Nueces Property Tax Appeals Save $28+ Million Per Year

Based around Corpus Christi, Nueces County is a tourist hotspot and an economic boom area on the Gulf Coast. Like most up-and-coming counties in Texas, Nueces has seen soaring property values and taxes. Also, like most Texas counties, the people of Nueces are fighting back with more property tax appeals than have ever been seen. Over $28 million in excessive taxes were wiped out by administrative appeals in 2024, a record for the county. Get assistance from one of the nation’s largest tax firms when you join O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program™ today. There are no upfront costs or fees, and you will only pay if your taxes are lowered. Enroll, relax, and save.

Total Value Reduction, Informal HearingsSource: 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 Value Reduction	490.06	492.55	929.98	709.78	1,001.90	938.53	490.98	412.52	334.06	659.73	684.68
Single Family Residential Reduction	141.52	151.61	308.02	159.80	278.99	231.61	147.83	177.17	206.51	411.38	240.17
Commercial / Other	348.54	340.94	621.96	549.97	722.91	706.92	343.15	235.35	127.54	248.35	444.52

Texas property owners should protest annually since The value cannot be raised during the protest, based on 2019 legislation.

Nueces County Property Tax Savings from Administrative Appeals

The Nueces County Appraisal District (NCAD), like all appraisal districts in Texas, has a roster of appraisers smaller than what is required. This leads to inaccurate group appraisals that do not count for condition, damage, or true market values. This means that homeowners and businesses are often paying taxes based on values that are years out of date. The only way to rectify this situation is for taxpayers to launch property tax appeals, which can be informal and formal.

Nueces County residents are saving more than ever thanks to diligent protests and a populace that is becoming more aware of its rights every year. O’Connor is here to help taxpayers get the reductions they deserve. For over 50 years, O’Connor has been the go-to firm in Texas for tax reductions and brings experience and resources to the process that no other company can match. There are no costs to join, and protests can only make values fall, never rise.

Nueces CAD Informal Hearings

The initial step on the protest ladder, informal appeals, are the easiest way to achieve a reduction. These are common across Texas, but are losing some of their impact, with many taxpayers pushing to the formal level to get additional savings. Still, they were effective in 2024, bringing in a value reduction of $684.68 million. This was the best result since 2019 and showed a strong rebound after a half a decade of lows. This was thanks to a surge in commercial property reductions that reached $444.52 million. Single family homes had set a record in 2023 with a reduction of $411.38 million, but this dropped to $240.17 million in 2024.

Total Value Reduction, Formal ARB HearingsSource: 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
$ Total Value Reduction	0.102	0.130	0.105	0.144	0.183	0.228	0.274	0.384	0.404	0.354	0.692
Single Family Residential Reduction	0.024	0.048	0.041	0.041	0.040	0.032	0.024	0.034	0.061	0.040	0.179
Commercial / Other	0.078	0.081	0.064	0.103	0.143	0.196	0.250	0.350	0.342	0.314	0.513

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).

NCAD Formal ARB Hearings

While informal appeals have been on the lower end of things, formal hearings with the appraisal review board (ARB) have seen their best results in the history of the county. $692 million in value was reduced thanks to formal appeals, nearly double the 2023 amount of $354 million. This spike was driven by both homes and businesses. Residential real estate reached $179 million in reductions, while businesses managed $513 million, both records. Embracing ARB protests is common for high-dollar counties, showing that Nueces is transitioning to a more competitive type of protest.

Tax Savings, Informal HearingsSource: 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 Value Reduction	10.29	10.34	19.53	14.91	21.04	19.71	10.31	8.66	7.02	13.85	14.38
Single Family Residential Reduction	2.97	3.18	6.47	3.36	5.86	4.86	3.10	3.72	4.34	8.64	5.04
Commercial / Other	7.32	7.16	13.06	11.55	15.18	14.85	7.21	4.94	2.68	5.22	9.33

Texas property owners should protest annually since Not appealing is used against property owners in the subsequent years since “you agreed to the value” (by not protesting).

Estimated Total Property Tax Informal Savings

Informal appeals not only had their best value reduction in years but also managed to cut a significant amount of taxes. $14.38 million in taxes were wiped out thanks to these initial protests, the most since 2019. 2024 saw the most protests on record for the counting, so the savings are not surprising. Still, it demonstrates that these simple hearings can bring big results for taxpayers.

This renaissance in savings was thanks to a massive jump in cuts for businesses. Commercial real estate saved $9.33 million, an enormous jump over 2023’s $5.22 million. Single family homes went in the opposite direction, only saving $5.04 million after hitting $8.64 million in 2023. This was countered by a record increase in ARB savings for homeowners, showing that residents did not give up easily or simply take low settlements from NCAD.

Tax Savings, Formal ARB HearingsSource: 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 Value Reduction	2.14	2.72	2.21	3.03	3.85	4.80	5.75	8.06	8.48	7.43	14.53
Single Family Residential Reduction	0.50	1.02	0.86	0.85	0.85	0.67	0.50	0.71	1.29	0.83	3.75
Commercial / Other	1.64	1.71	1.35	2.17	3.00	4.12	5.25	7.35	7.19	6.60	10.78

Tax Savings, Formal ARB Hearings

Formal hearings are where taxpayers truly cut their taxes. $14.53 million in total was sliced from the books thanks to these second-level hearings. Businesses once again took the lead, securing $10.78 million. Homes managed to land their own record with $3.75 million. Both were massive increases over their totals from 2023, which were $6.6 million and $830,000, respectively. This was especially impressive for homes, as it was only the second time in the county’s history that residences saved over $1 million.

Total Tax Savings (Informal & Formal)Source: 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 Value Reduction	12.43	13.06	21.74	17.94	24.89	24.51	16.06	16.72	15.50	21.28	28.91
Single Family Residential Reduction	3.47	4.20	7.33	4.21	6.71	5.53	3.60	4.43	5.63	9.47	8.79
Commercial / Other	8.96	8.87	14.41	13.72	18.18	18.97	12.46	12.29	9.87	11.82	20.11

Total Tax Savings (Informal & Formal)

With informal appeals seeing their best results since 2019 and ARB hearings hitting a new record, it should come as no surprise that Nueces County taxpayers save the most money in history with administrative protests. $28.71 million in total was saved thanks to these two types of protest. $20.11 million was saved by businesses alone, which typically see the largest windfalls. Homes dropped a tiny bit, falling just under an all-time record with $8.79 million in savings. The story is certainly the new reliance on formal hearings, which could be a trend that will continue, as is the case for most major Texas counties.