Galveston Central Appraisal District - Total Tax Value of Parcels
Weighing in at $70.61 billion in value, the 200,300 parcels of Galveston County might not be the biggest in Texas, but they are some of the most precious. Thanks to growing industrial capacity, shipping, and of course, tourism, Galveston is quickly becoming one of the top counties in the Lone Star State. The Galveston County Central Appraisal District (GCAD) has been trying to capitalize on this by raising rates each year, but taxpayers are fighting back with some of the highest property tax protest rates in the nation. Join O’Connor’s Property Tax Protection Program™ today and best set to challenge your property for all it is worth. No cost to enroll, and you will have your property protested annually. Enroll, relax, and save.
Total Number of Parcels in DistrictSource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Millions | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| Total Number | 0.1809 | 0.1885 | 0.1892 | 0.1911 | 0.1929 | 0.1947 | 0.1968 | 0.1970 | 0.1978 | 0.2003 | 0.2057 | |
| Parcels Appraised | 0.1809 | 0.1572 | 0.1586 | 0.1911 | 0.1450 | 0.1947 | 0.1739 | 0.1531 | 0.1978 | 0.2003 | 0.2057 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since About half of Texas properties are assessed at 100% of market value or higher based on data from the Texas Comptroller.
GCAD Tax Parcels
Because many of the county’s most prestigious properties are situated on islands, the potential for expansion in Galveston County is limited. This has led to every parcel of land to be in high demand, pushing taxable value up higher every year. Add pressure from tourists, people buying second homes, and business ventures like AIRBNB, and you find locals fighting for their lives to stay in their homes. Things get even worse when taxpayers must deal with overaggressive valuations from the Galveston County Central Appraisal District (GCAD) .
The best way to counter the greed of GCAD is to use property tax appeals in conjunction with exemptions. Due to the high-dollar nature of the county, most Galveston appeals now go to formal hearings, a setting much more difficult than plain informal protests. This makes Galveston County a textbook place to get help from an expert. O’Connor is here to help. Based in Houston, O’Connor has a lot of local knowledge and experience, while also having the resources of one of the nation’s largest property tax firms.
GCAD Total Number of Parcels in District
Parcels act as the basic unit of measurement for properties in Texas, and every county is made up of thousands of them. Galveston lags behind other counters of equal population size due to the various islands, but the total parcels of 200,300 is still respectable. Despite their small size, GCAD was able to appraise every single one of these parcels, albeit by stretching their small staff of 19 appraisers to the breaking point. The fact that GCAD is so overworked opens the doors to appeals and is one of the main reasons that Galveston is one of the most protested counties in Texas.
Market Value All Property in Galveston CountySource: Texas Comptroller, compiled by O’Connor, and not affiliated with any appraisal district.
| Billions of $ | ||||||||||||
| 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | ||
| $ Total market value | 28.766 | 29.911 | 31.776 | 37.945 | 37.264 | 41.397 | 46.702 | 54.660 | 64.418 | 70.602 | 76.675 | |
| Single Family | 16.692 | 19.542 | 21.264 | 23.907 | 23.051 | 26.293 | 29.282 | 32.313 | 38.909 | 46.090 | 48.658 | |
| Multi-family | 0.714 | 0.778 | 0.889 | 0.962 | 0.930 | 1.052 | 1.452 | 1.880 | 2.231 | 2.526 | 2.883 | |
| Commercial | 4.728 | 3.303 | 3.535 | 3.706 | 3.575 | 3.807 | 4.502 | 5.476 | 6.197 | 6.923 | 7.880 | |
| All Other | 6.631 | 6.288 | 6.088 | 9.370 | 9.708 | 10.245 | 11.466 | 14.992 | 17.081 | 15.063 | 17.254 | |
Texas property owners should protest annually since To support neighbors’ appeals for unequal appraisal.
GCAD - Total Market Value for All Property
Due to limitations of geography, Galveston might not be able to compete with other counties on a map, but when it comes to value, few are as loaded. A magnet for vacation homes, tourists, and tons of industrial interests, Galveston County sees a limited number of parcels trying to serve many parties. In total, all land in the county was assessed at $70.61 billion in 2023, the most ever. This number has been growing steadily every year, so it is at least not a random spike. However, that means that the growth is sustained, and unlikely to abate on its own.
Single family homes were the primary source of value. Totaling $40.09 billion, residential real estate was responsible for over half of the whole sum. The steady increase in home value is why the total has gone up every year. Businesses were not slouches either. Industrial and oil and gas properties hit $16.06 billion in taxable value, just down from a record high. Commercial properties nabbed a final tally of $6.92 billion, while apartments netted a sum of $2.53 billion.