Tax Services Provider Ryan Expands With Acquisition Of Texas-Based Meritax Advisors

A global tax services firm is beefing up its property tax capabilities with the acquisition of a fellow Texas company. 

Plano-based tax services and software provider Ryan acquired Meritax Advisors, a commercial property tax consulting firm with offices in Frisco and Austin. The merger will build up Ryan’s property tax valuation strategy and expand the firm’s litigation management and portfolio advisory services. 

“With Meritax Advisors joining Ryan, we’re adding a disciplined, client-focused team with deep knowledge of the Texas property tax landscape,” Ryan President of U.S. Operations Damon Chronis said in a statement. 

With the acquisition, Meritax Advisors' Amber Gibson is being promoted to partner. She and partners Ryan Chismark, Charlie Honea and Mark Kline will join Ryan, along with the rest of the firm’s employees.

Meritax Advisors will benefit from Ryan’s global footprint, proprietary technology and analytics investments. The merger will align both firms' values, talent and vision to focus on the future of property tax advisory services, Chismark said. 

“The future of the industry is really about alignment, and property tax is paramount in the national discussion, not just locally [but] for our clients and for our people,” Chismark told Bisnow. “With what Ryan's doing with technology, they are much better prepared to deal with what I call the new economy, and so being a part of that … made too much sense not to pursue.”

Chismark called Ryan a “preeminent force” in the property tax industry, and together with Meritax Advisors, the firms represent a “best-in-class” team that will be able to serve clients in Texas and on the national stage. 

Clients with national portfolios will benefit from Ryan’s consistency across jurisdictions, real-time intelligence and understanding of how valuation, litigation, data and technology intersect, according to Chismark. 

Now operating under the Ryan umbrella, Chismark said his team is gearing up for one of the most active property tax appeals seasons he has ever seen.  

“I don't think it's a secret that property tax as a topic is really important to everybody in the country right now,” Chismark said. “We're very mindful of that and excited for the challenge.”

Meritax Advisors represents tens of billions of dollars in assessed value for institutional and private clients across Texas and beyond. The company was established in 1995 and built its reputation as an expert in property tax valuation strategy, litigation management and large-portfolio advisory services. 

Ryan's addition of Meritax Advisors wasn't the company's only activity on the mergers and acquisitions front Thursday. It also announced the acquisition of specialized commercial property consultant Williams Young McKaig Ltd., which is based in Edinburgh, Scotland.

Ryan moved its headquarters to the 23-story Ryan Tower in Plano's Legacy West development last year. That building was completed in 2024 by Ryan Cos., which isn’t affiliated with the tax services and software provider.

Ryan’s team boasts more than 7,100 employees who serve over 74,000 clients in 80-plus countries.

The acquisition is another example of a local firm attracting the attention of an international player. Dallas-Fort Worth has developed a reputation as a major player in the commercial real estate world and a breeding ground for startups. 

During the second half of 2025, Colliers purchased Greystone’s Dallas-based multifamily investment sales firm, Cresa bought Dallas-based Fischer, and Stewart Information Services Corp. picked up Lewisville-headquartered property services provider MCS. 

The metro retained its crown as the No. 1 market in the Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2026 report by the Urban Land Institute and PwC. It is also the top market in the country for investment sales, collecting $22.3B across more than 1,000 transactions in 2025, according to Avison Young’s latest investment sales report.

UPDATE, FEB. 5, 1 P.M. CT: This article has been updated with comments from Meritax Advisors partner Ryan Chismark's interview with Bisnow.