How to use the Central Appraisal Districts in the area to find the property information you need to file your liens.
Below are the websites we use most often to find legal descriptions. If you are preparing a lien, we suggest you look here for legal descriptions and “reputed owners.” Click on any of the county names below to go to the Central Appraisal District site for that county. Note: not all of these sites are free sites.
Why You Need the Central Appraisal District
A Texas mechanic’s lien affidavit must contain two pieces of property-specific information that most contractors do not have memorized and cannot guess: the legal description of the property, and the name of the “reputed owner” of the property.
Using only a street address is not sufficient. A street address tells you where the property is, but a Texas mechanic’s lien affidavit requires the legal description, the formal legal identification of the specific parcel of land as recorded in the county property records. That description typically looks like: “Lot 14, Block 3, Greenway Addition, an addition to the City of Dallas, Dallas County, Texas, according to the plat thereof recorded in Volume 47, Page 218, of the Map Records of Dallas County, Texas.”
Getting this wrong, by using an incorrect legal description, an abbreviated description, or a street address in place of a legal description, is a frequent reason a Texas mechanic’s lien is declared invalid after the filing deadline has passed, leaving the claimant with no lien rights at all.
County CAD Links
Click the county name to go directly to that county’s Central Appraisal District website:
| Collin | Ellis | Kaufman | Tarrant |
| Dallas | Grayson | Rockwall | Van Zandt |
| Denton | Johnson | Smith | TaxNet |
How to Search the CAD Database
Each county’s CAD website has a property search function. To find what you need for your lien affidavit:
Step 1: Go to the CAD website for the county where the project is located using the links above.
Step 2: Search by the property’s street address, the house number and street name. This will bring up the property record.
Step 3: When the property record appears, locate the Legal Description (sometimes labeled “Property Description”). Copy this information verbatim, every word and every abbreviation, exactly as it appears. Do not paraphrase or shorten it.
Step 4: Also record the Owner Name exactly as shown, including the full legal name of any LLC, corporation, trust, or other entity. This is the name you will use for the “reputed owner” on your lien affidavit and in any notices you send.
Understanding the “Reputed Owner” Standard
Texas law defines the “reputed owner” as the person whom the claimant believes to be the owner of the property, based on information reasonably available to the claimant. In practice, the reputed owner is the owner of record in the public property records, which is what the CAD database shows.
Using the CAD record owner’s name satisfies the reputed owner standard even if the true legal owner has changed, as long as the contractor acted in good faith based on the available public record. You are not required to independently verify the accuracy of the CAD record. If the CAD shows “John A. Smith” as the owner and you list “John A. Smith” in your lien affidavit and your notices, you have satisfied the requirement, even if the property was recently sold to someone else and the CAD has not yet been updated.
However, if you know the property has been sold to a different party, for example if the new owner introduced themselves to you on the job site, you should use the current owner’s information, not the outdated CAD record.
When the CAD Record Is Out of Date
Central Appraisal District databases are updated periodically but may lag behind actual ownership changes by weeks or months after a sale. For recently sold properties, the CAD may still show the prior owner.
If you suspect the property has recently changed hands, or if the CAD shows an owner that does not match the party who hired you, also check the county clerk’s deed records, which are updated more promptly after each recorded sale. Dallas County, Tarrant County, Collin County, and Denton County all maintain searchable deed records online.
A Note on Properties Not Yet Recorded
In some situations, particularly new construction on recently platted lots, the property may not yet have a complete or finalized legal description in the CAD. If a search by address returns no results or incomplete results, contact the developer or the owner directly to obtain the correct legal description from the plat documents, deed, or title company.
Filing a lien affidavit with an incomplete or estimated legal description is risky. If you cannot confirm the correct legal description, contact Cook Keith & Davis before filing. We can help you locate or confirm the correct property information before your deadline passes. Call us at 214-368-4686.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a Central Appraisal District and why do I need it for my lien?
A Central Appraisal District (CAD) is a county-level government agency that maintains property records for tax purposes. These records contain the legal descriptions and owner names that are required on a Texas mechanic's lien affidavit. A street address alone is not sufficient for a lien filing. You must use the formal legal description from the property records, which the CAD provides free (or at low cost) through its online search system.
Can I just use the street address instead of the legal description on my lien?
No. Texas law requires the legal description of the property, not merely its street address. Using a street address instead of the proper legal description is a common reason a lien affidavit is found to be defective after the filing deadline has passed. Always use the full legal description from the CAD database or county deed records.