Selling a house in Keene, Texas

Taxes, values and deeds for a Keene address

Keene is a small Johnson County city, with about 6,930 residents in the Census Bureau's 2024 estimate.

The city's property tax page explains which office does what. Values come from the Central Appraisal District of Johnson County (109 N. Main St., Cleburne, 817-648-3000), and the Johnson County Tax Office bills and collects the city's tax together with the school taxes. The same page says taxes are due in October and considered late on February 1 of the next year. It also lists four school districts that can appear on a Keene bill: Keene ISD, Cleburne ISD, Alvarado ISD or Joshua ISD. Check your tax statement for the one that applies to your address.

The Johnson County Tax Office takes payments at its main office at 2 North Mill Street in Cleburne and at sub-courthouses in Alvarado (206 North Baugh Street) and Burleson, all at (817) 558-0122. If you think the value is wrong, the tax office's FAQ says the protest is filed with the Appraisal Review Board by May 15 or 30 days after the value notice was mailed, whichever is later. Deeds are recorded by the Johnson County Clerk in Room B15 of the Historic Courthouse, 2 N. Main in Cleburne, where the clerk also offers a property fraud alert sign-up.

Water service: the city or another provider

Do not assume the city is your water provider. The new residents page says the City of Keene provides water, wastewater and trash collection, but that several other water providers also serve addresses inside the city limits. To find out which one serves a house, call City Hall at 817-641-3336 and choose option 2.

For a city account, the utility forms page posts a Service Termination Request, a Request for Temporary Service Hold, and a form for Transferring Utility Account that, as the page puts it, is only for a new name. It also posts a JCSUD sewer and sanitation application. Completed forms can be emailed to utilities@keenetx.com or mailed to Keene City Hall – Utilities, 1000 N. Old Betsy Road, Cleburne, TX 76031.

Your buyer will pay a deposit before service starts: $200.00 for a property inside city limits and $300.00 outside, according to the new residents page. The buyer shows a driver's license at City Hall plus proof of ownership, or a copy of the lease for a renter.

Common code violations Keene lists

Keene's common code violations page quotes the ordinance sections behind each common violation:

• Tall grass, Section 92.02. Anyone who owns, occupies or controls property in the city commits an offense if weeds, grass or uncultivated plants grow in rank profusion or exceed 12 inches.
• Debris and dumping, Section 92.02. Building rubbish, old furniture, limbs, household waste, dead appliances, tires, scrap metal or car parts may not pile up on private property.
• Junk vehicles, Section 90.05. A junked vehicle, or part of one, visible from a public place or right of way is a nuisance.
• Parking, Section 72.02. No vehicle may stop or be left in a front or side yard unless it is on a paved concrete surface.

The grass rule reaches whoever controls the lot, so it still applies to an empty house that is on the market. The code department is listed at 817-641-3336, extension 131. For an empty house, our vacant house checklist covers the routine upkeep.

Permits for past repairs

Keene runs permits through iWorq. Its permits and inspections page says applications, contractor registrations and inspection requests all go through the online Citizen Portal, and only a registered contractor with an access code can request an inspection. Building, remodeling or making improvements may need a permit, and the page links a list of residential work that is exempt from permitting. Questions go to permits@keenetx.com.

That list is worth a look before you sell. If you did work in the past and are not sure it was permitted, ask the city first, so you can answer a buyer's questions with the city's own records.

Foreclosure and evictions in Johnson County

Foreclosure. Property Code § 51.002 sets trustee's sales on the first Tuesday of the month between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., after at least 21 days' notice. In Johnson County, the County Clerk's foreclosure page says notices go on the bulletin board outside the clerk's office, Room B15 of the Historic Courthouse, and on the county's online records search, and the sale is held on the exterior steps outside the courthouse's west doors facing Main Street in Cleburne. The constable's tax sale runs at the same time outside Room B6. The clerk has no part in either sale, so questions go to the trustee or attorney named on the notice. Our guide to stopping foreclosure in DFW walks through the options.

A tenant who will not leave. Eviction suits are filed in the justice court of the precinct where the property sits (Property Code § 24.004). Justice of the Peace Precinct 3 holds court in the Alvarado Sub-Courthouse, 206 N. Baugh St., at (817) 558-0111 ext. 2550, and it is closed every Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Its page links eviction information and a precinct locator map, so confirm which precinct covers your address before you file. The page's list of reference websites includes lanwt.org and texaslawhelp.org.

Selling to Cash Home Advisors

You can sell your Keene house as-is, without making repairs. We pay all closing costs, and we can close in 7–14 days. See how it works or send us the address.

Local offices for this area

• Central Appraisal District of Johnson County
• Johnson County Tax Office: Locations and Hours
• Johnson County Clerk: OPR and Real Property Recording
• City of Keene: Property Tax
• City of Keene: Utility Forms
• Johnson County Justice of the Peace Precinct 3

ZIP codes we buy in: 76059, 76031, 76009