Alabama homeowners pay a median of $788 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.38%, the 50th highest of the 51 states we cover. The deadline to appeal: 30 days from notice date (county BOE). Here is who sets your value, how to challenge it and what evidence works.
Closed for 2026As of October 21, 2026, the 2026 protest windows have closed in most counties because they ran 30 days from spring and summer notices. If you never got a notice that your value went up, you can still ask the county Board of Equalization to reopen your assessment; confirm the last date you can ask with the county, since taxes become delinquent after December 31, 2026. The next window opens when 2027 valuation notices go out, usually between March and July 2027 depending on the county.
File a written protest with the county Board of Equalization within 30 calendar days of the date of your valuation notice (Ala. Code 40-7-25(d)). The clock runs from the date printed on the notice, not the day you received it. If the only notice was the newspaper notice, the deadline is 30 calendar days after its last publication (40-3-20). Because each county mails on its own schedule, the dates differ by county, usually falling between March and July. Example: Baldwin County's 2026 notices were dated March 17, 2026, and the county printed April 17, 2026 as the final appeal date (that is 31 days later, so use the date the county prints rather than counting days yourself). Mobile County requires protests to be received, or postmarked by USPS, within 30 days of the notice date. If you never received a notice of an increase, the law lets you ask the board to reopen your assessment any time before the taxes become delinquent (after December 31), if you can prove you did not receive it.
State law requires a mailed statement when your value goes up, signed by the Board of Equalization chair and sent by July 1 unless the Department of Revenue sets another date. The assessing official must also publish a newspaper notice once a week for two weeks saying that values are set and protests can be filed. In practice many counties mail a valuation notice to every owner each year; Baldwin County mailed 2026 notices dated March 17, 2026 to all owners. Not getting a notice does not cancel the assessment.
Where you file depends on your county. Pick yours for the office contacts, local tax figures and a step-by-step guide.
Enter the market value on your assessment notice and what you think the home would really sell for. We estimate the yearly saving if the board agrees with you.
Some states cap how fast the taxable value of a home can rise (California, Florida, Michigan and Texas homesteads, for example). If your taxable value is already held below market value by a cap, a lower market value may not lower this year's bill.
Each of Alabama's 67 counties has an assessing official who values homes. Depending on the county, the office is called the Revenue Commissioner, the Tax Assessor, or (in Shelby County) the Property Tax Commissioner. The county Board of Equalization hears protests. The Alabama Department of Revenue supervises the counties but does not hear homeowner appeals; the next step after the county board is circuit court. Homes are valued at fair and reasonable market value. An owner-occupied home is Class III property, so its assessed value is 10% of market value (rental and other property not otherwise classified is assessed at 20%). Values are fixed as of October 1: for example, 2026 values reflect the market up to October 1, 2025, and taxes on them are due October 1, 2026. Last year's assessed value is the starting point, and it is presumed correct unless you show the board it should be lower. Every county is on an annual reappraisal program run under Department of Revenue rules. The assessing office reviews about one quarter of the county each year, so every property is reviewed over a four-year cycle, and values can change every year. A 7% cap on yearly increases in taxable assessed value applies to homes and other Class II and III real property through the tax year starting October 1, 2027 (see special rules).
Call the assessing office (revenue commissioner or tax assessor) first if the notice shows a factual error such as wrong square footage or a removed building; Baldwin County says these can often be fixed by the appraisal or assessment department. That call does not stop the 30-day clock. After you file a protest, a county appraiser (or a Department of Revenue agent) usually contacts you for an informal interview to try to settle it. If you agree on a value in writing, it becomes final unless the board disapproves; if not, your protest goes to a board hearing.
What works in Alabama: Sales of similar nearby homes from the valuation period (October 1 to September 30 before the lien date); Mobile County will not consider foreclosures or short sales; A private appraisal dated within the same valuation period, or your own recent arm's-length purchase price; Photos of the inside and outside showing condition problems, with repair estimates; Corrections to the property record: square footage, number of rooms, buildings removed; Surveys, engineering, soil or flood reports if the land has problems.
Send a signed written protest to the secretary of your county Board of Equalization. Use the county's protest form if it has one, or write a letter. Include your parcel number, name, mailing address, phone and email, a description of the property, your reasons, and the value you think is right. File one protest per parcel and send your evidence with it. Some counties take protests online or by email (Baldwin, Mobile); Mobile County does not accept faxes and warns not to send protests to the Revenue Commission office. At the hearing, the board takes testimony under oath and can lower, raise, or keep the value. The board mails you its decision when it finishes hearing protests. Cost: No fee.
The burden is on you. Last year's assessed value, or a value the Department of Revenue certified after a reappraisal, is presumed correct, and the board will not lower it without evidence. Boards say decisions must rest on evidence presented to them, so bring proof of market value. In circuit court, the board's assessment sheet alone makes a prima facie case for the county, so you must prove a different market value.
Within 30 days of the Board of Equalization's decision. Confirm the exact start date and filing fee with the circuit court clerk before filing. File a notice of appeal with both the secretary of the Board of Equalization and the clerk of the circuit court, and post a bond for court costs approved by the clerk. You must also pay the taxes due at the prior year's assessed value before they become delinquent, or post a supersedeas bond for double the tax; otherwise the court must dismiss the appeal. Either side can ask for a jury by filing a written demand. The deadline for that demand is short and runs from the appeal filing, so confirm it with the clerk. The court hears the value question fresh and can set the value higher or lower. Court filing fees apply. In Jefferson County you may instead choose an appeal under the Expeditious and Economical Tax Appeals Act, where a three-member panel of local real estate professionals decides the value. Circuit court judgments can be appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court; confirm the filing deadline with the clerk or an attorney.
The board's secretary enters the corrected value, and it becomes the taxable value for that tax year. Your bill is mailed in the fall and due October 1, and delinquent after December 31. If the circuit court lowers the value after you paid, the court sets the overpaid amount and the state and local governments refund it, the state share with interest. The lower value lasts one year; the county can set a new value next year, subject to the 7% cap.
The board's legal test is your home's fair and reasonable market value, so the main argument is market value. You can show values of similar nearby homes as supporting evidence, but lower assessments on neighbors' homes alone, without market evidence, are unlikely to win. This works only in limited cases. Run the numbers with our unequal assessment calculator.
Most wins start with a mistake in the assessor's record of your home. Check it line by line.
Record card checklistAn exemption is separate from an appeal: you apply once and it cuts your taxable value every year. Check you have every one you qualify for.
For an owner-occupied single-family home on up to 160 acres that you live in on October 1. Exempts up to $4,000 of assessed value from state tax and $2,000 from county tax (local governments may give up to $4,000). Apply once at your county assessing office; Baldwin County says by December 31 of the year you buy.
Owners 65 and older, permanently and totally disabled, or blind pay no state property tax on their home and get larger county exemptions. Those 65+ with $12,000 or less of combined federal taxable income, and disabled owners, are exempt from all property tax on the home. Apply at the county office with proof of age, disability or income.
You can appear yourself, or through an agent or attorney (Ala. Code 40-3-19). Boards require written authorization for an agent; Mobile County uses its own Letter of Authorization form, good for the current year only. Rules on paid non-lawyer agents were not found.
Fill in your details and download a written appeal statement as a PDF or Word file. Most boards also require their own appeal form: file the form and attach this letter and your evidence to it.
Tax Appeal Map is a free information site, not a law firm or appraiser. The letter is a template, not legal advice.
File a written protest with the county Board of Equalization within 30 calendar days of the date of your valuation notice (Ala. Code 40-7-25(d)). The clock runs from the date printed on the notice, not the day you received it. If the only notice was the newspaper notice, the deadline is 30 calendar days after its last publication (40-3-20). Because each county mails on its own schedule, the dates differ by county, usually falling between March and July. Example: Baldwin County's 2026 notices were dated March 17, 2026, and the county printed April 17, 2026 as the final appeal date (that is 31 days later, so use the date the county prints rather than counting days yourself). Mobile County requires protests to be received, or postmarked by USPS, within 30 days of the notice date. If you never received a notice of an increase, the law lets you ask the board to reopen your assessment any time before the taxes become delinquent (after December 31), if you can prove you did not receive it.
With the County Board of Equalization protest. Send a signed written protest to the secretary of your county Board of Equalization. Use the county's protest form if it has one, or write a letter. Include your parcel number, name, mailing address, phone and email, a description of the property, your reasons, and the value you think is right. File one protest per parcel and send your evidence with it. Some counties take protests online or by email (Baldwin, Mobile); Mobile County does not accept faxes and warns not to send protests to the Revenue Commission office. At the hearing, the board takes testimony under oath and can lower, raise, or keep the value. The board mails you its decision when it finishes hearing protests.
No fee.
Call the assessing office (revenue commissioner or tax assessor) first if the notice shows a factual error such as wrong square footage or a removed building; Baldwin County says these can often be fixed by the appraisal or assessment department. That call does not stop the 30-day clock. After you file a protest, a county appraiser (or a Department of Revenue agent) usually contacts you for an informal interview to try to settle it. If you agree on a value in writing, it becomes final unless the board disapproves; if not, your protest goes to a board hearing.
You can appeal to the Circuit court of the county. Within 30 days of the Board of Equalization's decision. Confirm the exact start date and filing fee with the circuit court clerk before filing. File a notice of appeal with both the secretary of the Board of Equalization and the clerk of the circuit court, and post a bond for court costs approved by the clerk. You must also pay the taxes due at the prior year's assessed value before they become delinquent, or post a supersedeas bond for double the tax; otherwise the court must dismiss the appeal. Either side can ask for a jury by filing a written demand. The deadline for that demand is short and runs from the appeal filing, so confirm it with the clerk. The court hears the value question fresh and can set the value higher or lower. Court filing fees apply. In Jefferson County you may instead choose an appeal under the Expeditious and Economical Tax Appeals Act, where a three-member panel of local real estate professionals decides the value. Circuit court judgments can be appealed to the Alabama Supreme Court; confirm the filing deadline with the clerk or an attorney.
The board's secretary enters the corrected value, and it becomes the taxable value for that tax year. Your bill is mailed in the fall and due October 1, and delinquent after December 31. If the circuit court lowers the value after you paid, the court sets the overpaid amount and the state and local governments refund it, the state share with interest. The lower value lasts one year; the county can set a new value next year, subject to the 7% cap.
Checked 2026-10 against official Alabama sources. Local deadlines and fees can differ; confirm with your assessor or board.