Honest comparison · 2026
Should you hire a property tax protest company or do it yourself?
You have three real choices: hire a contingency firm and give up a cut of your savings, do it completely yourself for free, or buy a flat-fee packet that does the hard evidence-gathering and leaves the ten-minute filing to you. Here is the honest cost-and-effort comparison.
| Service | Fee | You keep on a $3,000 saving | Comp data |
|---|---|---|---|
AppealMyTax Filing-ready packet (you file) · 14 Texas counties | $49 flat, one time | $2,951 | Real comparable parcels from your county's own appraisal roll, each one verifiable |
Ownwell Done for you · 8 states (CA, CO, FL, GA, IL, NY, TX, WA) | 25-35% of savings (varies by state), every year | $2,250/yr | Their analysts assemble the evidence and file on your behalf |
O'Connor & Associates Done for you · Texas + many states | 50% of first-year savings | $1,500 | Full-service firm; files and represents you (subject of a Texas AG lawsuit, allegations unproven) |
$3,000is an illustrative annual saving. Fees are each provider's publicly listed pricing as of June 2026; verify on their sites.
The honest verdict
Pure DIY is free but you have to find and format the comparable sales yourself, which is where most protests fall apart. A firm removes all effort but takes 25-50% forever. A flat-fee packet is the middle: the evidence is done and verifiable, you keep 100%, and filing takes about ten minutes online.
More on why we are flat-fee and how to vet any appeal service on our honest comparison page, or run your own numbers in the fee calculator.
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