Your assessment notice comes down to three numbers — market value, assessed value and taxable value — and the one you can usually fight is market value. If the market value is too high, everything below it is too high. Here’s how to read the notice in a few minutes.
Number 1: Market value
This is the assessor’s estimate of what your home would sell for on the valuation date. States call it different things:
- Market value (Texas)
- Just value (Florida)
- Full value or full market value (New York)
- Actual value (Colorado)
- Fair market value (Georgia)
This is the number to compare against recent sales of similar homes. If similar homes sold for less, you may have a case. See how to pick comparable sales.
Number 2: Assessed value
Assessed value is the number the law uses as the starting point for your tax. It can differ from market value for two main reasons.
An assessment ratio. Some states assess only a share of market value.
- Georgia taxes property at 40% of its fair market value. A home with a $300,000 fair market value has a $120,000 assessed value.
- New York towns and cities can assess at a fraction of market value. The share is called the “level of assessment.” To turn an assessment back into the assessor’s estimate of market value, divide: assessment ÷ level of assessment. A $90,000 assessment at a 90% level means the assessor thinks the home is worth $100,000. New York’s guide says to use the lowest of three published figures for your community (the uniform percentage of value, the equalization rate or the residential assessment ratio), since that generally shows the biggest over-assessment.
A cap. Some states limit how fast the value used for tax can rise.
- Florida: Just value minus the Save Our Homes (or other cap) differential equals assessed value.
- Texas: A homestead’s appraised value can’t rise more than 10% over last year’s appraised value, plus new improvements.
- California: Proposition 13 sets a base year value that rises by no more than 2% a year (or the state consumer price index, if lower). If market value falls below that, the assessor enrolls the lower market value. That’s a “decline in value” or Proposition 8 reduction.
Number 3: Taxable value
Taxable value is assessed value minus exemptions. It’s what the tax rates are applied to.
Look for your exemptions on the notice. The most common is the homestead exemption for your primary home. Others cover seniors, veterans and people with disabilities. If an exemption you qualify for is missing, that’s often an easier fix than a value appeal. For Texas, see how to protest your property taxes.
Check the property facts
Most notices, or the assessor’s website, list the facts used to value your home. Check:
- Living area (square feet)
- Bedrooms and bathrooms
- Lot size
- Year built
- Pool, garage, basement and any finished space
- Condition or quality grade, if shown
A wrong number here can raise your value. An extra half bath or 300 extra square feet is common. Fixing errors is usually easier than arguing about market value.
Find the deadline
The deadline is the most important line on the notice. Most states give you a short window, and it often runs from the date the notice was mailed, not the date you opened it. Some examples:
- Georgia: 45 days from the date the notice was mailed.
- Florida: 25 days from when the TRIM notice was mailed.
- Colorado: Adams County, for example, takes appeals to the assessor from May 1 through June 8.
- New York: Most communities hold Grievance Day on the fourth Tuesday in May, but the date varies, so confirm it locally.
See all 2027 deadlines by state.
What the notice is called in each state
The name tells you which kind of notice you have:
- Texas: Notice of Appraised Value. Sent by your county appraisal district. Shows market value, appraised value and exemptions. Texas protest guide.
- Florida: Notice of Proposed Property Taxes (the “TRIM” notice). Usually mailed in mid-August. It shows just, assessed and taxable value, plus proposed taxes. Florida appeal guide.
- Colorado: Notice of Valuation. Shows actual value. In Adams County it’s mailed by May 1. Colorado appeal guide.
- California: assessment notice. Counties may send a notice of your assessed value, and a supplemental notice after a sale or new construction showing a new base year value. If you think market value has dropped below your assessed value, that’s a decline-in-value (Prop 8) question, judged by market value as of January 1. California appeal guide.
- Georgia: Annual Notice of Assessment. It is not a tax bill. It shows previous and current fair market value, the 40% assessed value, exemptions, an estimated tax and the appeal deadline. Georgia appeal guide.
- New York: many towns publish a tentative assessment roll and may mail change notices. You file Form RP-524 with the Board of Assessment Review. New York grievance guide.
- Washington: your county assessor sends a value notice. Washington appeal guide.
A quick worked example
Your Georgia notice shows:
- Current year fair market value: $350,000
- Assessed value (40%): $140,000
- Homestead exemption: shown in its own column
Three similar homes on your street sold for about $320,000 around January 1. If the board accepted $320,000, your assessed value would drop to $128,000. Multiply the $12,000 difference by your millage rate to see the yearly savings. Is that worth an appeal? Here’s how to decide.
What the notice doesn’t tell you
The notice usually won’t show which sales the assessor used. You can often request that evidence before a hearing. See what happens at the hearing.
Or let someone do it for you
Send us your notice and Recoup Capital will review your value for free. If you’re over-assessed, we file and handle the appeal for 30% of first-year savings (25% in Texas), and you pay nothing if your taxes don’t go down. Start your free review.
Sources: Georgia DOR — Annual Notice of Assessment (PT-306), Georgia DOR — Filing a property tax appeal, NY Tax Dept — Contesting your assessment, Florida DOR — Just, assessed and taxable value, Florida DOR — VAB petitions (PT-101), Tex. Tax Code §23.23, Calif. BOE — Decline in Value (Prop 8), Calif. BOE — Publication 30 revisions, Adams County, CO — Appeals process.