Brazoria Lawsuit Property Tax Savings over $57.96 Million in 2024

When informal and formal protests will not cut it, then the only option for business owners is to file a lawsuit against the Brazoria County Appraisal District (Brazoria CAD). Going beyond binding arbitration, these are just like any other civil suit, seeing both plaintiff and defendant using their evidence, witnesses, and skill against one another in front of a judge. 421 of these appeals were filed in 2024, for a combined taxable value of $4.29 billion. You need legal representation to carry out a judicial appeal and can get some of the best provided for you when you join O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program™. O’Connor will build your legal team from scratch, all while paying every fee and bill. You will only be charged if your lawsuit fails to lower your taxes. Enroll, relax, and save.

Judicial Appeals by Property Type Brazoria CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.

	Judicial Appeals
	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023	2024
Total Number of lawsuits	29	27	19	19	19	20	153	163	173	446	421
Single Family Residential	4	2	5	3	1	0	0	2	3	11	13
Multi Family Residential	6	7	0	0	0	7	52	51	50	93	0
Commercial real and personal property	15	13	12	15	17	11	96	106	115	331	398
All Other	4	5	2	1	1	2	5	4	5	11	10

Texas property owners should protest annually since You can’t evaluate the strength of your appeal until you obtain the hearing evidence file. You have to protest to obtain the hearing evidence file (available free upon request via U.S. mail).

Brazoria County Judicial Appeals of ARB Hearing

Judicial appeals are reserved for the truly elite properties of Texas. Traditionally, it was only commercial and industrial properties that went through this process, but single family homes are slowly joining the ranks as well, instead of using binding arbitration. These lawsuits see properties worth millions or billions of dollars being adjudicated in court, with either the taxpayer or the Brazoria County Appraisal District (Brazoria CAD) being victorious. The dirty little secret, of course, is that these cases rarely make it to court, with the CAD in question capitulating before the fight can truly begin.

The biggest obstacle to a judicial appeal is the price of entry. You need an elite squad of lawyers, experts, and researchers that can put together a case that makes Brazoria CAD surrender. Get all of that and more when you join O’Connor. As one of the largest property tax firms in the nation, O’Connor has the knowledge needed to defeat the county on the way to victory inside or outside the courtroom. O’Connor will build your legal team, with no charge passed onto you unless your taxes are lowered. A true no-risk situation.

Brazoria CAD Judicial Appeals Filed by Property Type

There were 421 judicial appeals filed in Brazoria County in 2024, the second-most yet seen in the county. As is typical, commercial property led the way with 398 cases filed. Apartments and other multi family housing properties contributed no cases to the whole. Businesses set records in 2024, representing a sizeable increase in value. There are 13 homes that filed an appeal as well, which is the most in the history of Brazoria County.

Value Involved in Judicial Appeals - Brazoria 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
Value of All Judicial Appeals	0.108	0.103	0.086	0.126	0.165	0.205	1.261	1.428	1.595	3.992	4.294
Single Family Res	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.002	0.005	0.012	0.02
Multi Family Res	0.052	0.026	0.034	0.017	0.066	0.125	0.957	0.848	0.738	1.644	1.799
Commercial	0.053	0.059	0.023	0.093	0.073	0.076	0.3	0.505	0.709	2.169	2.42
All Other	0.004	0.019	0.029	0.015	0.026	0.004	0.004	0.073	0.142	0.167	0.056

Texas property owners should protest annually since An annual appeal minimizes property taxes, sometimes well below market value.

Brazoria CAD Value Involved in Judicial Appeals

2024 saw the most value ever challenged in the county with lawsuits, $4.29 billion in total. This was a small increase over 2023’s $3.99 billion, but more than double the value of 2022. Businesses were the top contributor, with $2.42 billion, though apartments managed to add $1.80 billion. Though rare at this stage, even regular homes were able to challenge over $40 million in taxable value.

It is not uncommon for these lawsuits to fluctuate between years. They are unusual, in that they rely on court dates and other outside factors. It can take years for a case to find a judge, meaning it could be in limbo for some time. Also, Brazoria County has seen a great deal of victories for commercial, industrial, and multi family homes at the administrative level. If owners are successful at the informal or formal levels, they have less reason to deploy a full post-administrative appeal, especially considering the cost. Lawsuits were almost 10 times higher in value than they were a decade previous, demonstrating how things have changed.

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