shall be paid the greater of the taxable savings fee or $2.50 for each $1,000 reduction in the market value. 

    Example only of fee calculation with a capped value – Value reduction from $1,100,000 down to $1,000,000, but capped/taxable value equals $900,000, so no actual tax savings achieved).

    *Capped Market Value at $900,000; reduction equals no tax savings*   (Notice Market Value minus Final Market Value) divided by 1,000 times 2.50 = Total Fees in excess of administrative fee.  

    (Notice Market $1,100,000 – Final Market $1,000,000) / 1,000 x 2.50 = $250 Performance Fee - $150 Administrative Fee = $100 due at conclusion of protest process.

     

    Following this letter will be a DocuSign email from authorizations@texasprotax.com containing the new agreement for your approval. 

    In order for us to file a protest on your behalf this year, please sign and return the new agreement and an updated Appointment of Agent form by March 31, 2020. 

    If you no longer wish to continue with our services, or do not agree with the proposed fee structure, notify us in writing by emailing clientnotifications@texasprotax.com to close your account.

    If we do not receive the agreement back by March 31, we will close your account and not file a protest for the 2020 tax year.

    We realize this can be somewhat confusing, so please call us to discuss if you have any questions or concerns at all.  Again, we sincerely appreciate the opportunity to represent you and look forward to continuing to help manage your property tax portfolio!

    The performance based fee is new as well this year. I think it used to be you got charged if they actually reduced your tax bill. Now it seems that just by reducing the market value (even though taxable value stays the same and you don't save anything) you will get charged a portion of that. 

  4. 14 hours ago, T’Boo Ted Marshall said:

    I haven’t messed with mine in a few years.

    T'Boo is Satoshi?

    9.8 gave us a small reaction and I expect 10K to put up a fight as well. If we can break through that I'd be looking for 11K fairly quickly where I might start scaling out of my longs. I'm only about 50% and was waiting for 6Ks to put in the other half unfortunately. 

    • Like 2
  5. I tried to be more diligent over the last two years but I'm still struggling with nut grass coming up, clover and other crap in certain areas and the Bermuda taking over the Zoysia so looking for some professional help. I know it's me because when I bought the house the yard was immaculate. 

  6. Can move this to 2020 once out but heads up for ProTax users. Got this email from them about how they are modifying how they are paid and looks to be adding at mandatory $150 to the process that can be deducted out of the performance fee.

     

    Quote

    Your Texas Protax team has taken a look back at the 2019 year with careful consideration and come to the conclusion that in order to provide the level of service that our clients have become accustomed to, we can no longer operate under our current fee structure.

    We have always prided ourselves on transparency and the reality is over the last few years the property tax protest process has changed dramatically.  Appraisal Districts are under unprecedented pressure from taxing entities and the legislature in relation to protest timelines, and other appraisal district day to day operations.  As the legislature enacts new law and appraisal districts continue to change their practices, we must also adapt our business model to better serve our clients.

    In order to meet the new growing demands of the appraisal districts, we have had to increase our internal resources to assure that your protest is being researched and presented in a manner that will deliver the maximum successful outcome for you. Beginning in 2020, in conjunction with your current performance based fee, Texas Protax will begin charging an Advanced Administrative Fee of $150 per parcel per year.  This Advanced Administrative Fee will be credited towards (or deducted from) the performance based fee at the conclusion of the protest process.  

    Additionally, for properties with a homestead exemption or an agricultural appraisal we will be charging a smaller performance based fee for value reductions that do not affect the taxable liability (i.e. reductions on capped properties or properties with special valuation). 

    We will be sending out new agreements over the next few weeks through our DocuSign system reflecting the revised pricing structure. 

     

  7. What are you guys in CenTex putting in the ground right now? I didn't do anything in terms of a winter garden but so far my strawberries and peppers made it through the "winter" and hopefully will be doing something good around spring. I'm going to give tomatoes a try again this year in a few months and maybe just try and get some herbs going over the next month.

  8. Heading to Boston next week and planning on making it to the Encore for some craps. I went a few times last year and the place is nice but being the only game in town it's hard to find anything less than a $25 table. Might try a few different strategies see what happens. (More than likely just get really drunk and throw a bunch of money away)

  9. On 1/23/2020 at 9:31 AM, Brew said:

    Nothing has changed from last year on rates or the SALT cap. There are some changes that will affect a few people, but most individual filers will not see much difference between this year and last year on the same income.

    Just looked at last year's taxes; did not realize I got f'ed then as well.

  10. On 1/22/2020 at 10:35 AM, MNLonghornFUKM said:
    On 1/22/2020 at 10:28 AM, B00M said:
    My twins turned 2 a month ago. Last night they were hopping together and counting each hop. They count to ten but one of them always skips four. Is it because she hits her head on shit all the time? Should we return her? Maybe she can get by without four...

    My 1.5 yr old went from super easy to a terror over Christmas vacation. We need to stick together guys

    Little girl became much more difficult to manage at about 2.5. Stuggled to get through the 3's with lots of attitude and very little listening. Now she is 4 and I really hoped things would start clicking for her but dayum she is strong willed.

    late show ugh GIF by The Late Show With Stephen Colbert

  11. 2 hours ago, Js1 said:

    This whole thread is in the top 10 reasons the internet is failing society 

    Everyone believes everyone else should conform to their lifestyle. And Texans are guaranteed by God a 4 bedroom, 4.5 bath house with 2 SUVs and a truck in the garage.  They couldn’t live without it. 

    American by birth and Texan by the grace of God, amirite?

  12. 23 minutes ago, FondrenRoad said:

    River Oaks is equivalent to Manhattan. 

    wrong donald trump GIF by Election 2016

     

    Are you still arguing over the article comparing Houston costs to NYC or something else? It sounds like desirable areas in NYC cost north of 1M to buy however there are areas that can be significantly cheaper than that. 

  13. Tax time again folks so starting up this thread. 

    Started doing some initial calculations and just now taking notice of some of the big changes. 

    Standard deductions that were in place for the 2017 tax year and those now in effect for 2018 and 2019:

    Filing Status

    2017 Standard Deduction

    2018 Standard Deduction

    2019 Standard Deduction

    Single or Married Filing Separately

    $6,350

    $12,000

    $12,200

    Married Filing Jointly

    $12,700

    $24,000

    $24,400

    Head of Household

    $9,350

    $18,000

    $18,350

    Mortgage interest still is deductible, but...

    The deduction for mortgage interest is one of the most popular U.S. tax breaks. In fact, tax benefits like these are often a primary reason Americans decide to buy a home. Fortunately for many homeowners, the mortgage interest deduction survived the tax reform efforts, but it did receive two major modifications.

    First, the cap (or limit) on the total deduction allowed has been reduced to the interest on up to $750,000 of qualified residence debt, or mortgage principal on a primary or secondary home. This is down from the previous limit of $1 million, although mortgages obtained before December 15, 2017 are grandfathered in to the higher limit.

    Second, the previous additional limit that allowed taxpayers to deduct interest on as much as $100,000 of home equity debt has been eliminated. To be clear, interest on a home equity loan (such as a HELOC) may still be used as a deduction, but if and only if the loan was used to substantially improve your home. In this case, it becomes qualified residence debt and is counted as part of your $750,000 cap.

    The SALT deduction: Bad news for high-tax states

    The biggest tax deduction by dollar amount that Americans have taken advantage of in recent years is the deduction for state and local taxes -- also known as the SALT (State and Local Taxes) deduction. Specifically, Americans have been able to deduct the following:

    • State and/or local property taxes, such as those paid on a personal residence, automobile, or other personal property.
    • State and local income taxes or state sales taxes, whichever results in the larger deduction. Generally speaking, income taxes are the better deduction, but the option to deduct sales tax allows residents of states without an income tax to benefit, as well. If you choose the sales tax option, you don't need receipts -- the IRS provides a calculator to determine this deduction.

    Starting with the 2018 tax year, however, the SALT deduction is limited to a total of $10,000

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