Montgomery Appraisal District Budget Totals $13.27 MM / Year
The Montgomery Central Appraisal District (MCAD) has not grown since 2019 and expects its 55 appraisers to accurately survey and assess 361,300 parcels. As Houston’s premier suburban area, Montgomery County is far too large to be tabulated by 55 appraisers. If it cannot identify every property accurately, then MCAD must resort to estimates and historical models to best figure out taxes, always at the expense of the taxpayer. Join the legion of Texans that have enrolled in O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program(TM) today and be set to deal with whatever MCAD throws at you. There are no upfront costs to be concerned with, and you will never be handed a surprise fee. You will not even be charged a single cent unless your property tax protest saves you money. Enroll, relax, and save.
Total 2018 CAD Budget Including ARBSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Millions of $ | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Budget | 7.485 | 8.878 | 9.711 | 11.541 | 12.003 | 12.336 | 11.956 | 11.956 | 12.24 | 13.267 | 16.42 | |
| ARB Operations Budget | 0.1331 | 0.1900 | 0.1800 | 0.2625 | 0.3460 | 0.4030 | 0.3780 | 0.4960 | 0.4860 | 0.495 | 1.072 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since YOU can spend YOUR money better than the government.
Montgomery County CAD Operations and Budgets
Taxing entities like school districts, MUDs, and local governments all depend on the Montgomery Central Appraisal District (MCAD) to fund them. Instead of an income tax system like much of the United States, Texas relies on property taxes as the primary moneymaker for the state. This set up gives Texas appraisal districts some of the most power in a state known for decentralized government. With little oversight, usually the only recourse a taxpayer has to battle unfair property taxes from MCAD is to use a property tax protest.
O’Connor has been the nemesis of MCAD and other appraisal districts for 50 years. Founded in Houston on the belief that no Texan should be bullied or extorted for unfair taxes, O’Connor loves to take on any appraisal district they can. One of the largest firms specializing in property tax disputes, O’Connor also has the workforce and assets to battle any tax protest case.
MCAD Total CAD Budget Including ARB
Established as a wealthy or middle-class enclave over the past few decades, Montgomery County has not seen the unstable spikes in growth that trendy new money counties like Denton and Collin have. This slow, if steady, growth has allowed MCAD to keep up with the times somewhat, with consistent budget increases. The MCAD budget was $13.27 million in 2023, double that of a 2014. MCAD’s budget has remained around the $12 million mark since 2018. The funding for the appraisal review board (ARB) has remained around the same since 2021 and was set at $496,000 in 2023.
Total Property Taxes Levied Montgomery CountySource: 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 | ||
| Property Taxes Levied | 0.9466 | 1.1502 | 1.3872 | 1.2554 | 1.3716 | 1.4360 | 1.4319 | 1.8301 | 1.8958 | 1.7107 | 1.7107 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Appealing annually helps the appraisal district avoid over-taxing a property for both market value and unequal appraisal.
Montgomery County Total Amount of Property Taxes Levied
Between 2014 and 2023, Montgomery County property taxes increased 80.76%. This was not quite the doubling of property taxes that a good portion of Texas has seen. This is partially because the value of Montgomery County was already high, so it did not see a huge spike like other similar counties did. 2023 was the first time since 2016 that taxes were actually lower than a year before. 2023 saw $1.71 billion in taxes levied, opposed to $1.89 billion in 2022. This seems to be an outlier, as taxes generally increase every year.
FTE Positions In Budget Total - Montgomery CADSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| FTEs | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number of FTEs | 78 | 84 | 91 | 97 | 103 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | 100 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since Valuation is a subjective matter where reasonable people can differ.
FTE Positions in Total Budget
Despite their importance and power, most appraisal districts tend to be badly understaffed. MCAD, to its credit, has been consistent in the number of full-time equivalents (FTE) on staff. MCAD has had 100 FTEs working for it since 2019 and has never gone beyond or below that number. The FTE numbers may stay the same, but Montgomery County is still growing, putting more stress on the MCAD staff with every passing year. Without sufficient numbers, MCAD is forced to rely more on estimates and historical records that could be outdated in order to keep up with demand.
FTEs Assigned to the Appraisal - Montgomery CADSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| FTEs | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| FTEs Appraisal Total | 31 | 35 | 41 | 51 | 54 | 56 | 55 | 58 | 58 | 55 | 42 | |
| Residential | 15 | 21 | 27 | 35 | 39 | 43 | 32 | 37 | 37 | 34 | 28 | |
| Commercial | 4 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 7 | 5 | |
| All Other | 12 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 7 | 5 | 15 | 13 | 13 | 14 | 9 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since It is a great way to slow the growth of government spending (of your money).
MCAD FTEs Assigned to the Property Appraisal
While MCAD has maintained 100 FTEs since 2019, 55 of them are always appraisers. While the remaining 45 take care of all other duties, the 55 appraisers are expected to handle 361,300 parcels. Those numbers equal out to 6,569.09 parcels per FTE appraiser. While this number has historically been adequate, it is clear that is becoming no longer true. In 2023, HCAD failed to appraise all parcels, with the implication that properties they did assess would have been rushed. 34 appraisers worked on residential properties, seven commercial, and the remaining 14 took care of miscellaneous properties.