Texas homeowners · October 2026
Keep the cut. File the protest yourself.
Contingency firms take 25–50% of a homeowner’s first-year tax savings. KeepTheCut sells a flat-fee evidence packet. You file. You keep 100% of whatever the CAD actually reduces.
Not 25%. Not 50%. One price per property.
Season · October 2026
May 15 is closed. October bills are the next shock.
The typical Texas protest deadline (May 15) has passed for most counties. Tax bills mail around October. 2027 notices mail around April. Two ways to buy the same $99/year packet.
- October path — 2026 bill-shock / overpay report. Latest CAD values already on the roll. It does not reopen May. October tax bill · bill-shock.
- 2027 protest packet (primary). Buy now. We deliver when 2027 notices drop and email you when your county notice is out.
- How to file yourself. Form 50-132 or the CAD owner portal, unequal appraisal, Occupations Code 1152. Texas DIY protest how-to · Form 50-132. Comparing a contingency cut to a flat packet: Ownwell alternative · O’Connor alternative · SquareDeal alternative.
The math
Agents bill a cut of the save. We bill a document.
About 3.00 million Texas protests were filed in 2024 (3,004,940), from Comptroller figures compiled by O’Connor.[1] The market is real. The fee structure is the fight. These are other companies’ published figures, not KeepTheCut results.
Ownwell (their figures)
25%
of first-year savings in Texas, per Ownwell’s own cost-breakdown writing.[2] They market ~$774 average annual savings[3] and other Ownwell pages cite ~$606 median.[4]
25% of $606 is about $152 — more than $99.
O’Connor (their terms)
~50%
of first-year savings. O’Connor’s site: pay half of first-year property tax savings; they file and attend the hearing.[5]
Half of $606 is about $303.
KeepTheCut
$99/year
per property. You file. You keep 100% of any savings. SquareDeal DIY comps are $69[6] — we charge more because the packet includes the filing worksheet, county portal steps, and deadline-reminder workflow.
SquareDeal has published Harris County figures claiming a 2025 DIY median assessed-value reduction of $20,640 versus $13,202 for agent-represented protests. That is their claim from their dataset, not a KeepTheCut finding, and it is not a prediction for your house.[7] Longer comparisons: Ownwell alternative · O’Connor alternative · SquareDeal alternative.
What you actually buy
A packet an appraiser can hold.
Primary SKU
2027 protest packet
Pay $99 now. When 2027 Notices of Appraised Value mail (typically April; homestead notices can start April 1), we assemble equity comps from public CAD records, a Form 50-132 worksheet, and county-specific filing steps. We email you when your county’s notices are out.[8]
If the October bill stung
2026 overpay report
Same packet template using the latest CAD values already on the roll. It does not reopen a missed May deadline by magic. It shows a conservative picture of over-assessment and becomes the packet we reuse next spring.
October tax bill pathHow it works
Pay $99/year
Checkout is a Stripe Payment Link. Stripe collects billing, phone, Texas property address, and county. We do not scrape CAD sites.
Not an appraisal
We never invent a market value for your home. Texas is a non-disclosure state. DIY strength is equity (assessed-value) comps from public CAD, not MLS.
Operator-built packet
A person enters equity comps (and optional public/user-provided sales comps), a suggested figure for you to consider, and generates the PDF.
You file
Online CAD portal or Form 50-132. Informal script included. We do not attend. ARB value-ceiling rule is quoted from Tax Code §41.47, with exceptions noted. How to file yourself · Form 50-132.
Launch counties
- Harris CountyHCAD · Houston
- Dallas CountyDCAD · Dallas
- Tarrant CountyTAD · Fort Worth
- Travis CountyTCAD · Austin
- Bexar CountyBCAD · San Antonio
- Collin CountyCCAD · McKinney / Plano / Frisco
- Denton CountyDCAD · Denton / southern Denton County suburbs
- Fort Bend CountyFBCAD · Sugar Land / Richmond / Katy (Fort Bend)
- Montgomery CountyMCAD · The Woodlands / Conroe
- Williamson CountyWCAD · Georgetown / Round Rock / Cedar Park
- El Paso CountyEPCAD · El Paso
- Hidalgo CountyHidalgo CAD · McAllen / Edinburg / Mission
- Brazoria CountyBrazoria CAD · Pearland / Angleton / Lake Jackson
- Nueces CountyNCAD · Corpus Christi
- Galveston CountyGCAD · Galveston / League City / Texas City
- Hays CountyHays CAD · San Marcos / Kyle / Buda
- Cameron CountyCameron CAD · Brownsville / Harlingen
- Comal CountyComal CAD · New Braunfels
- Kaufman CountyKaufman CAD · Forney / Terrell / Kaufman
- Rockwall CountyRockwall CAD · Rockwall / Heath / Fate
- Ellis CountyEllis CAD · Waxahachie / Midlothian
- Bell CountyBell CAD · Killeen / Temple / Belton
- Lubbock CountyLubbock CAD · Lubbock
- McLennan CountyMcLennan CAD · Waco
- Webb CountyWebb CAD · Laredo
- Jefferson CountyJCAD · Beaumont / Port Arthur / Nederland
- Smith CountySCAD · Tyler
- Johnson CountyJohnson CAD · Cleburne / Burleson / Joshua
- Parker CountyParker CAD · Weatherford / Aledo / Springtown
- Brazos CountyBrazos CAD · College Station / Bryan
- Guadalupe CountyGuadalupe AD · Schertz / Seguin / Cibolo
- Grayson CountyGrayson CAD · Sherman / Denison
- Hunt CountyHunt CAD · Greenville
- Bastrop CountyBastrop CAD · Bastrop / Elgin / Smithville
- Midland CountyMidland CAD · Midland
- Wichita CountyWichita AD · Wichita Falls
- Taylor CountyTaylor CAD · Abilene
- Tom Green CountyTGCAD · San Angelo
- Potter CountyPRAD · Amarillo
- Ector CountyECAD · Odessa
- Gregg CountyGCAD · Longview
- Victoria CountyVictoria CAD · Victoria
- Orange CountyOrange CAD · Orange / Bridge City / Vidor
- Wise CountyWise CAD · Decatur / Bridgeport
- Hood CountyHood CAD · Granbury
- Kerr CountyKerr CAD · Kerrville
- Kendall CountyKendall AD · Boerne
- Waller CountyWaller CAD · Hempstead / Brookshire / Katy (Waller)
- Liberty CountyLiberty CAD · Liberty / Cleveland / Dayton
- Walker CountyWalker CAD · Huntsville
- Wharton CountyWharton CAD · Wharton / El Campo
- Randall CountyPRAD · Canyon / south Amarillo
- Angelina CountyAngelina CAD · Lufkin
- Bowie CountyBowie CAD · Texarkana
- Henderson CountyHenderson CAD · Athens
- Coryell CountyCoryell CAD · Gatesville / Copperas Cove
- San Patricio CountySan Pat CAD · Sinton / Portland / Ingleside
- Harrison CountyHarrison CAD · Marshall
- Nacogdoches CountyNaco CAD · Nacogdoches
- Medina CountyMedina CAD · Hondo / Castroville
- Chambers CountyChambers CAD · Anahuac / Mont Belvieu
- Van Zandt CountyVan Zandt CAD · Canton
- Navarro CountyNavarro CAD · Corsicana
- Wilson CountyWilson CAD · Floresville
- Caldwell CountyCaldwell CAD · Lockhart
- Burnet CountyBurnet CAD · Burnet
- Atascosa CountyAtascosa CAD · Jourdanton / Pleasanton
- Hardin CountyHardin CAD · Kountze / Silsbee
- Anderson CountyAnderson CAD · Palestine
- Rusk CountyRusk CAD · Henderson
- Polk CountyPolk CAD · Livingston
- Lamar CountyLamar CAD · Paris
- Hill CountyHill CAD · Hillsboro
- Fannin CountyFannin CAD · Bonham
- Cherokee CountyCherokee CAD · Rusk / Jacksonville
- Wood CountyWood CAD · Quitman / Mineola
- Cass CountyCass CAD · Linden / Atlanta
- Panola CountyPanola CAD · Carthage
- Jasper CountyJasper CAD · Jasper / Kirbyville
- Hopkins CountyHopkins CAD · Sulphur Springs
- Titus CountyTitus CAD · Mount Pleasant
- Upshur CountyUpshur CAD · Gilmer
- Matagorda CountyMatagorda CAD · Bay City
- Shelby CountyShelby CAD · Center
- Houston CountyHouston CAD · Crockett
- Trinity CountyTrinity CAD · Groveton / Trinity
- Tyler CountyTyler CAD · Woodville
- Grimes CountyGrimes CAD · Anderson
- Austin CountyAustin CAD · Bellville
- Washington CountyWashington CAD · Brenham
- Fayette CountyFayette CAD · La Grange
- Colorado CountyColorado CAD · Columbus
- Jim Wells CountyJim Wells CAD · Alice
- Erath CountyErath CAD · Stephenville
- Palo Pinto CountyPalo Pinto CAD · Palo Pinto / Mineral Wells
- Gillespie CountyGillespie CAD · Fredericksburg
- Brown CountyBrown CAD · Brownwood
- Lampasas CountyLampasas CAD · Lampasas
- Llano CountyLlano CAD · Llano
Sources
We cite other companies’ published figures. We do not adopt them as our results.
- 1.About 3.00 million Texas property-tax protests filed in 2024 (3,004,940), from Texas Comptroller data compiled by O’Connor. Source
- 2.Ownwell markets a 25% contingency on first-year savings in Texas (rate can vary by region on Ownwell’s pricing materials). Source
- 3.Ownwell homepage markets “$774 avg annual savings” among its advertised customer results (not a prediction for your home). Source
- 4.Ownwell’s Texas protest guide cites an approximate $606 median annual savings for a typical successful protest in major metro counties. Source
- 5.O’Connor & Associates states clients pay half of first-year property-tax savings (about 50%). Source
- 6.SquareDeal DIY comps reports are priced at $69, with a money-back policy if there is no reduction (SquareDeal’s terms, not ours). Source
- 7.SquareDeal’s Harris County analysis claims a 2025 DIY median assessed-value reduction of $20,640 vs $13,202 for agent-represented protests. That is SquareDeal’s claim from their dataset, not a KeepTheCut finding. Source
- 8.Texas Comptroller: how to protest, Form 50-132, and typical May 15 / 30-days-after-notice deadline. Source
- 9.Texas Tax Code §41.47: the ARB generally may not set a protested appraised value higher than the value in the appraisal records submitted by the chief appraiser, unless the owner requests and agrees. Exceptions exist for certain exemption and special-appraisal disputes. Source
- 10.Texas Occupations Code Chapter 1152 regulates property-tax consultants. KeepTheCut is not a registered property-tax consultant and does not represent owners. Source