Tarrant Property Tax: TAD Rates, Deadlines & Appeals (2026)

For most Tarrant homeowners, the 2026 property tax protest deadline was May 15, 2026, or the later deadline printed on your TAD Property Value Notice. File with the Tarrant Appraisal Review Board, called TARB, through your TAD.org online account or by paper delivery to TARB, P.O. Box 185519, Fort Worth, TX 76181-0519; TARB says protest forms are not accepted by fax or email.

How assessments work in Tarrant

Tarrant Appraisal District, usually searched as TAD, sets the value; it does not set tax rates or collect your bill. Tarrant County Tax Office collects for many local units, and current taxes generally become delinquent February 1 if not paid by January 31.

Texas appraisal is annual as of January 1. TAD describes its residential work as mass appraisal: it values hundreds of thousands of residential properties using common data, market models, cost tables, land schedules, depreciation and statistical testing. In its residential manual, TAD says the residential department values around 600,000 residential properties and sends value notices so owners can protest to TARB.

A local 2024 TAD board action is important for the current cycle: the board directed the chief appraiser to prepare a reappraisal plan appraising residentially coded properties every two years, to carry 2025 residential values forward except for new improvements and construction, and to require clear and convincing evidence for 2026 residential increases above a 5% threshold. That does not mean your 2026 notice is automatically wrong; it means you should compare the 2026 value with your 2024 and 2025 records and look closely at any new construction, condition or data change.

For homesteads, do not confuse market value with taxable value. Texas residence homesteads get a 10% annual appraisal cap after the exemption has been in place for the required time, so your market value can rise faster than your capped appraised value. Non-homestead real property has a temporary 20% circuit-breaker limitation for 2024-2026, with exceptions.

Whether you should appeal

Appeal if you can show either market value is too high or unequal appraisal. For a first-time homeowner, the strongest Tarrant protest file usually includes: your closing statement if you bought near January 1; photos and repair bids for foundation, roof, HVAC, drainage or interior condition issues; TAD records showing wrong square footage, pool, garage or condition; and three to five comparable sales or TAD-comparable properties in your neighborhood.

TAD and TARB do not publish, in the official materials reviewed for this guide, a homeowner success rate or median reduction. Treat any consultant ad quoting a countywide win rate as marketing unless it links to public records. Your better test is simple: if your evidence supports a value at least $10,000-$20,000 lower, filing is usually worth the time because the filing itself is free.

Worked example using actual Tarrant rates: a Fort Worth ISD homeowner in the Tarrant County tax estimator is taxed by City of Fort Worth 0.670000, Tarrant County 0.186200, Tarrant Regional Water District 0.026500, JPS Health Network 0.165000, Tarrant County College 0.112280 and Fort Worth ISD 1.029100, for a combined 2.189080 per $100 before exemptions. If a protest lowers taxable value by $30,000, estimated annual tax savings are $30,000 ÷ 100 × 2.189080 = about $657. If you use county-only tax for a narrow calculation, the Tarrant County rate is 0.186200, so the same $30,000 reduction saves about $56 in county tax alone.

Also check exemptions before you protest. TAD accepts the Application for Residential Homestead Exemption online or by mail to Tarrant Appraisal District, Exemption Division, P.O. Box 185579, Fort Worth, TX 76181-0579. TAD’s homestead form says there is no fee. Texas school taxes include a $100,000 general residence homestead exemption, plus additional age-65-or-older or disabled benefits when eligible. Local optional exemptions vary by taxing unit, so verify your TAD property record and your tax statement.

Step-by-step how to file

1. Find your 2026 Property Value Notice or TAD account. The notice lists the protest deadline for that account. For most homeowners, use May 15, 2026; if your notice shows a later date, use the printed later date.

2. Decide your grounds. For a typical value case, select incorrect appraised value and, if supported, unequal appraisal. TARB’s local Notice of Protest also lets you protest exemptions, special appraisal, ownership, property description and failure to send required notice.

3. Use the right filing route. Online is preferred: create or log in to your TAD.org dashboard using the account PIN on the notice. TARB and TAD say online filing is the fastest route and can start an informal process that may resolve the protest without a hearing. Paper is allowed: use TARB Notice of Protest - Current Tax Year or Texas Comptroller Form 50-132, Property Owner’s Notice of Protest for Counties with Populations Greater than 120,000. TARB says a specific form is not required if the notice identifies the owner, the property and dissatisfaction with TAD’s determination.

4. Submit on time. Online filing must be completed before midnight on the deadline. Mail paper protests to TARB, P.O. Box 185519, Fort Worth, TX 76181-0519. In-person, common-carrier or contract-carrier delivery goes to TARB, 2500 Handley-Ederville Road, Fort Worth, TX 76118. Use tracking or get a receipt. Do not email or fax the protest.

5. Fee. There is no fee to file a TARB protest. The local protest form offers certified-mail hearing notice for a nonrefundable $5.04 cashier’s check or money order, but regular mail or email notice can be selected instead.

What happens after

After you file online, watch the TAD dashboard for informal review, evidence and scheduling. For hearings, TARB must give at least 15 days’ notice. You may appear in person, request telephone or videoconference by written request in time, or choose the non-oral route by sworn affidavit or unsworn declaration. Comptroller Form 50-283 is the standard affidavit of evidence form, and TARB says evidence for affidavit or remote hearings must be received before the hearing begins; TARB recommends uploading evidence at least five business days before the hearing.

The hearing is short. TARB’s 2025 procedures say a hearing lasts no more than 15 minutes total, generally giving each side about five minutes for evidence, rebuttal and closing. The panel hears testimony under oath, reviews evidence from you and TAD, allows cross-examination, deliberates and states a recommended value. TARB says you receive the panel recommendation before you leave, and an Order Determining Protest is later sent by certified mail or, if you requested electronic delivery, by email/dashboard.

If you lose or only partly win, the order starts the clock for next appeals. Common homeowner value appeals can go to binding arbitration if eligible, generally within 60 days after receiving the final ARB order, with a Comptroller deposit. District court is another route, but most homeowners reserve it for larger disputes.

Local tips

Tarrant homeowners should protest the number TAD can actually change: value, equality, exemptions or record errors. TARB explicitly says it has no control over tax rates, TAD’s budget, inflation or local politics. Do not spend your five minutes arguing that taxes are too high.

Bring four paper copies of evidence and two copies of photos to an in-person hearing even if you uploaded them. TARB recommends this because a three-member panel and the TAD representative may need copies.

Use TAD’s own evidence against it when appropriate. In your dashboard, look for TAD’s Section 41.461 materials, property characteristics and comparable data. If TAD has your home as remodeled, larger, with a pool you do not have, or in better condition than reality, lead with that.

Finally, file the protest even if you are still gathering bids or comps. Missing the deadline usually ends the regular value protest. Evidence can come later, but the Notice of Protest must be timely.

Tarrant Property Tax Rate

2025 Tarrant County tax-unit adopted property tax rate: $0.186200 per $100 of valuation (0.1862%; 1.862 mills), consisting of $0.173000 M&O and $0.013200 I&S. This is the county tax-unit rate only; a parcel’s total tax rate also depends on its city, school district, college/hospital/water/PID, and other applicable taxing units.

Source: https://entityportal.tarrantcountytx.gov/ratesExemptions.asp

When Are Property Taxes Due in Tarrant?

Property taxes are delinquent on February 1; the last day to pay without penalties is January 31, with online/phone payments due before 11:59 p.m. CST and mailed payments needing a January 31 USPS postmark. Half-payment option: first half due November 30 and second half due June 30. Quarter-payment option: for qualifying residence homesteads with an Over-65 or Disability exemption; payments are due January 31, March 31, May 31, and July 31.

This is not the same as the assessment appeal deadline above. The appeal deadline is your window to contest your assessed value; the payment due date is when the resulting tax bill must be paid. Missing one does not affect the other, but missing either has real consequences — one forfeits your right to appeal for the year, the other can trigger penalties and interest.

Source: https://www.tarrantcountytx.gov/en/tax/property-tax/FAQs-Property-Tax.html

Property Tax Exemptions in Tarrant

• School district general residence homestead exemption — Texas homeowners who own and occupy the property as their principal residence; administered locally through Tarrant Appraisal District for Tarrant County properties.. School districts must exempt $140,000 of a residence homestead’s value. Yes; file a residence homestead exemption application with the appraisal district. Apply by General deadline before May 1; Tarrant County lists April 30 as the exemption-application deadline. Late residence homestead filing rules may apply.. (Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/)
• Tarrant County local-option residence homestead exemption — Residence homestead owners whose property is taxed by Tarrant County tax unit 220 and whose homestead exemption is approved by Tarrant Appraisal District.. For Tarrant County tax unit 220: 20% of appraised value, minimum $5,000. Yes; file with Tarrant Appraisal District. Apply by April 30 general exemption-application deadline.. (Source: https://entityportal.tarrantcountytx.gov/ratesExemptionsdetail.asp)
• Age 65 or older residence homestead exemption — Homeowners age 65 or older who own the property and live in it as their principal residence; a qualifying surviving spouse age 55 or older may continue the exemption in some cases.. School districts must provide an additional $60,000 exemption; for Tarrant County tax unit 220, the listed Over-65 exemption is $50,000. Yes; file with Tarrant Appraisal District. Apply by General deadline before May 1 / April 30; Texas Comptroller notes an age-65-or-older exemption application may be filed up to two years after the date the owner became age 65.. (Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/)
• Disabled person residence homestead exemption — Homeowners who meet the Social Security disability standard and own and occupy the property as their principal residence.. School districts must provide an additional $60,000 exemption; for Tarrant County tax unit 220, the listed disability exemption is $10,000. Yes; file with Tarrant Appraisal District and provide required disability documentation if requested. Apply by General deadline before May 1 / April 30; late residence homestead filing rules may apply.. (Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/)
• Disabled veteran and survivor exemptions — Texas resident veterans with a service-connected disability rating of at least 10%, and certain surviving spouses or children; separate rules apply to 100% disabled veterans and their surviving spouses.. Partial disabled-veteran exemption: up to $5,000 for 10%-29%, $7,500 for 30%-49%, $10,000 for 50%-69%, and $12,000 for 70%-100%. A qualifying 100% disabled veteran may receive an exemption of the total appraised value of the residence homestead. Yes; file the applicable disabled veteran or residence homestead exemption application with the appraisal district, with required VA/armed-forces disability documentation. Apply by General deadline is April 30, but Texas Comptroller states disabled veterans applying under Tax Code Section 11.22 may file up to five years after the delinquency date; 100% disabled veteran residence homestead exemption may also be filed up to five years after the delinquency date.. (Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/exemptions/disabledvet-faq.php)
• Agricultural, timberland, and wildlife-management special appraisal — Owners of land meeting Texas agricultural, timberland, or wildlife-management use requirements; this is a special productivity appraisal rather than a standard homeowner homestead exemption.. Qualified land is appraised based on productivity value rather than market value, which the Comptroller says is usually lower than market value. Yes; file the appropriate special appraisal application with the appraisal district. Apply by General deadline before May 1 / April 30 for most special appraisal applications.. (Source: https://comptroller.texas.gov/taxes/property-tax/ag-timber/)

How to Look Up Your Property Record in Tarrant

You can look up your property's official record at https://www.tad.org/search-results. Tarrant Appraisal District’s property search shows parcel/account details such as account number, site/georeference, property address, owner, market value, legal description, state code, subdivision/neighborhood, appraisal notice/protest information, documents, maps, and tax-office links.