Your notice, line by line
Every state does it a little differently, and the letter goes by different names: a notice of assessment, of assessed value or of appraised value. Most carry the same handful of lines. Here they are on a sample notice. Select a numbered line to read what it means.
Owner, address and parcel number
Who and what the notice is about. The parcel number is the property's ID in the assessor's records.
What to check That the owner, address and parcel number are yours. If the notice lists details like square footage or year built, check those too.
Market value
The assessor's estimate of what your home would sell for. Depending on where you live, it may be called fair market value, full cash value or just value.
What to check Whether it's a price your home would actually sell for.
Assessed value
The value your property taxes are based on. In some places it equals market value. In others it's a set percentage of market value, or limited by a yearly cap, so it can sit below it.
What to check The change from last year. A big jump is worth a closer look.
Exemptions
Reductions you've been approved for, such as a homestead exemption on a home you live in.
What to check That every exemption you qualify for is listed. Exemptions usually have to be claimed by the owner, so a new owner may need to apply.
Taxable value
What's left after exemptions. Tax rates are applied to this number.
What to check If an exemption is missing, this number is higher than it should be.
Taxing authorities
Some notices list the local governments that tax your property, such as the county, city and school district. Some also estimate the tax.
What to check Those governments set the tax rates. The notice is about the value, and the value is the part you can question.
How and when to appeal
Where and when to challenge the value. Depending on the state, the deadline is a fixed date or a set number of days after the notice was mailed.
What to check Write the deadline down. Miss it and you usually wait for the next cycle.
Questions about your value
Many notices say who to contact at the assessor's office before you file a formal appeal.
What to check A simple error in your property's record, like the wrong square footage, is worth raising with them first.
What to check next
The notice tells you what the assessor decided. Whether it's right depends on facts the notice doesn't show. Four places to look:
Your home's own facts. Compare the assessor's record of your home, its size, bedrooms, bathrooms, lot, age and condition, with the real thing. If a record is wrong or out of date, the value can carry the mistake.
Sales of similar homes. Recent sales of homes like yours nearby: similar in size, age and condition, sold on the open market, close to the date your value was set.
Your neighbors' assessments. If similar homes on your street are assessed for less than yours, that's worth noting too.
Your exemptions. A missing exemption raises your taxable value even when the market value is right.
Or start with a number
We analyze public property records, recent sales, and local assessment data to estimate whether your county's value is higher than it should be relative to market.
See your free savings estimateYour deadline
Every state sets its own appeal window, and some counties set their own dates within it. Some use the same date every year. Others count a set number of days from when your notice was mailed, so the clock can be short.
The date printed on your notice is the one to go by. Rules differ by state, so check yours before you file. Miss the deadline and you usually wait for the next cycle, so knowing where you stand now keeps the option open.
