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County appraisal office seeks contracted TREP data to strengthen income-property valuations
Summary
Montgomery County Chief Appraiser Clay Henley asked the commission to approve a contract with TREP Incorporated to buy audited income-and-expense data the appraisal office says will strengthen valuations of income-producing properties during appeals.
Montgomery County Chief Appraiser Clay Henley asked the county commission to approve a contract with TREP Incorporated to obtain audited income-and-expense data used to value income-producing properties such as apartments, self-storage facilities and some offices. Henley said the vendor’s data would help the appraiser’s office substantiate valuations during appeals.
Henley told the commission that TREP’s data are compiled from commercial mortgage-backed security reporting and audited financial statements, information the county has difficulty collecting locally. "We are here to request approval for a contract with a company called TREP Incorporated," Henley said. He said the data would help the office “to substantiate our value and act as proof to back up our position on property value.”
The appraisal staff said the county can cover an initial partial-year purchase from existing funds and estimated the cost would be roughly $30,000 for a full year thereafter. Staff also said Montgomery County’s portion of the contract would be about 23 percent because the office shares costs pro rata with the state and the city. Assistant Chief Appraiser Javor McCall Martin described the contract as giving the office access to verified, government‑reported income and expense figures that are harder to obtain through local voluntary reporting.
Commissioners asked about scope and frequency. Staff explained the resource focuses on income-producing properties where the income approach to value is used — hotels, apartments, self-storage and some offices — and that the data provide detailed rent and expense information the office currently lacks. Henley described the vendor proposal as an initial 18‑month commitment with an opt‑out after the first 18 months if the county decides the service is not cost-effective.
Henley and McCall Martin framed the purchase as a risk‑mitigation tool: in appraisal appeals, a lack of verifiable income and expense data can lead to value reductions that lower tax revenue. Henley described how each $1 million change in assessed value can change tax revenue in the county’s accounting.
No formal vote was recorded during the discussion; staff requested commission approval to proceed to a future agenda item for formal contracting. The presentation prompted follow-up requests for cost detail and for staff to track measurable outcomes if the county moves forward.
