Lower your tax bill: homestead and timberland exemptions

If the home you own in Shelby County is your primary residence, you qualify for a homestead exemption. Texas law requires school districts to exempt $140,000 of your home's value. Other taxing units may add their own exemptions on top. You apply once using form 50-114 and file it with the Shelby County Appraisal District. The general deadline is around May 1 each year, so check with the appraisal district for the current date.

Shelby County has a strong timber economy, so the timberland special appraisal matters here. Land used for timber production can be taxed on productivity value instead of market value. This often results in a much lower tax bill. To qualify, the land must have been used for timber production for at least five of the last seven years. If you stop using it for timber or sell it for development, you owe a rollback tax covering the prior three years. Apply using Comptroller form 50-167 and file with the Shelby County Appraisal District.