Eleven Ways to Lower Your Housing Expenses in Texas

Texas housing · The bill is not just the mortgage

Eleven ways to spend less on a Texas house, without a promised percent off. Taxes, insurance, utilities, and repairs each follow their own rule. A cheaper premium that leaves the house underinsured is not a savings.

Texas has no state income tax, and that is not an insurance discount. The school homestead exemption cuts taxable value. The Comptroller says school districts must give $140,000 under Tax Code 11.13(b). Their example is a $300,000 appraisal taxed for school purposes as if it were $160,000. A local-option exemption, where adopted, is up to 20 percent of appraised value and not less than $5,000. Counties that collect a farm-to-market or flood-control tax must give $3,000. None of that changes Coverage A. Coverage A is rebuild cost, not the appraisal and not the sale price.

1. Fix wear before it is a loss. A slow leak and a worn roof are maintenance. Homeowners insurance pays a sudden, covered peril. It does not pay to keep the house up.
2. Use the homestead rules that exist. File the exemptions you qualify for and protest an appraisal that is wrong. That changes the tax bill. It does not raise or lower the dwelling limit.
3. Drop mortgage insurance only when the loan says you can. Private mortgage insurance pays the lender if you default. It does not repair the house. This page will not quote an equity percent or a monthly dollar amount.
4. Shop electricity where you actually can. Most retail customers in Texas can compare plans at Power to Choose. A filter and a sealed duct are maintenance, not a claim.
5. Refinance only when the fees are in the math. A lower rate that you will not keep long enough to cover closing costs is not a lower housing bill.
6. Do not buy at the top of the approval letter. A higher price usually means higher taxes, a higher rebuild cost, and a larger insurance limit. The premium follows the limit.
7. Bundle only if the declarations show the credit. A multi-policy discount is carrier-specific. Compare the same limits and the same deductibles with and without the bundle.
8. Tell the company before you rent a room. An owner-occupant HO-3 can exclude or limit home-sharing and a full rental. The tenant’s HO-4 covers their belongings, not your building. Renters insurance does not cancel the rent.
9. Do the safe jobs yourself. Paint is maintenance. A botched roof or electrical repair is not a covered peril, and it can matter at renewal.
10. If you rent, the building is not your policy. A longer lease can lock rent. It does not insure the landlord’s structure. Your contract is contents and liability.
11. Match the policy to the rebuild, then look at price. A percentage hail deductible is a percent of Coverage A. Replacement cost and actual cash value are different settlements. A higher deductible saves premium only if you can write that check.

The contract: Texas homeowners. The exemption rules: the Comptroller’s page.