Yup, you ran into the Business Personal Property folks. That's their job, to count desks, chairs, equipment, etc. because some business owner did not file a rendition of the business's property in order to pay taxes on it and HCAD determined there might be cause for an audit. As for an appraiser entering your property, ...legally... they can do so to measure the 'exterior' of the home, NOT the interior. A good Residential Appraiser will first knock and talk to the property owner. If denied entry, they'll generally tell you they can use aerial photography (Pictometry Corp) but it would be in your best interest to give them the 5 minutes they need to take the measurements. Now, the latest scoop is that NO appraiser is EVER suppose to go into the back yard without specific permission from the home owner. It's not a trespassing issue in as much a safety issue. Too many appraisers have walked into bubba/open-mouthbreathing/homeowners brandishing guns despite the fact they knocked on the door, knocked on the fences and announced their entry. I feel sorry for the bubba home owner in that case. That appraiser is likely to make his 'little house on the bayou' look like a River Oaks mansion when he's done with it.
