Smith County Appraisal District is a political subdivision of the state. The Constitution of the State of Texas, the Texas Property Tax Code, and the Rules of the Texas Comptroller’s Property Tax Assistance Division govern the operations of the appraisal district.

 

Our mission is to provide uniform, fair and equitable appraisals of all real and personal property and to provide information and assistance to the public in a professional and courteous manner.
This will be accomplished by administering the laws under the property tax system and operating under the standards of:

• The Property Tax Assistance Division of the Texas State Comptroller’s Office (PTAD)
• The International Association of Assessing Officers (IAAO)
• The Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice (USPAP)

 

The appraisal district is governed by a Board of Directors whose primary responsibilities include the following:

• Establish the district’s office
• Appoint the Chief Appraiser
• Approve the district’s budget annually
• Contract for necessary services
• Appoint the Appraisal Review Board
• Provide advice and consent to the Chief Appraiser concerning the appointment of an Agricultural Advisory Board
• Approve contracts with appraisal firms to perform appraisal services for the district
• Other statutory duties

To be eligible to serve on the board of directors, an individual must be a resident of the district and must have resided in the district for at least two years immediately preceding the date of appointment. Members of the Board of Directors will serve two-year terms beginning in January of even-numbered years.

The Chief Appraiser is the chief administrator of the appraisal district and is appointed by the board of directors. The chief appraiser must be certified (or actively working toward certification) as a Registered Professional Appraiser (RPA) through the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.

Appraisal Review Board members are appointed by the Board of Directors. To serve on the ARB, an individual must be a resident of the appraisal district and must have resided in the district for at least two years. The Smith County Appraisal Review Board (ARB) is responsible by statute for the hearing and determination of taxpayer protests and taxing entity challenges. 

Agricultural Advisory Board members are appointed by the Board of Directors at the recommendation of the chief appraiser to aide him in determining typical practices and standards for agricultural activities in the district.

 

The Smith County Appraisal District is responsible for appraising all properties for each of the taxing jurisdictions within Smith County. 

Smith County Appraisal District reviews all legislation that may affect the appraisal district’s operations. Once laws are passed, SCAD responds in a timely manner updating records, forms and/or procedures.

 

The following represents a summary of property types appraised by the district for 2011:

PTAD Classifications	Property Type	Parcel Count	Market Value
A	Single Family Homes	59,664	$7,290,020,159
B	Multi Family Homes	1,953	$577,350,602
C	Vacant Land (< 5 acres)	18,708	$314,078,686
D1 & D2	Vacant Land (>5 acres)	16,969	$1,840,319,602
E	Farm/Ranch Improvements	9,203	$781,867,857
F1	Commercial Real Property	5,024	$2,246,869,924
F2	Industrial Real Property	168	$254,115,499
G	Oil/Gas/Minerals	52,054	$387,077,297
J	Utilities	771	$351,377,665
L1	Commercial Personal Property	6,626	$1,073,687,631
L2	Industrial Personal Property	155	$576,800,429
M1	Manufactured Homes	3,874	$80,099,951
O	Residential Inventory	6,532	$74,545,208
S	Dealer's Special Inventory	187	$51,024,344
X	Exempt Property	3,558	$1,577,774,328

 

 

The district conducted a ratio study to validate the accuracy of its mass appraisal system with the following overall statistical results:

 

Based upon the Mass Appraisal Standards adopted by the International Association of Assessing Officers, the above statistics indicate the district’s mass appraisal system is accurately and uniformly appraising property.

 

• Visual field inspections
• Aerial photography
• Homestead/Agricultural applications
• City building permits
• Direct notification from property owner
• Local real estate professional
• Contractors, developers and sales professionals of new subdivisions
• Recorded Instruments from courthouse and other local government
• Building plans
• Utility companies
• Mechanic’s liens, Deeds of Trust and Legal News
• Texas Department of Housing & Community Affairs reports (Manufactured Homes)
• TXDOT moving permits for Manufactured Homes
• Sales questionnaires and Fee Appraisals
• Newspapers, Sales Brochures and Magazines
• Telephone directories

 

Exemption Data

Property owners may qualify for a variety of exemptions as provided by the Texas Constitution. Some of the most commonly occurring exemptions are described below. Other less commonly occurring exemptions are available and described in the Texas Property Tax Code, Chapter 11.

 

The following chart represents the total exemption amounts available to homeowners who qualify for this exemption on home sites with a maximum of 20 acres:

Jurisdiction	Percent	General	Over 65	Disability	100% Disabled Veteran
County
Smith County		None	$25,000	None	100%
City
Arp		None	$3,000	None	100%
Bullard		None	$3,000	None	100%
Lindale		None	$3,500	None	100%
Overton		None	$6,000	None	100%
Troup		None	$5,000	None	100%
Tyler		10% or no less than $5000	$6,000	None	100%
Whitehouse		None	$3,000	None	100%
Winona		None	None	None	100%
Schools
Arp	20% or no less than $5000 plus	$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Bullard		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Chapel Hill		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Gladewater	20% or no less than $5000 plus	$15,000	$16,000	$10,000	100%
Lindale		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Troup		$15,000	$15,000	$10,000	100%
Tyler		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Van	20% or no less than $5000 plus	$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Whitehouse		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
Winona		$15,000	$10,000	$10,000	100%
College Districts
Kilgore College		None	$30,000	None	100%
Tyler Junior College		None	$20,000	$10,000	100%
Other Districts
Smith County MUD #1		None	$5,000	None	100%
SCESD #1		None	None	None	100%
SCESD #2		None	None	None	100%

 

For school tax purposes, the over 65 and disability residential homestead exemptions create a tax ceiling.

Properties receiving a general homestead exemption may qualify for a limited appraised value. The limited appraised value will not exceed 110% of the prior year's appraised value. However, the market value may still be reflective of the local real estate market.

 

In addition to the residential homestead exemption allowable to disabled veterans with a 100% service connected disability, disabled veterans are allowed a general exemption on any property they own based upon the percentage rating as determined by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Current exemption amounts, as based upon these ratings are as follows:

Percentage Disability	Exemption Amount
10-29%	$5,000
30-49%	$7,500
50-69%	$10,000
70-100%	$12,000

 

The surviving spouse and minor children of a member of the armed services who dies while on active duty will receive a $5000 exemption.

 

Other commonly occurring exemptions are:

• Cemetery Exemptions
• Religious Organizations
• Charitable Organizations
• Veteran’s Organization

Other less frequently occurring exemptions are allowable and described in Chapter 11, Property Tax Code.

 

Appeal Information

Following guidelines established by state law, notices of appraised value are typically mailed to property owners if:

• The appraised value of the property changes by more than $1000 from what it was in the preceding year
• The appraised value of the property is greater than the value rendered by the property owner
• The property was not on the appraisal roll in the preceding year
• The property has had an ownership change

In 2011, the district prepared and delivered notices of appraised value for approximately:

­ ­

	98,600	real property parcels
	7,500	commercial personal property parcels

From those notices, approximately 2300 parcels were protested.

 

Average Home Values

Average Home Value

 

 

New Construction

The following represents 2011 Real Property New Construction for Smith County Taxing Jurisdictions as of July 15, 2011.
New Construction

 

 

Certified Values

The Chief Appraiser certified taxable values to each taxing jurisdiction on July 15, 2011 summarized as follows:
2011 Certified Values

 

 

Tax Rates

Using the taxable values as certified by the Chief Appraiser and following the requirements of the Truth in Taxation Laws, the taxing jurisdictions adopted the following tax rates:

 

 

Achievements – Appraisal District

In January 2011, Smith County Appraisal District received 100% compliance from the Methods and Assistance Program (MAP) review for 2010-2011. This extensive review is conducted by the Texas Comptroller biannually.

 

 

Achievements

Smith County Appraisal District encourages professional development of staff.  Currently, SCAD has sixteen staff members who hold the RPA (Registered Professional Appraiser) designation.  Additionally, eight staff members are actively working towards completing the RPA designation.

Highest Degree earned by staff is as follows:

Associate’s Level	7%
Bachelor's Level	50%
Master's Level	18%
Employees with College Education	75%

Mapping and Records - one staff member is working towards completion of the IAAO Cadastral Mapping Specialist

Business Personal Property - two staff members are working towards Certified Public Accountant designations.

Chief Appraiser, Michael Barnett, received the IAAO Rep of the Month Recognition. A short biography was published in the “Fair & Equitable”, March 2012 (Magazine of the International Association of Assessing Officers).