Utah homeowners pay a median of $2,525 a year in property tax, an effective rate of 0.52%, the 42nd highest of the 51 states we cover. The deadline to appeal: Sept 15 (county BOE). Here is who sets your value, how to challenge it and what evidence works.
Closed for 2026The 2026 deadline to appeal to the County Board of Equalization passed on September 15, 2026 in most counties; late appeals are accepted only for a few reasons such as a medical emergency, a death, a missing notice or an agreed factual error. If your county board has decided your appeal, you have 30 days from its decision to appeal to the Utah State Tax Commission. New valuation notices go out by July 22, 2027, and the next appeal deadline is September 15, 2027 (or 45 days after your notice, if later).
File your appeal with the County Board of Equalization by September 15, or within 45 days after the county mailed your valuation notice, whichever is later. In practice the deadline is September 15 in most counties. Late appeals are accepted only for a few reasons set by Tax Commission rule: a medical emergency or death in the family, the county failing to send the notice, an agreed factual error in county records, or other extraordinary and unanticipated circumstances (and no co-owner could file). Example: Salt Lake County's 2026 deadline was September 15, 2026; in-person filings had to arrive by 5:00 p.m., mailed ones be postmarked that day, and online filings be in by 11:59 p.m.
By July 22 the county auditor mails a Notice of Property Valuation and Tax Changes to every owner. It shows the assessor's market value, your taxable value, last year's and this year's taxes, proposed tax increase hearings, and how and by when to appeal. Some counties also post notices online.
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.
The county assessor values homes in each of Utah's 29 counties. The county commission or council sits as the County Board of Equalization and hears appeals; the county auditor is the board's clerk. The Utah State Tax Commission oversees counties and hears appeals from county board decisions. Homes are valued at fair market value as of January 1. A primary residence gets a 45% residential exemption, so you are taxed on 55% of market value (up to one acre of land per home). Second homes and cabins are taxed on 100%. The assessor updates every value every year using sales data and a computer mass-appraisal system. Each property's details must also get a detailed review at least once every five years; your notice shows the date of the last review.
The law does not require an informal step. Before filing, you can call or visit the county assessor to look at your property record and ask how the value was set. If the record is wrong (square footage, basement finish, number of units), point it out; a factual error is also one of the few reasons a late appeal can be accepted.
What works in Utah: Your purchase price, with the closing disclosure or settlement statement, if you bought near January 1 (a sale under contract within six months before or after January 1 is treated under special rules in Utah Code 59-2-1004); A recent fee appraisal with an effective date close to January 1; At least three sales of similar nearby homes, ideally sold from mid last year to early this year, with size, age, condition and MLS details; Assessed values of comparable homes, if yours is valued more than 5% out of line with them; Photos, repair bids or inspection reports showing condition problems as of January 1; Corrections to the county's record of your home (square footage, finished basement, lot size).
Use your county's appeal application. Every county must let you file electronically; most also take email, mail or in-person filings at the county auditor or clerk of the board. Give your estimate of fair market value as of January 1 and attach all your evidence with the application, because appeals without evidence can be dismissed. The assessor and you must swap any evidence you will rely on at least five days before a hearing. Many counties use trained hearing officers, who hold short phone or video hearings and recommend a value; the board makes the final decision, which can raise, lower or keep the value. The board must decide within 60 days of your application unless the Tax Commission allows more time. Cost: No filing fee is listed on the county forms reviewed (Salt Lake, Utah and Cache counties).
Before the county board and the Tax Commission, each side must prove the value it asks for by a preponderance of the evidence. If you ask for a value different from the assessor's (or, at the Commission, different from the county board's), you must show a substantial error in that value and give a sound evidence-based value of your own. If your value was cut on appeal last year and your current assessment is higher than the inflation adjusted value (last year's final value adjusted by the median market change for similar homes) and the home has had no qualifying change, the value is presumed to equal that inflation adjusted value.
30 days after the date of the County Board of Equalization decision. Fill out Form TC-194 (Request for Redetermination of County Decision) and file it with the county auditor, not the Tax Commission. The auditor sends the appeal and the county record to the Commission's Appeals Unit. The case goes first to mediation or an initial hearing before an administrative law judge or commissioner, usually by video unless you ask for in-person. If you disagree with the result, you can ask for a formal hearing. Send your evidence to the county and the Appeals Unit 10 business days before the hearing. The Commission must decide real property appeals by March 1 of the next year. After a formal hearing you can seek review in district court (a new trial) or in the Utah appellate courts.
The board's decision includes the new tax amount and serves as your corrected tax notice. If you already paid, the county refunds the difference to whoever paid. A lowered value is not frozen, but next year the county board starts from that value adjusted for typical market change (the inflation adjusted value) if you appeal again and the home has not changed.
Yes. You can appeal the equalization of your value as well as the value itself, using assessed values of comparable homes. If your home's value is more than 5% out of line with comparable properties, the county board (and the Tax Commission) must adjust it. 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.
A primary home (including one rented to a full-time tenant) is taxed on 55% of its market value, on up to one acre per home. Only one primary residence per household. Some counties ask for a signed declaration.
For homeowners 66 or older (67 if born in 1960 or later) or unmarried surviving spouses with 2025 household income under $44,221. Up to $1,412 off the tax for 2026. Apply to your county by September 1.
The county can cut the tax by half (up to $1,412) for low-income owner-occupants with 2025 household income under $44,221 who are 67 or older, disabled or in extreme hardship, or let you defer it. Apply to the county by September 1.
Owners 75 or older with household income up to $88,442 who meet value or 20-year ownership tests can defer taxes on their single-family home; interest accrues. Ask your county.
Veterans with a service-connected disability of at least 10% (or their unmarried surviving spouse or minor orphans) can exempt up to $535,459 of a residence's taxable value, based on disability. Legally blind owners can exempt up to $11,500 of taxable property value. Apply to the county by September 1.
You can represent yourself. Someone else, such as a tax consultant, appraiser or lawyer, can file and appear for you if you sign the county's owner authorization form. At the Tax Commission a representative needs a power of attorney (Form TC-737) on file.
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 your appeal with the County Board of Equalization by September 15, or within 45 days after the county mailed your valuation notice, whichever is later. In practice the deadline is September 15 in most counties. Late appeals are accepted only for a few reasons set by Tax Commission rule: a medical emergency or death in the family, the county failing to send the notice, an agreed factual error in county records, or other extraordinary and unanticipated circumstances (and no co-owner could file). Example: Salt Lake County's 2026 deadline was September 15, 2026; in-person filings had to arrive by 5:00 p.m., mailed ones be postmarked that day, and online filings be in by 11:59 p.m.
With the County Board of Equalization appeal. Use your county's appeal application. Every county must let you file electronically; most also take email, mail or in-person filings at the county auditor or clerk of the board. Give your estimate of fair market value as of January 1 and attach all your evidence with the application, because appeals without evidence can be dismissed. The assessor and you must swap any evidence you will rely on at least five days before a hearing. Many counties use trained hearing officers, who hold short phone or video hearings and recommend a value; the board makes the final decision, which can raise, lower or keep the value. The board must decide within 60 days of your application unless the Tax Commission allows more time.
No filing fee is listed on the county forms reviewed (Salt Lake, Utah and Cache counties).
The law does not require an informal step. Before filing, you can call or visit the county assessor to look at your property record and ask how the value was set. If the record is wrong (square footage, basement finish, number of units), point it out; a factual error is also one of the few reasons a late appeal can be accepted.
You can appeal to the Utah State Tax Commission. 30 days after the date of the County Board of Equalization decision. Fill out Form TC-194 (Request for Redetermination of County Decision) and file it with the county auditor, not the Tax Commission. The auditor sends the appeal and the county record to the Commission's Appeals Unit. The case goes first to mediation or an initial hearing before an administrative law judge or commissioner, usually by video unless you ask for in-person. If you disagree with the result, you can ask for a formal hearing. Send your evidence to the county and the Appeals Unit 10 business days before the hearing. The Commission must decide real property appeals by March 1 of the next year. After a formal hearing you can seek review in district court (a new trial) or in the Utah appellate courts.
The board's decision includes the new tax amount and serves as your corrected tax notice. If you already paid, the county refunds the difference to whoever paid. A lowered value is not frozen, but next year the county board starts from that value adjusted for typical market change (the inflation adjusted value) if you appeal again and the home has not changed.
Checked 2026-10 against official Utah sources. Local deadlines and fees can differ; confirm with your assessor or board.