Ag Valuation
Agricultural valuation can lower taxes on rural land in Rockwall County
Land used for farming, ranching, or wildlife management may qualify to be taxed on its farm productivity value instead of its market value, which is often much lower.
In Texas, qualifying farm or ranch land can be taxed on what it produces, not what a developer would pay for it. This is called agricultural appraisal. In Rockwall County, where land prices are high, the savings can be large.
To qualify, the land must have been used for farming or timber production for at least five of the past seven years. Wildlife management also qualifies, but only if the land was already in agricultural appraisal first.
You still pay taxes — just on the lower productivity value. If the land stops qualifying, a rollback tax kicks in. It covers each of the prior three years when the land got the lower appraisal.
Apply using Form 50-129 (for 1-d-1 open-space land) through the Rockwall Central Appraisal District. The Texas Comptroller's website explains eligibility and the rollback tax in detail.
Source to confirm: Texas Comptroller — Agricultural, Timberland and Wildlife Management Use Special Appraisal