How to navigate the Ellis County Appraisal District

ELLIS COUNTY – Recently, a follower contacted the paper and detailed how he found getting through the Ellis County Appraisal District website was a problem. 

He was trying to file an Ellis County Appraisal District 2024 business personal property rendition. 

Instructions had noted there was a PIN on the upper right corner of the paperwork – but he could not find the PIN in that location.

He called ECAD and waited eight minutes before he was able to speak to a person in that office.

After he explained the situation, he was told the PIN feature was not working and he would have to go online to complete the form, then emailing it to the office as a PDF. 

He completed the form online, but the option to print or save the completed rendition was not available. 

There was no way to submit the form either, according to the reader.

With that hurdle, he was told to complete the paper form, have it notarized, and mail it to the Ellis County Appraisal District.

Kathy Rodrigue, Chief Appraiser at Ellis Appraisal District said she had visited with her team and concluded, “On the documents sent out with the rendition, it gives instruction about filing a Rendition either in person, by mail, email, or the portal. 

“On the portal, it is simply a matter of creating a log in and entering the information related to a property owner’s business. There is no PIN required for this access or entry.”

Rodrigue said there was also a video to watch about setting up an account. 

She added, “It would be beneficial if we had some clearer instructions about filing the rendition on the website – and we will definitely make that happen – but there is no barrier to prevent a property owner from accessing and entering their information.”

Rodrigue said she believed the issue regarding the PIN surfaced with a misunderstanding about what was being filed. 

She also pointed out if a person is filing a protest, that does require a PIN, which is located on the appraisal notices sent out each year.

“We have many new team members that deal with all property owner questions, and we certainly seek to train and make clear how to respond to each individual question,” Rodrigue added. 

“I fear, in this case, it is possible one of our team misunderstood what was trying to be filed electronically. 

“As public servants, we are always looking for ways to improve how we serve, and we will take this as an opportunity to make this process easier and more intuitive.”

If you are not sure how to proceed with a document from the ECAD or otherwise, there is a solution, and fortunately in Ellis County there is still a friendly person to help if necessary.