Mortgage Lender Serving Dallas, TX

The City of Dallas's budget office says the city sits in four counties, Dallas, Collin, Denton and Rockwall, with the vast majority of appraised parcels in Dallas County. It names an appraisal district for each one. Which district values a home depends on the county the parcel is in, so a Dallas mailing address alone does not tell you whose records apply or where a property tax bill comes from.

The same page says the city and Dallas ISD consolidated their tax collection operations with the Dallas County Tax Office. It also says an exemption application goes to your own appraisal district, and that an exemption stays in place until ownership or use of the property changes. In practice, expect to apply for your own homestead exemption after you move in. The state sends applications to the appraisal district of the county where the property sits, generally before May 1.

Texas also limits how quickly a qualifying homestead's appraised value can rise, but the limit is measured from the owner's first qualifying year. A seller's bill can therefore look lower than yours will. Have us build your estimate from the value the appraisal district is likely to set, using the right county's records.

The City of Dallas's education page links to ten school districts: Carrollton-Farmers Branch, Dallas, Duncanville, Garland, Grand Prairie, Highland Park, Lancaster, Mesquite, Plano and Richardson. The page does not say which part of the city each one serves, and district boundaries do not follow the city limit. Ask the district itself about any address you are considering.

For the mortgage, the district matters in one way: every school district levies its own tax, so the district is one input to the tax line in your monthly payment.

Dallas has two kinds of neighborhood protection, and they are not the same thing. Landmark districts are historic overlays run through the Landmark Commission. The city says a Certificate of Appropriateness is needed for work on structures in a landmark district, including non-contributing structures, work at the rear, and major landscaping changes. A district still in the designation process is treated as already designated, so the requirement can apply before the paperwork is final.

A conservation district is a separate zoning change. The city describes it as preserving an area's character through architectural guidelines and development standards, with an ordinance unique to each neighborhood, and says residents must submit a review form for exterior changes, demolition and new construction. For rehabilitation of a landmark or a contributing property, the city also runs a historic tax exemption program, and it says the exemption must be applied for every year through the Dallas Central Appraisal District.

If you are buying in or near either kind of district and plan exterior work, ask the city which rules apply before you settle a renovation budget or timeline, and tell us about the plan early so it can be considered in your loan planning.

The city says you can estimate whether a property is in the 1% annual chance floodplain by searching the Dallas Central Appraisal District website with its FEMA flood zones layer turned on, by using the city's zoning GIS site, or by checking FEMA. The city also says it participates in the National Flood Insurance Program, that homeowners' policies do not cover flood damage, and that a pool, fence or retaining wall that changes the ground inside a Special Flood Hazard Area needs a floodplain alteration permit.

FEMA says Congress requires federally regulated or insured lenders to require flood insurance on buildings in a Special Flood Hazard Area when the loan is federally backed, and that lenders must tell applicants about it. Under Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, flood insurance premiums are part of monthly housing expense. Rules can change, and the flood determination for the specific property is what governs, so treat a map lookup as a starting point.

A Texas seller of a home with one dwelling unit also has to deliver a written disclosure notice by the time the contract takes effect, and its questions cover floodplain location, flood insurance and past flood water inside a structure. Read the answers closely.

Dallas's Office of Economic Development describes a PID as a way for groups of property owners to request special property tax assessments for services above typical city levels, and it offers an address search to see whether a property is inside a boundary. The list includes districts in business areas and at least one, Uptown, that the city describes as a mix of business, office and residential uses.

For property in a PID created under the Local Government Code, the Property Code has the seller hand over a written notice ahead of a binding contract, and the notice warns that unpaid assessments may bring penalties, interest or a lien. A special assessment counts in monthly housing expense under Fannie Mae's Selling Guide, so send us any notice you receive.