Appeal
A formal challenge to your assessment, not to your tax bill.
An appeal contests the assessor's valuation of your property. It does not contest the tax rate, the levy, or how the money is spent — those are set by taxing bodies and are not what a board can change.
The usual grounds are that the assessment exceeds market value, that it is out of line with comparable properties, or that the county's record of your property is factually wrong.
It is a deadline-driven process, and the deadline is the most common reason appeals fail before they are read.
Related
- Appeal deadline — The date after which nothing you can prove matters.
- Board of review — The local body that hears assessment appeals first.
- Uniformity — The requirement that similar properties be assessed alike — the strongest appeal ground.
- Record error — The county's file says your home is something it is not.
Property tax is state law and the details differ. For what applies where you live, see coverage by state and your appeal deadline.