Fort Worth, Texas
Tarrant County commercial property tax appeals
Appeals start with the Tarrant Appraisal District (TAD) and go to the Tarrant Appraisal Review Board (TARB). Here is how commercial evidence is built, filed and heard in Tarrant County.
- Assessor
- Tarrant Appraisal District (TAD)
- First-level board
- Tarrant Appraisal Review Board (TARB)
- Filing deadline
- May 15 or the 30th day after the notice of appraised value is delivered, whichever is later (Tex. Tax Code §41.44(a)(1))
- Commercial assessment level
- 100% of market value; non-homestead real property at or below the Comptroller's indexed threshold also has a 20% circuit breaker cap through the 2026 tax year (§23.231)
- Value standard
- Market value (Tex. Tax Code §1.04(7) and §23.01)
- Valuation date
- January 1 of the tax year
- Assessment cycle
- Annual market value as of January 1; under TAD's 2025-2026 reappraisal plan, commercial, industrial, mineral and business personal property are mass reappraised every year, while residential property moved to an odd-year reappraisal cycle
- Notices mailed
- Notices of appraised value are generally mailed from April into May, and commercial notices have gone out after residential notices in some years; the protest deadline printed on each notice controls
How Tarrant County assesses commercial property
Tarrant County, home to Fort Worth and Arlington, is the third most populous county in Texas and a major North Texas industrial market. The Tarrant Appraisal District appraises property at 100% of market value as of January 1, and under its 2025-2026 reappraisal plan it mass reappraises commercial, industrial, mineral and business personal property every year, even while residential property moved to an odd-year cycle. Notices generally go out in April and May, and the protest deadline is May 15 or 30 days after the notice is delivered, whichever is later.
The process follows the Texas pattern. Commercial protests typically start with informal talks with TAD appraisal staff, and a signed agreement there ends the protest for the year. Anything unresolved goes to the Tarrant Appraisal Review Board, an independent citizen board that hears cases in panels and can order TAD to change its records. Large commercial, industrial and multifamily accounts can request a special panel with credentialed members, and agents with portfolios can ask for same-day hearings on up to 20 properties.
Texas puts the burden of proof on the appraisal district, and TAD cannot use evidence it failed to share at least 14 days before the hearing when the owner asked for it. Most Tarrant cases are won with a normalized income approach or an equal-and-uniform grid under §41.43(b)(3). After the ARB, owners choose district court, binding arbitration for property valued at $5 million or less, or SOAH for non-industrial property above $1 million.
Major commercial submarkets
- Downtown Fort Worth
- AllianceTexas and the north Fort Worth industrial corridor
- Great Southwest industrial (Arlington and Grand Prairie)
- Arlington entertainment district
- Southlake and Grapevine
- Hurst, Euless, Bedford and the DFW Airport area
Uniformity authority
Tex. Const. art. VIII, §1; Tex. Tax Code §41.43(b)(3) and §42.26(a)(3)
Appeal statute
Tex. Tax Code §41.41 and §41.44 (protest); Chapter 42 (judicial review)
After the board
District court petition within 60 days of receiving the ARB order (Tax Code §42.21); binding arbitration through the Comptroller for property the ARB valued at $5 million or less (Chapter 41A); or the State Office of Administrative Hearings for non-industrial property valued above $1 million (Gov't Code §2003.901)
Official forms ATALI ELECTRIC fills for Tarrant County
| Form | Filed with | Purpose |
|---|---|---|
| Form 50-132, Property Owner's Notice of Protest | Tarrant Appraisal Review Board (filed through TAD) | Starts the protest. Selecting both incorrect market value and unequal appraisal keeps both grounds open, because district staff and the ARB address only the grounds on the notice. |
| Form 50-162, Appointment of Agent for Property Tax Matters | Tarrant Appraisal District | Authorizes a consultant to file protests, receive notices and confidential information, and negotiate for the owner. |
| Form 50-283, Property Owner's Affidavit of Evidence | Tarrant Appraisal Review Board | Delivers evidence without a personal appearance; required when the owner or agent appears by telephone or videoconference. |
Filing system: TAD online Dashboard for electronic protest and value negotiation, or protest by mail or in person
Hearings and evidence
Informal settlement talks happen with TAD's appraisal staff, not the ARB, and TARB does not schedule informal meetings. Formal hearings are held by panels of at least three members (or a single member on request), generally Monday through Saturday during protest season. Agents can ask under §41.66(j), at least 10 days ahead, for same-day hearings on up to 20 properties. Because Tarrant County exceeds the population threshold in §6.41(b-2), owners of commercial, industrial, utility and multifamily accounts at or above the Comptroller's indexed minimum ($50 million for 2020) can request a special panel under §6.425.
- 01Ask TAD for the evidence it intends to use at the hearing (§41.461); anything not provided at least 14 days before the hearing cannot be used except to rebut the owner's evidence (§41.67(d)).
- 02TAD must prove the appraised value by a preponderance of the evidence (§41.43(a)), and the standard rises to clear and convincing evidence when the prior year's value was lowered in a protest not resolved by written agreement and the owner delivered income data or comparable sales at least 14 days before the hearing (§41.43(a-3)).
- 03Owners and agents appearing by telephone or videoconference must give all evidence by affidavit, and must request the remote hearing in writing by the deadline in §41.45(b-1).
- 04Income and expense information given to TAD is confidential under §22.27 and may be disclosed only to the owner, an authorized representative, or in a proceeding involving the owner.
Income evidence
TAD values most Fort Worth and Arlington office, retail, multifamily and hotel property with income models built on market rent, vacancy, expense and cap rate assumptions by property type and location, and large distribution buildings around Alliance and the Great Southwest by income and sales evidence. Income statements are optional but are the most direct way to show that actual occupancy or rent does not support a stabilized value, and §22.27 keeps them confidential. Where sales and income evidence is thin, the §41.43(b)(3) equal-and-uniform comparison against TAD's own values for comparable properties is often the stronger argument.
Practitioner notes
- The residential reappraisal pause that made headlines in 2025 did not apply to commercial property: under the 2025-2026 plan TAD reappraises commercial, industrial and business personal property every year, so commercial accounts need a protest review every spring.
- Keep the district court route open by paying, before the delinquency date, the lesser of the taxes on the undisputed value, the taxes under the ARB order, or the prior year's taxes (§42.08).
- Binding arbitration is limited to property the ARB valued at $5 million or less and must be requested through the Comptroller within 60 days of the ARB order; filing in district court first waives it.
- Under current law the §23.231 circuit breaker covers the 2024 to 2026 tax years only, so smaller capped commercial parcels should be budgeted at full market value for 2027 unless the Legislature acts.
Tarrant County appeal questions
Last verified October 2026 against the assessor, board and statute.
Did TAD stop reappraising commercial property?
No. The 2025-2026 reappraisal plan moved residential property to an odd-year cycle, but TAD mass reappraises commercial, industrial, mineral and business personal property in both 2025 and 2026.
What is the protest deadline in Tarrant County?
May 15 or the 30th day after the notice of appraised value is delivered, whichever is later, under §41.44(a)(1). Commercial notices that arrive later than residential notices carry a later deadline, which is printed on the notice.
Can a large commercial account get a specialized ARB panel?
Yes. Tarrant County meets the population test for special panels under §6.425, which hear commercial, industrial, utility and multifamily property at or above the Comptroller's indexed minimum value. Panel members must hold professional credentials.
Nearby jurisdictions
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