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I have never used a professional service, but I have fought my taxes appraisal for years (and ALMOST always win).
What you get from the professionals, especially in the case of Bettencourt, is the connection. These people have relationships with the appraisal district. Sure, they know how to argue the case, but I have learned that as well, and all it takes is research and seeking advice.
Basically, you are not going to be able to keep your appraisal the same year after year, eventually, it will go up. The best you're going to do is keep your appraisal the lowest in your neighborhood based up comparable properties.
Not only do I fight my property appraisal, I go into HCAD to check my neighbors' appraisals and encourage them to fight theirs. If I can keep their rates down, it helps me keep mine down.
I know the post above was tongue and cheek, but you can't take pictures of your house and say "look how crappy my house is" and expect to win. You also can not expect to win when you have that first "meeting" if the person who knows absolutely nothing and can't really do anything for you. You win when you go before the appraisal board and make a more compelling case than the county rep based upon comparable homes and the trend in your area. If you go in with pictures of your old roof and your cracked driveway, you'll walk away very disappointing.
Since most people do not take the time to research and understand the process and what the board bases their rulings on, most people fail while the professionals (and the people like myself) succeed.
Last year, I was almost embarrassed (I said almost) for the appraisal representative who had to argue in front of the board against me. It wasn't that I am the god of appraisals, it's because the county had no support for their case. Now, had I not known what I needed to show, I could have potentially lost my hearing; however, since I knew what to do, I was Mike Tyson (back in his glory years) fighting a 12-year-old. The board even voiced concerns as to why this even came to them since the county didn't use any comparables from my neighborhood. I recorded the whole thing on my iPhone using voice memo, and I've listened to parts of it and laughed.
The point to my long-winded post is that if you can't take the time to research and prepare properly for the hearing, it's best to hire a professional. If you can make the time to do it right, I think it's about even. The professionals will have the relationship, but you will take more time and present a better case as a homeowner. Now, if I was a business owner, I'd be using the professional services for sure.
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