13 Investigates how property tax disparities impact Houston homeowners
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Unless Lynder Whittington stumbles across a pile of cash, she said she'll be working her whole life to hold on to her childhood home in southwest Houston.
Whittington said before her mom died in 2012, her mom asked her if she could try and keep the home in the family.
Whittington said after her dad died in 2018, she fell behind on the taxes for the property and keeping the house became more of a burden.
"I go to work seven days a week, come home, I take a break, take care of my dog. I really don't have a life outside of this and my job," Whittington said.
Across the U.S., some Americans are being priced out of their own homes as property values rise in their changing neighborhoods and property taxes become unaffordable.
13 Investigates why some homeowners are paying more in property taxes
ABC13, in partnership with ABC News and our owned television stations, looked into this issue and found Whittington is not alone in her struggle to keep up with her property taxes.
Whittington said she works seven days a week and took on a second job after she got behind on the home's property taxes.
She said she got on a payment plan with the county to pay the home's back taxes, which is about $500 a month on top of her other household bills.
She said the last payment of the roughly $14,000 she owes will be on March 31, 2027, but by then, two more years of taxes will be added to her payment plan.
"It just never stops," Whittington said. "I've even thought about trying to cash out my retirement from my previous job, but I need to have something for myself to take care of myself later on."
Generous ABC13 viewer pays off tax bill for woman who owed $35,000
An ABC News and owned stations data analysis found homeowners in some neighborhoods in Houston and across the U.S. are paying more in taxes per $100,000 of home value.
For example, countywide, Harris County residents are paying about $1,550 per $100,000 of value.
In Whittington's neighborhood, homeowners are paying $1,615 per $100,000 home value, which is slightly above that average.
The Harris County Tax Assessor-Collector's Office told 13 Investigates addressing those disparities is something the new administration hopes to tackle, specifically by educating communities about what tax exemptions they may qualify for.
Christopher Berry, who researches property tax fairness at the University of Chicago, said Houston has been one of the more accurate areas when it comes to appraisals.
"I know they have a different method of valuing property there based on the cost approach, the cost of reconstructing a building as opposed to the sales approach, which is used elsewhere," Berry said.
One option residents have to decrease their home valuation, thus decreasing their property tax burden, is to protest it with the appraisal district.
Whittington said she hasn't done that before, and it's not something she knows how to do.
And every time there is another property tax increase, like Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo told ABC13 that she's hoping to put on the ballot in November, Whittington said it's another blow.
"They're not thinking about anything, not anything at all, because I'm sure it's a lot more people in the same situation that I'm in, and it's not fair, and I'm not trying to get out of not paying the taxes, trust and believe me," Whittington said.
Whittington said another problem that has made her situation more difficult is that her parents didn't have a will, so the house is still owned by her father's estate.
When he died, any exemptions that would lower those property taxes went away.
After reaching out about her situation, the Harris Central Appraisal District said they would get in touch with Whittington to assist her in applying for the heirship exemption that was enacted in 2019 and will limit how much your property value can be raised.
"We are trying to help property owners understand the exemptions available and the protest process and make it as easy as possible to get the information and use the various methods available to lower their taxes," Harris Central Appraisal District said in a statement.
The district said they also host community workshops in the county, and virtually, to help walk residents through the tax exemption process. More information about the workshops can be found online.
Contact 13 Investigates
Have a tip? A problem to solve? Send a tip below. If you don't have a photo or document to include, just hit 'skip upload' and send the details. (On mobile? You can open our form by tapping here.)
