Ownwell
Product Identify: Ownwell
Product Description: Ownwell is a service that may protest your property tax evaluation and try and get it lowered. They may even search for different reductions and packages which will decrease your tax legal responsibility. They work on a “savings-or-free” mannequin, which implies you solely pay them in the event that they cut back your taxes.
About Ownwell
Ownwell was based in 2020 with the aim of bringing subtle actual property instruments to peculiar householders. They declare to avoid wasting, on common, $1,102 and count on to do over 600,000 protests in 2025.
Professionals
Straightforward to make use of
Free if not profitable
Common financial savings of $1,102
Steady monitoring for exemptions
Cons
Solely accessible in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Washington
How a lot are your property taxes?
In our county in Maryland, we pay a complete of $1.442 per $100 of assessed worth.
1.442% doesn’t sound like loads, however the median residence value in my county is round $580,000.
That’s $8,400 a yr.
After I acquired my property tax evaluation final yr, it included a major improve in assessed worth. We renovated a piece of the home, so a part of that was justified, but it surely appeared just like the bounce was too excessive.
I made a decision to contest my property taxes myself and gained. The method, which you’ll be able to examine within the linked article, took a number of hours unfold throughout a number of weeks. And I used to be “fortunate” in that I used to be given consequence on the first stage (simply filling out a kind), so I accepted it.
In the event that they rejected my declare and required me to plead my case to a dwell panel, I’m undecided I’d be as comfy doing that.
Luckily, there are companies on the market that may do it for you.
A kind of is known as Ownwell.
At A Look
- Ownwell will enchantment your property taxes in your behalf
- Displays for tax exemptions primarily based in your particular person property
- No upfront charges – pay solely upon profitable discount of property taxes
- Pay 25% or 35% of financial savings, relying in your state
- Accessible in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Washington. (however increasing on a regular basis so examine your state)
- Common financial savings is $1,102
Who Ought to Use Ownwell
Householders and actual property buyers who wish to guarantee they aren’t overpaying their property taxes ought to contemplate Ownwell. They are going to enchantment your property taxes for no upfront prices and also you pay a share of your financial savings in case your enchantment is profitable. So there is no such thing as a threat and no leg be just right for you.
Desk of Contents
- At A Look
- Who Ought to Use Ownwell
- Who Is Ownwell?
- In Which States Does Ownwell Function?
- When Can I Attraction My Property Taxes?
- How Does Ownwell Work?
- Discovering Exemptions and Claiming Refunds
- Automated Annual Re-enrollment
- Is Ownwell Legit?
- Ownwell Charges
- What are Ownwell Alternate options?
- Is Ownwell Value It?
- FAQs
- Abstract
Who Is Ownwell?
Ownwell is a service that may contest your property tax assessments along with your taxing authority so you may pay much less in property taxes. They may even discover exemptions and different tax financial savings chances are you’ll not find out about or have ignored.
Ownwell was based by Colton Tempo and Joseph Noor in 2020. Tempo’s background in investing and asset administration gave him publicity to the varied instruments utilized by actual property buyers, and he wished to convey them to common householders and single-family buyers. The result’s Ownwell, a service that contests property taxes and reduces different residence bills.
Ownwell doesn’t function in each state (but).
In Which States Does Ownwell Function?
Ownwell isn’t in each state, and in a number of the states the place it does operated, it isn’t in each county.
As of Might 2025, they’re in California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, New York, Texas, and Washington. You must double-check that your county is included (it’s not possible to listing each county right here although, California has 58 counties and Texas has 254!).
They’re including counties continually, so the easiest way to know is to go to Ownwell and enter your tackle. They do supply retroactive homestead exemptions in practically each state.
When Can I Attraction My Property Taxes?
The schedule for when you may enchantment will rely in your state and, in some instances, the county inside that state. They’re all on totally different schedules.
For instance, this course of solely occurs as soon as each three years in Maryland. In New York, and plenty of different states, it occurs yearly!
I requested Ownwell to supply a schedule (and so they did) but it surely’s somewhat difficult and onerous to share on a single display screen… additionally, many dates are county particular and so they cowl so many counties that it’s unwieldy to listing all of it right here.
The top result’s that the only factor to do is join Ownwell after which wait on your evaluation to reach. Then, enter within the particulars and determine whether or not you need to use them to contest your appraisal.
As there’s no value to enroll, you need to use their know-how that can assist you handle the schedule and determine later if you wish to use them.
How Does Ownwell Work?
First, go to Ownwell and enter your tackle.
Since they don’t function in Maryland, I selected a random property in Humble, TX (a suburb of Houston). They service Harris County.
It will not be value it for a house owner to be taught the ins and outs of protesting property tax assessments for $473, particularly if there’s no assure of a discount. But when I owned this residence and didn’t wish to do it, I’d be completely completely happy hiring somebody on a contingency foundation (I pay provided that they win) – which is how Ownwell works (extra on charges later).
When you proceed, you’ll be prompted to enter your data. (I’m utilizing a demo account, if you happen to do that your self, enter your data)
The following screens verify data, like whether or not you bought this property within the final 18 months and the property proprietor’s title.
The final web page, after you’ve confirmed all the main points, authorizes Ownwell to behave as your Property Tax Agent. This lets them contact the taxing authority in your behalf and contest your property taxes.
From right here, you may log in and examine the progress of your protest.
I consider Texas publishes them in April, after which you have got 30 days to protest.
It will range from state to state and in Texas, you may(and may) do that each single yr.
Discovering Exemptions and Claiming Refunds
Along with contesting your evaluation this yr, they provide a service to find out whether or not you’re eligible for any tax exemptions. In the event that they discover any, they will even make claims on earlier years to get a tax refund.
There are lots of totally different tax exemptions on the market and these are difficult to maintain monitor of. For instance, right here in Maryland, we now have an Agricultural Use Evaluation that considerably lowers property taxes on areas the place you have got agreed to maintain to agricultural use. I solely knew about it as a result of the earlier proprietor had it.
We don’t develop something (business) on the land, it’s all wooded, however that counts. The one requirement is that we get an arborist to certify an agricultural use plan each few years, and we get a big low cost on the assessed worth of the undeveloped land. It has saved us hundreds of {dollars} a yr.
Ownwell seems for exemptions like that. And whilst you might file for these exemptions your self (normally without spending a dime), they’ll achieve this retroactively for as much as two years for a similar payment construction. When you missed out on exemptions, they’ll assist you to recoup financial savings you need to’ve had all alongside.
Then, they’ll monitor your taxes annually to make sure the whole lot is appropriate. If, for no matter purpose, an exemption is left off, they’ll make certain to repair it.
Automated Annual Re-enrollment
You need to choose out of Ownwell if you happen to don’t want to use them yearly. You robotically re-enroll until you particularly choose out, which should be achieved two months earlier than your county’s submitting deadline.
You might be nonetheless solely charged in the event that they efficiently cut back your evaluation although, so all of the phrases are nonetheless the identical.
Is Ownwell Legit?
Ownwell is a official firm, and so they supply a service that’s frequent in locations with excessive property taxes and annual value determinations. In Texas, there are a lot of firms and attorneys that supply this service.
In doing a little analysis, I discovered this insightful remark from Reddit (it’s two years previous however nonetheless correct):
These firms are quite common the place I dwell (in Texas, which has very excessive property taxes).
They bundle up lots of them collectively and settle with the county appraisal district. Round right here they cost 40%-50%. They aren’t a rip-off to the person however they actually are at a unique degree – one of many largest ones in Houston is run by a lawyer that was once the county tax appraiser and is now a state senator. His firm is aware of how the sport is performed and earnings from it.
Personally I typically do my very own, but it surely takes just a few hours to place collectively protest bundle and go in entrance of the appraisal board. I’ve typically gained, primarily as a result of I do know what I’m doing and put in much more effort on my particular person property than the appraiser (who’s doing lots of of them) does. I form of loved the final one as a result of I did so significantly better than the appraiser did earlier than the board. He didn’t have his proof collectively, and it was the top of the day and so they have been in a rush to finish the docket and dominated in my favor.
When you don’t have time/don’t wish to hassle/undecided how you can protest it’s value a shot.
As you’ll be taught beneath, Ownwell prices 25% in Texas (making it fairly a bit cheaper) and relying on how a lot they will save, they will additionally prevent a number of hours of labor (and an look in entrance of the appraisal board).
Ownwell Charges
Ownwell operates on successful payment mannequin – you solely pay them in the event that they win an enchantment and decrease your property taxes. They solely cost you in case your closing property tax invoice is decreased and so they have a signed doc out of your taxing authority to show it.
In the event that they aren’t in a position to decrease it, you pay nothing.
In California, New York, and Florida, the success payment is 35%. It’s simply 25% in every single place else.
For the above instance, if Ownwell will get a $473 discount in property taxes, I might pay them $118.25. I hold $354.75.
How does this payment examine to different firms? You must analysis this on your personal state, as it can range, however I discovered a tax agency in Texas that listed their pricing. On a single property, they charged 40% with a $149 minimal. For two-5 properties, it was 35% with no minimal. Solely 6+, it was 30%.
You may see Ownwell vs. others on their Texas competitor web page.
What are Ownwell Alternate options?
The largest different is to name a neighborhood regulation agency that focuses on this identical kind of labor. There are many regulation companies that supply this. Presently, I’m not conscious of an organization that operates in a number of states.
The tradeoff with utilizing a neighborhood regulation agency has to do with value. They’re sometimes not going to have the ability to work with particular person householders and nonetheless be capable to cost a small success payment. They usually have minimal charges and can solely take your case in the event that they see it as being “value their time.” In a fast search myself, I discovered that companies are very up entrance about this as a result of contesting value determinations is time intensive and so they don’t wish to waste their time or yours.
As I discussed within the above part about charges, I discovered a tax agency that charged 40% payment with a $149 minimal. In Texas, Ownwell prices simply 25% with no minimal.
Residence Tax Defend is an instance of an organization that operates in Texas. They cost a $30 annual payment after which a 30% success payment on tax financial savings. You are able to do the whole lot on-line and so they additionally use know-how to streamline the method. Assuming they’re much like Ownwell, you’re paying $30 a yr plus an additional 500 foundation factors in your financial savings.
Alternatively, you may attain out to your actual property agent to see in the event that they may also help. It will rely on how pleasant and accessible your agent is to one of these assist. Some could do it without spending a dime, seeing it as part of their choices, whereas others gained’t.
Is Ownwell Value It?
It will depend on how a lot you worth your time and the way a lot of a return you count on to get. If I owned a house during which a protest was going to web me $500 and it’s one thing I’ve to do yearly, I’d extra extra more likely to pay Ownwell a 25-35% success payment to deal with all of it for me. With 4 children and a slew of different obligations, the ROI on my time simply isn’t there.
Additionally, the property tax evaluation course of varies from state to state. In Maryland, we solely must do it as soon as each three years and I had a private curiosity in studying the method (additionally, I used to be completely happy after the primary spherical discount – the work will get significantly extra concerned after the primary spherical). I notice I’m a weirdo like that, most individuals don’t care and simply wish to get monetary savings.
The one factor I do know is that you will need to contest your property tax evaluation. It’s possible you’ll not win a discount, however it’s a must to do it. These will increase will compound so it’s a must to hold the will increase as little as doable.
When you aren’t going to do it your self, getting another person to do it’s higher than taking the rise.
FAQs
Sure, Ownwell is a official firm that may enchantment your property taxes for no upfront payment.
You completely can enchantment your property taxes by yourself. Assuming you have got the time an inclination to analysis and file the suitable paperwork. It took me just a few hours of analysis, and I used to be profitable within the first enchantment.
Abstract
Ownwell is an organization that may enchantment your property tax invoice in your behalf with no upfront charges. You’ll pay both 25% or 35% (relying in your state) of the financial savings they will get you. If they aren’t profitable at decreasing your property tax invoice, then their companies are free.
