Property Tax Appeals & Assessment Disputes
Property Tax Appeal Appraisals for Commercial Real Estate
Independent. USPAP-Compliant. Built for the Assessment Appeals Board.
What Makes a Property Tax Appeal Valuation Different
A property tax appeal appraisal is not a routine market opinion — it is an independent conclusion of value, tied to a specific valuation date, prepared as evidence to rebut the assessor’s value before a county Assessment Appeals Board. SM RE Inc. prepares USPAP-compliant commercial real property appraisals for assessment appeals across Southern California, working alongside the property tax attorneys, tax agents, CPAs, and fiduciaries responsible for the matter.
Three things set this work apart from a standard appraisal. The effective date is set by the appeal type — the January 1 lien date for a decline-in-value appeal, or the date of a change in ownership for a base-year appeal — so the analysis relies on the market data available as of that date, not today’s. The conclusion is measured against the assessed value, which means it carries a direct, quantifiable property-tax consequence for the owner. And it may be presented before the Assessment Appeals Board — every comparable, adjustment, and conclusion has to be documented well enough to stand up as evidence and, when needed, to support testimony.
Assignment Types
– 01
Decline-in-Value (Prop 8) Appeals
Opinion of a commercial property’s market value as of the lien date where that value has fallen below its Proposition 13 assessed value, supporting a request for a temporary reduction.
– 02
Base-Year Value Appeals (Change in Ownership)
Valuation as of the date of a change in ownership — a purchase or a transfer at death — supporting a challenge to the Proposition 13 base-year value the assessor set upon reassessment. Common where inherited commercial real property is reassessed well above its date-of-death value.
– 03
Supplemental Assessment Appeals
Valuation supporting an appeal of a supplemental assessment — the additional assessment issued after a mid-year change in ownership or completed new construction — as of the date of that event.
– 04
Escape Assessment Appeals
Valuation supporting an appeal of an escape assessment — value the assessor added for a prior year that was not captured when it should have been — prepared for the applicable year.
Engagement process
Consultation — Review the property, the assessed value at issue, the applicable valuation date, and the county’s appeal deadline.
Valuation Analysis — A market-supported opinion of value as of the applicable valuation date, prepared to USPAP standards and framed as evidence for the appeal.
Delivery & Support — A documented report to file with the appeal, with post-delivery support and testimony before the Assessment Appeals Board when the conclusion is contested.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a property tax appeal appraisal? An independent opinion of a commercial property’s market value as of the applicable valuation date, used as evidence to challenge the assessor’s assessed value before the county Assessment Appeals Board.
What date is the appraisal effective as of? It depends on the appeal — a decline-in-value appraisal is effective as of the January 1 lien date, and a base-year appraisal is effective as of the date of the change in ownership. We confirm the effective date when we scope the assignment.
How does your appraisal support the appeal? We provide an independent, USPAP-compliant opinion of the property’s market value as of the applicable date, documented as evidence for the Assessment Appeals Board and, when needed, supported by testimony. Filing and procedure are handled by your attorney or tax agent.
Do you work with the property tax attorney or tax agent? Yes — the appraisal is prepared to support the appeal, in direct coordination with the attorney, tax agent, or CPA handling the matter.
Discuss a Property Tax Appeal
SM RE Inc. supports property tax attorneys, tax agents and consultants, CPAs, and the owners and fiduciaries responsible for commercial real property.