How to Correct Errors on Your Texas Property's CAD Record (§25.25)

There are two ways Texas appraisal districts can overcharge you. The first is well known: they may overvalue your property — and Chapter 41 protests are the remedy. The second is much less known and arguably more common: the record describing your property may contain factual errors. A garage that no longer exists. Square footage that's 200 sqft too high. A second-story addition the prior owner removed. A year built that's off by five years. Each of these errors inflates your appraisal — and each is correctable, retroactively, under Texas Tax Code §25.25.

Two different remedies — protest vs. correction

Most Texans who push back on their property tax do so through the Chapter 41 protest process (our protest guide here). That mechanism is for disputing the valuation of property correctly described on the appraisal roll. It runs on a tight annual calendar (May 15 deadline), affects only the current year, and lets you argue your property is appraised too high relative to comparable properties or market value.

A §25.25 correction is fundamentally different. It addresses errors in what the CAD thinks your property is — the physical characteristics on the appraisal roll. Wrong square footage. Phantom structures. Incorrect year built. The wrong tax-entity classification. None of these are valuation arguments; they're factual corrections.

	§41.41 Protest	§25.25 Correction
What you're disputing	The dollar valuation	Factual record of property characteristics
Filing deadline	May 15 of the protest year	None — file any time
Time horizon	Current tax year only	Up to 5 prior tax years
Outcome if successful	Reduced appraised value this year	Record corrected + refunds for past overpayment
Process	Notice of protest + ARB hearing	Written correction request + chief appraiser review
Burden of proof	Demonstrate unequal appraisal or excess market value	Show the factual error exists

You can pursue both at the same time. They are independent legal tracks, neither prevents the other, and a successful correction often strengthens a concurrent protest by undermining the CAD's overall valuation methodology.

The most common CAD record errors

From audit data across multiple Texas counties, the most frequent material errors found on residential records:

Phantom structures (40% of errors)

The CAD lists structures on your property that no longer exist (demolished, removed, blown down in a storm) or that never existed at all (added based on outdated aerial imagery or a drive-by inspection that misidentified a neighbor's structure). Common phantom items: sheds, detached garages, pool decks, pergolas, gazebos, mother-in-law cottages, solar arrays.

Wrong square footage (25% of errors)

The CAD records often differ from actual home dimensions by 5%–20%. The most common pattern: the CAD measures the entire footprint including garages and porches, but bills you as if the entire footprint were heated living space. A 1,800-sqft home with a 400-sqft garage may appear as "2,200 sqft" on the record, inflating the appraisal by 22% compared to comparable correctly-recorded properties.

Wrong year built (15% of errors)

The recorded year built is meaningfully off — often listing the year a major renovation occurred rather than original construction, which causes the CAD's mass-appraisal model to value the home as if it were much newer. The opposite also happens, especially when a tear-down/rebuild wasn't properly logged.

Wrong tax-entity assignment (10% of errors)

Properties on boundaries between cities, school districts, or special districts are sometimes assigned to the wrong taxing entity. A home that should pay City A's rate is billed under City B's higher rate. This is especially common on properties near county lines, school district boundaries, or recently-annexed areas.

Outdated condition / quality grading (10% of errors)

The CAD assigns a quality grade to each structure (often a letter or "class code"). If the property has actually deteriorated since the last inspection but the grade hasn't been updated, you're paying tax on the assumed condition, not the actual one.

What §25.25 actually says

Texas Tax Code §25.25 contains several subsections. The two most useful for residential owners:

Both subsections are explicitly framed in the statute as the chief appraiser's authority — the CAD has standing to make corrections at any time, with or without an owner's request. In practice, owners almost always have to ask. Chief appraisers rarely scrub records proactively.

How to audit your own CAD record

1Pull your full property detail

Find your county's online appraisal portal (Johnson CAD: esearch.johnsoncad.com; Tarrant: tad.org; Dallas: esearch.dallascad.org; Denton: dentoncad.com; or find yours via the Texas Comptroller's CAD directory). Search by your property address. Pull up the detail page.

2Check each listed improvement against reality

The CAD record shows every "improvement" — every structure on your property — with its type, square footage, year built, and a class code. Walk your property with the printout. For each line item, confirm:

• The structure still exists on the property
• The square footage is approximately correct (±5% is usually acceptable; more than that may warrant correction)
• The year built is correct, or close to correct
• The class code / quality grade matches the structure's actual condition

3Check the property description

Some records contain legal-description errors, ownership-share errors, or wrong addresses. Less common but worth verifying.

4Check tax-entity assignments

On your detail page, find the list of taxing entities billing you. Verify each is correct for your physical location. If you live in unincorporated county area, you should not have a city tax. If you live in School District A, you should not be assessed for School District B.

5Document any discrepancies

Date-stamped photographs are the strongest evidence. Show the absence of a phantom structure (photograph the empty area where the CAD claims one exists). Show the actual square footage if you've measured it. Save your records before filing.

Evidence that wins a §25.25 correction

Approximate strength ranking, strongest first:

1. Current dated photographs showing the absence of a claimed structure or the actual dimensions of a building
2. Historical Google Street View imagery (use the timeline scrubber in Google Earth) showing the absence in prior years — directly relevant for back-claim periods
3. Building permits and inspection records from the city/county showing what was actually built or removed
4. Independent property surveys or inspections documenting actual sqft / characteristics
5. Demolition permits or contractor invoices for removed structures
6. Aerial imagery from public sources (e.g., USGS, NAIP) showing the property over time
7. Sworn owner attestations — useful as supplementary evidence, weak as primary evidence

How to file a §25.25(c) correction request

Unlike a §41.41 protest, there is no specific Comptroller form for §25.25 corrections. You file a written request directly with the chief appraiser of your county's CAD. The request should include:

1. Your name, the property address, and the property ID
2. A clear statement that you are requesting correction under Texas Tax Code §25.25(c)
3. A description of each specific error (what's wrong, what it should be)
4. The tax years for which you are seeking retroactive correction (up to 5 prior years for §25.25(c))
5. The evidence attached or available for inspection
6. Your signature and date

Submit to your CAD by mail (with delivery confirmation) or via the CAD's online portal if they accept correction requests there. Some CADs (notably Johnson, Tarrant, Dallas) accept email submissions to a designated address. Always retain a copy of what you submitted and the date of submission.

How retroactive refunds work

§25.25(c) allows the chief appraiser to correct the appraisal record retroactively. When the correction reduces the appraised value for past years, you become eligible for refunds of property taxes paid in error.

The process flows through multiple taxing entities — the county, school district, city, and any special districts that taxed the property based on the inflated record. Each entity processes the refund separately. The CAD typically coordinates by notifying the relevant entities; you don't usually need to file separate refund applications.

Expect 3–6 months from accepted correction to actual refund check. Refunds are not automatic — they require the taxing entities to process the recalculation. Some CADs provide a tracking number; most don't. Be prepared to follow up.

The total refund depends on:

• How many prior years the correction applies to (up to 5)
• How much the corrected appraisal differs from the recorded appraisal
• The combined tax rate for your taxing entities in each year

For a typical residential property with a phantom 200-sqft outbuilding listed for the past five years, the refund typically ranges from $400 to $1,500 depending on county tax rates and the per-sqft value the CAD assigned. For larger corrections (e.g., 400+ sqft phantom structures, or significant year-built changes), refunds can run $2,000 to $5,000+.

What happens after you file

Typical timeline:

1. Acknowledgment. CAD acknowledges receipt within 7–14 days, typically by email or mail.
2. Investigation. A CAD field appraiser may inspect the property to verify your claim. This often happens within 30–60 days. Be available; access the property if requested.
3. Decision. The chief appraiser issues a written determination — approved, partially approved (some errors corrected, others denied), or denied.
4. Record update. If approved, the appraisal record is updated. Subsequent year's appraisal notices will reflect the correction.
5. Refunds for prior years. If retroactive correction is granted, refunds from the various taxing entities trickle in over the following months.

If your correction is denied or only partially granted and you disagree, you can typically appeal — first informally with the chief appraiser, then to the Appraisal Review Board, then potentially to district court. Appeal rights vary by county; consult your CAD or a property tax attorney.

Combining §25.25 with §41.41 protest

The strongest strategy for an owner who finds material errors on their record is to pursue both tracks in parallel:

1. File the §41.41 protest by May 15 for the current tax year. Use the unequal-appraisal grounds and any market-value evidence available.
2. File the §25.25(c) correction request separately — any time, but ideally before your ARB hearing. The correction request strengthens your protest because the CAD's basis for valuation depends on the record they claim is accurate.
3. Note the correction request in your protest evidence packet. Showing the ARB that the CAD's record contains documented errors undermines the credibility of their valuation.
4. If both succeed, you get the protest reduction for the current year AND the retroactive correction refunds for prior years. Best case.

If you can only do one, the protest has the harder deadline (May 15) but the §25.25 correction is the larger lifetime-value win because of the back-claim provision.

FAQ

Is there a fee to file a §25.25(c) correction?

No. Filing is free. Most CADs do not charge for processing corrections, though a few may charge for property surveys or other discovery work if commissioned.

Can I file a correction request without hiring anyone?

Yes. The filing is a simple written request — no attorney, no consultant required. Many homeowners file successfully on their own.

What if the CAD denies my correction?

You can appeal first informally with the chief appraiser, then to the ARB if needed. Some counties allow district court appeal for denied corrections, though that's rare for residential.

Can I file a correction for a property I sold?

Generally no — current owner has standing. If you sold mid-year and want to claim refunds for taxes you paid before the sale, the new owner may need to coordinate.

Does the 5-year lookback apply to every kind of error?

§25.25(c) explicitly covers material errors including "inclusion of property that should not have been included" — phantom structures and similar. Some other categories of error have shorter lookback windows. Check the specific subsection for your situation, or have a property tax consultant review.

Will filing a correction affect my homestead exemption?

No. Corrections to the property record are independent of exemption status. Your homestead, over-65, disabled veteran, and any other exemptions remain in place.

What about errors in MY favor (under-recorded)?

Texas law technically requires you to disclose changes that increase your property's value (e.g., additions, new structures). In practice, most owners do not volunteer corrections that would increase their tax burden, and the CAD updates records when they next reassess. Be aware that materially under-reported improvements that are later discovered can result in retroactive assessment with penalties.