As my team protested for over 3200 people (for free) my team and I became aware of many problems in the system. We also began proposing some solutions. If you can help identify problems or brainstorm solutions, please write them in the comments below, or contact us directly to discuss them. We want your input! (Also, if you would like to put your technical writing skills to good use and help edit this document, please contact us)  

If you are a REALTOR who is passionate about providing expert assistance to homeowners against unfair property taxation and you would like to be a part of the Homeowner Advocacy Group, complete the form below.     Loading...

If you need to get your home in "market-ready" condition or you need to find everything wrong with your house to serve as evidence in a property tax protest, this checklist will be your best friend.     Scroll down or click here: Property Condition Checklist

Our property tax system is broken. Taxes have gone up so high that some people can no longer afford their homes. Current reform proposals don't adequately protect the rights of homeowners. I am working with a state representative and powerful lobby group to amend Governer Abbot's proposal to include provisions that would reform our property tax code to protect homeowners. Legislation won't gain the necessary support unless they know that this is something that the public demands. Sign this petition to join in supporting reform to protect the rights of homeowners.     Loading...

The IRS changed the rules in 1997 that stated you had to sell your residence and buy another house within 2 years. This rule no longer applies. Now the IRS doesn’t care what you do with your money when you sell. Under the newest changes, you must have lived in your previous home for at least 2 out of the last 5 years. If, however, you rented your house out during your ownership, the situation gets more complicated and you should consult a tax expert. A single person may qualify to exclude up to $250,000 of that gain from your income, or up to $500,000 of that gain if you file a joint return with your spouse. Certain exceptions exist for uniformed personnel, owners that lived in a nursing home, experienced divorce, or death. There are a few misconceptions and avenues you can tad advantage of that I'd like to clear up. Q: What if it wasn't my primary residence... Can I still avoid capital gains? A: Yes You can avoid having to immediately pay capital gains tax selling an investment property through doing a 1031 exchange. To qualify you must purchase another investment property of equal or greater value than your current property. Use the gains from the previous property sale to purchase the new property. Also, the new property must be considered "like-kind", which basically just means it's used for a similar type of investment. For example, if you're selling a house, you must buy another house. If you're selling a retail commercial building, you must buy another retail commercial building. There are some timing factors and logistical measures you need to be aware of that aren't very complicated but you will find helpful to get some guidance on. For help or questions, just contact our office. We would be glad to walk you through a purchase involving a 1031 exchange. Q: Can I claim a capital loss if I lose money on the sale of my home? A: Unfortunately, no You must report and pay tax on unexempt capital gains from the sale of your personal residence, but you can never claim a capital loss on the sale of a personal residence. For some reason, the government allows deductions on certain capital losses on investment property, but not on personal use property. The good news is that you're on the right website to help avoid losses. Our track record shows that we sell houses for considerably more than the average agent, and have many times set a new record price for highest sale in a subdivision.   Q: Are moving expenses always deductible? A: Yes sometimes, but not always You can only deduct moving expenses that are work-related under certain strict conditions. If you are moving for purely personal reasons, they are never deductible. If your company is relocating you, then you should take a closer look to see if your moving expenses are deductible. A few things to consider - it really helps if your job move and house move are within 1 year of each other, and you're moving at least 50 miles away. If you are self-employed or have any kind of part-time or limited employment, the rules get a little sticky. You should consult a tax advisor to get more details under these circumstances. Have more tax questions? Just give us a call or contact us any time. We would love the opportunity to serve you. 

In case you don't already know, last year we helped over 3200 people protest their property tax value for free. This year our goal is to help 6000. I just wanted to give you an update on where we're at on that... We're working hard to get things ready so that when we help with your property tax protest, everything runs smoothly without any trouble. The appraisal district needed to get further approval fro some technology we're using to help make the process streamlined for you. It shouldn't be too much longer, but we have until May 15th to turn everything in, so we're still in great shape. Chandler and the team recorded a video just to provide an update (see below).   Also, Chandler will be speaking to several home owner's associations, community groups, possibly a chamber of commerce or two, and other types of groups to teach homeowners how to protest and provide some tips etc. If you know of any groups that might appreciate hearing from us on that, please let me know asap. Our calendar for speaking engagements is filling up pretty quick. In the meantime, if you have any other real estate related questions, please don't hesitate to reach out. We're here to help any way we can. Have a great day!     

I put together a short video with our team that covers some current issues.  Don't have 10 minutes? Jump to the section that interests you most or scroll below the video to see abbreviated notes. What's in the video: 0:00 - 0:44 Why real estate prices crashed in January: 0:45 - 2:45 Pillow talk 2:46 - 4:23 Do this 1 thing NOW to save thousands when you sell your home 4:24 - 5:38 What you need to know about Amazon moving their headquarters to DFW 5:39 - 7:50 1 big change to Tax protests this year 7:51 - 9:39     Real estate prices are down, which was expected. December was a record month and we expect to see significant price gains in February. Pricing is a result of the relationship between supply and demand so in the video I show you exactly where demand and supply levels are at and discuss what this means for you.  Amazon recently announced that they are moving their headquarters. Dallas Fort Worth is one of 20 areas under consideration. This would bring 50,000 new jobs over a 10 year period of time. Watch the video to learn which key factors play a role in their decision process.  Recent changes in the Texas Real Estate Commission (TREC) contract could cost you thousands if you don't know about them and take action now, well ahead of your plans to sell your home. Now all repairs must be completed by a licensed professional. This means after you get under contract, you can't fix anything in the house without calling a licensed professional. What may have cost you just $5 to do on your own will now cost as much as $75 when considering that most professionals will charge you a trip fee just to show up.  The main tax protest deadline this year is going to be May 15 instead of May 31. There is no need to act on this information now. They plan to send value notices out around April 1st. As soon as they do, we'll be on top of it to help. We are making preparations to help a record number of people. If you know someone that would reliably show up on time, do great work, treat it like a high paying job, but would be interested in volunteering to help, please send them my way. 

Click here to view your property tax bill online. Watch the video below to discover... How to reduce your monthly payment How to eliminate your tax burden completely      If you haven't received your property tax bill in the mail yet, you need to find out why. Taxes are due by Jan 31 whether you received your bill or not.  Call your mortgage company and see if they received your bill. Go online search and contact the tax assessor's office If your taxes are higher than you were expecting, it's likely because the appraisal district proposed a value significantly higher than last year. We may have protested to lower the value from what they proposed, but your taxes may still have gone up if the amount we reduced it to is still more than last year's tax value. Options if your tax burden is too high If your monthly payment went up, you likely have an escrow shortage. The mortgage company's default payment plan is 12 months. Call and ask if you can pay it out over a 2-3 year period of time. This is usually an easy 15-minute phone conversation. Prepare for your protest for next year. Take photos of issues. Get quotes. Save quotes / unpaid invoices to use as evidence in your protest. File them away to save them for your protest next May. We can help you eliminate your entire tax bill for good... By helping you sell your house. If you can't afford to live there, we want you to call us. Our goal will be to help you find a way to stay in your house, but if you have no other option and you've determined that you must move, we will help in 2 ways. 2 Ways We Can Help if You Must Move We will help you determine how much you can expect to sell it for. Often times it's more than you think. We will review 14 options that our team put together for you.  Call one of our team members today or contact our office directly at 817-381-3800 or hello@chandlercrouch.com

Register on FreeTaxProtest.com and let us do the rest, all for FREE!    There are 3 levels of protest Automated online protest through the Tarrant Appraisal District website Informal in-person protest (no appointment needed, just walk into TAD's office) Formal Appraisal Review Board (ARB) hearing (file a protest on the back of your blue value notice)   Go HERE to begin your Protest Since releasing the video, we have helped thousands of homeowners and saved hundreds of thousands of dollars... all for FREE! Not only that, we were able to figure out the formula that TAD is using. Now, we're helping people get, what we believe to be, is the lowest possible value.  Links and Resources in Video Will protesting hurt my resale value What is the difference between Market Value and Appraised Value Checklist to find and fix property condition issues Use this property tax calculator to see exactly how much the change in value affects your wallet Get our 10 minute $5 brick mortar crack repair secret