Jefferson County homeowners pay a median of $2,591 a year in property tax on a median home value of $374,200. Its effective tax rate (property taxes paid as a share of home values, per the Tax Foundation) is 0.62%, the 26th highest of 36 Oregon counties. The Jefferson County Assessor sets your home's real market value each January 1. Appeals go to the Jefferson County Property Value Appeals Board, filed through the county clerk.
Open nowOpen. Counties mail 2026-27 tax statements by October 25, 2026, and you can file a petition from the day yours is mailed until December 31, 2026. The next window opens when the October 2027 statements go out.
File a petition with the county clerk (the clerk of the Property Value Appeals Board) after your tax statement is mailed and no later than December 31. If December 31 falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. A mailed petition counts if postmarked by the deadline. Example: in Multnomah County, 2026 tax statements went out in mid-October 2026; petitions must be postmarked or delivered by December 31, 2026, with a $30 fee per account, and the board holds hearings from February through April 15, 2027. Lane County takes hand-delivered petitions until 4:00 p.m. on December 31, 2026.
Official website: jeffersoncountyor.gov
The assessor's office explains how your value was set. It may lower the value on your request until December 31, or agree to a lower value after you file.
Phone: 541-475-4451
Email: [email protected]
Address: 66 SE D St, Suite C, Madras, OR 97741-1796
Hears appeals of the value. Check its filing window and rules.
Your values are shown on the property tax statement mailed in October (counties must mail them by October 25). There is no separate valuation notice earlier in the year; the appeal window opens when the statement is mailed.
Look up your home on the Jefferson County Assessor website and check square footage, bathrooms, condition and features. Mistakes are the easiest wins. Use our record card checklist.
Mail or deliver Form OR-B-RPP to the Jefferson County Clerk's office, which acts as clerk of the Property Value Appeals Board (check the county's PVAB page for the exact address), after your tax statement arrives and by December 31 (next business day if it falls on a weekend or holiday). Include evidence, a copy of the tax statement and any county filing fee.
Recent sales of similar homes near January 1, with adjustments for differences in size, location and quality; A fee appraisal dated close to January 1 of the assessment year; Your own purchase price if you bought in an arm's-length sale near January 1; Proof the home was listed for sale for a reasonable time at a price below the roll value.
At the board you must show, with evidence, that the assessor's real market value is too high; Multnomah County puts it plainly: it is your responsibility to prove the value is wrong. In the Tax Court the party asking for a change carries the burden of proof by a preponderance of the evidence (ORS 305.427).
Next step: Oregon Tax Court, Magistrate Division. 30 days (not one month) after the board's order is mailed or handed to you (ORS 305.280). A mailed complaint counts as filed on the date you send it by USPS or a private express carrier. File the Magistrate Division property tax complaint form with a copy of the PVAB order and the $50 filing fee (a fee waiver can be requested). You can file online through the Oregon Judicial Department's free eFile system or by mail. Cases are informal, often by phone, and not recorded. A magistrate's decision can be appealed to the Regular Division of the Tax Court within 60 days, and from there to the Oregon Supreme Court.
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.
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 petition with the county clerk (the clerk of the Property Value Appeals Board) after your tax statement is mailed and no later than December 31. If December 31 falls on a weekend or legal holiday, the deadline moves to the next business day. A mailed petition counts if postmarked by the deadline. Example: in Multnomah County, 2026 tax statements went out in mid-October 2026; petitions must be postmarked or delivered by December 31, 2026, with a $30 fee per account, and the board holds hearings from February through April 15, 2027. Lane County takes hand-delivered petitions until 4:00 p.m. on December 31, 2026.
File a Real Property Petition (Form OR-B-RPP) with the Jefferson County Clerk, who serves as clerk of the Jefferson County Property Value Appeals Board, by December 31.
Website: jeffersoncountyor.gov.
Set by each county. Examples for 2026: Washington County charges no fee; Multnomah $30 per account; Lane $35 per account ($350 maximum for several accounts of one owner in one subdivision); Yamhill $40. Ask your county clerk.
Contact details change; call or check the office website before you visit.