Midland Property Taxes Cut in 16% of Informal Hearings
Almost no county in Texas favors businesses more than Midland. In 2024, more oil and gas properties protested than all other businesses and homes combined. Since businesses tend to focus on formal appeals to the appraisal review board (ARB) and litigation more than informal appeals, this leaves initial appeals at something of a disadvantage. Still, informal hearings are a necessity if a taxpayer wishes to go further on the protest ladder, and can often get good results by themselves. Join the struggle against the Midland Central Appraisal District (MCAD) when you enroll in O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program™ today. Enroll, relax, and save.
Resolved Informally Midland CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Thousands | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 2.145 | 2.348 | 0.667 | 0.864 | 0.648 | 4.423 | 8.522 | 8.508 | 1.190 | 1.691 | 2.192 | |
| Single Family | 0.278 | 1.073 | 0.376 | 0.512 | 0.354 | 1.110 | 1.230 | 1.277 | 0.475 | 0.931 | 1.387 | |
| Commercial / Other | 1.867 | 1.275 | 0.291 | 0.352 | 0.294 | 3.313 | 7.292 | 7.231 | 0.715 | 0.760 | 0.805 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Most appeals are resolved with a reduction at the informal level.
MCAD Property Tax Appeals Resolved Informally
Informal appeals grant the average taxpayer a chance to take on the inflated values of MCAD. After studying their appraisal and choosing a grounds for protest, a taxpayer must put together a portfolio of evidence, which they can use to prove their case. O’Connor is here to help in all aspects of an appeal, including gathering evidence and representation in all hearings. There is no cost to join, and you will only have to pay a portion of your winnings if your taxes are lowered.
MCAD Informal Settlements
While not breaking records in 2024, informal settlements had their best year since 2022. 2,192 contests were resolved informally, a big jump from just 1,691 in 2023. Outside of the outlier years of 2020 and 2021, informal appeals have been something of an afterthought in Midland County. This may be because homes only make up a tiny fraction of all appeals.
Initial settlements were led by homes in 2024, with 1,387 appeals being resolved. This was the most in the history of the county. Homes and businesses have historically been close to each other at this stage, baring the two strange years of 2020 and 2021. Businesses had their worst year since 2018, with only 805 resolutions. Businesses mainly focus on the second stage of appeals, so the drop-off is not too unexpected.
Resulted in Reduction Through Informal Process Midland CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Thousands | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 2.070 | 1.936 | 0.665 | 0.821 | 0.505 | 2.302 | 4.098 | 4.664 | 0.563 | 0.380 | 0.372 | |
| Single Family | 0.266 | 0.972 | 0.376 | 0.358 | 0.354 | 0.488 | 0.621 | 1.077 | 0.350 | 0.306 | 0.327 | |
| Commercial / Other | 1.804 | 0.964 | 0.289 | 0.463 | 0.151 | 1.814 | 3.477 | 3.587 | 0.213 | 0.074 | 0.045 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since It is the world’s safest wager. No cost and a 60% chance of savings annually.
MCAD Informal Hearing Reductions
Informal protests saw some of their lowest results in the past decade. Only 372 cases in total were able to land a reduction. Of these, the majority were homes, which nabbed 327 of the reductions. Businesses only managed to grab 45 total cuts to their taxes. This is one of the few times that statistics for Midland match those of the rest of Texas.
Percent That Resulted in A ReductionSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Percent | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 96.500% | 82.450% | 99.700% | 95.020% | 77.930% | 52.050% | 48.090% | 54.820% | 47.310% | 22.470% | 16.970% | |
| Single Family | 95.680% | 90.590% | 100.000% | 69.920% | 100.000% | 43.960% | 50.490% | 84.340% | 73.680% | 32.870% | 23.580% | |
| Commercial / Other | 96.630% | 75.610% | 99.310% | 131.530% | 51.360% | 54.750% | 47.680% | 49.610% | 29.790% | 9.740% | 5.590% | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Errors in the appraisal districts records for your property often artificially inflate YOUR property taxes.
MCAD Percentage of Informal Hearings with Reduction
As the numbers above indicate, informal appeals saw their worst win rate in the past decade. Only 16.97% of cases were able to get a reduction. While win rates have been falling since 2018, it appears that things have bottomed out. 23.58% of homes were able to lower their taxes, while only 5.59% of businesses were successful. These are the lowest numbers for any major county in Texas.
$ Value Reduction From Informal ProcessSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Billions of $ | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| $ Reduction Total | 0.3647 | 0.4063 | 0.2061 | 0.2522 | 0.1535 | 1.0349 | 1.9163 | 1.7104 | 0.9067 | 1.0329 | 1.1591 | |
| $ Reduction Single Family | 0.0565 | 0.0358 | 0.0890 | 0.0993 | 0.0966 | 0.0701 | 0.0436 | 0.0637 | 0.0399 | 0.0404 | 0.0408 | |
| $ Value Commercial / Other | 0.3082 | 0.3704 | 0.1171 | 0.1529 | 0.0569 | 0.9648 | 1.8726 | 1.6468 | 0.8668 | 0.9925 | 1.1182 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Property taxes are the only type that can be negotiated based on subjective factors and judgment.
MCAD Value Reduction from Informal Process
Despite the low numbers and tiny win rate, informal appeals were still effective when they landed. In 2024, $1.60 billion in total value was reduced thanks to these initial protests. This was the most seen since 2022 and capped off a trend of growing results. This was the third highest in the county’s history, only bested by the outliers of 2020 and 2021.
This was thanks to a strong rebound in business reductions, which topped $1.12 billion. These have been steadily climbing since 2022. Homes likewise saw their best result since 2022. This indicates that values across the county are increasing, as even a small number of protests can save a good deal of money. This should encourage more businesses and homeowners to come forward.