Property tax protest deadline fast approaching

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The deadline to protest your property taxes is just hours away.

One reason to file a protest is appraisal mistakes. That's what Michele Thomas is doing after her storage area was apraised as an apartment.

"It is not an apartment, Thomas said. "It is storage."

But Thomas says the Fort Bend County Appraisal District lists the space as an apartment. That designation adds a lot of value to her property.

Thomas says the space gets listed as an apartment every year and every year she files a protest.

"I feel like they are holding my property hostage," Thomas said. "They need to adjust the taxes permanently."

Fort Bend County Chief Appraiser Glen Whitehead says the appraiser who drove through the neighborhood saw what appeared to be an apartment and listed it that way on tax rolls without ever going inside the structure.

While a note has been added to Thomas' file, the only way to fix mistakes is to protest.

"She can always discuss it with the ARB, she can always come in and discuss with my staff, that's what we are here for," Whitehead said. "She may not like our call that it is a garage apartment. The ARB did not change the description of the property last year, they adjusted the value."

If you have not already mailed in your protest form, the online option is the only one that's left.