Ohio Real Estate Tax — The Deadline to Protest Tax Year 2022 Value is March 31, 2023

Thoughts for 2022 Tax Year Valuation and How to Challenge

The 2022 Tax Year is the “reappraisal” year in several Ohio counties. Generally, because Tax Year 2016 was the last “reappraisal” year for the twelve (12) Ohio counties listed in the chart below, taxpayers may want to review the value that the County Auditor assigned to the real estate for Tax Year 2022. Taxpayers may find significant changes to their real property values because the real estate market has significantly changed in recent years.

The following Ohio counties performed the “reappraisal” of the value of real estate for Tax Year 2022 in late 2022:

Although the “as of” tax lien valuation date for Tax Year 2022 is January 1, 2022, the process to initiate a challenge to that January 1, 2022 tax lien date value is accomplished a full year later. The valuation complaint (protest against the valuation) may be filed between January 1, 2023 and March 31, 2023. Generally, those businesses that wish to file valuation complaints should utilize an Ohio-licensed attorney to assist in the complaint and the hearing that will take place at the County Board of Revision.

Some practical points to consider when reviewing the Tax Year 2022 tax bill that you received include:

• The deadline to file a complaint for the Tax Year 2022 value is March 31, 2023. The filing of a complaint is required to commence the proceeding to attempt to reduce the owner’s real estate tax liability.
• You may protest value in any of the eight-eight (88) counties in Ohio, and not merely the counties listed above. Those counties are listed above because those are the counties where all the property was recently re-appraised via the six-year reappraisal process.
• The “fair market value” or “true value” is what the auditor alleges the property is worth.
• The “taxable value” is 35% of that “fair market value” or “true value.”
• The tax rate is not challengeable, it is merely the value that may be challenged; but since the tax is ultimately based on the value, the result can be a tax savings.
• Generally, obtaining an appraisal could be useful in your attempt to establish the fair market value of the property. The fact of a recent arm’s-length sale is also probative of the market value of the property.
• Ohio House Bill 126, effective in July of 2022, severely restricted rights of school districts in the complaint process, including provisions that disallow a school district to appeal a board of revision decision to the Ohio Board of Tax Appeals.

Our attorneys have experience in assisting owners with real estate tax reductions. If you would like to discuss whether filing an appeal makes sense for your property or if you have questions about the valuation process, please contact Stephen Hall or any of the other ZHF professionals.