How to appeal your property taxes in Dallas County, Alabama
In Dallas County, if the value on your notice is too high, you can ask to have it lowered. You don't need a lawyer.
Checked against official sources: Oct 21, 2026
Can I still appeal?
Closed for 2026 — opens between March and July 2027
As 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 (a board that hears appeals and evens out values between homes) 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.
Dallas County homeowners pay a median of $392 a year in property tax on a median home value of $94,600. Its effective tax rate (property taxes paid as a share of home values, per the Tax Foundation) is 0.36%, the 8th highest of 67 Alabama counties. The Dallas County Tax Assessor sets the market value of every home in Dallas County, and an owner-occupied home is taxed on 10% of that value. If you disagree, the Dallas County Board of Equalization, a local citizen board, hears your protest.
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.
Missed the deadline? What you can do now
- No notice? If you never got a notice that your value went up, you can ask the county Board of Equalization to reopen your assessment. Ask the county for the last date.
- Check your notice: is your homestead exemption on it? If an exemption is missing, ask the office that sets your value. Exemptions have their own deadlines.
- Set a reminder for March 2027, when the next notice usually arrives. Then check the value and the deadline right away. Add to my calendar
Where to file in Dallas County
Dallas County Tax Assessor
Phone: 334-874-2520
Address: 101 Church St., Selma, AL 36702
Tax Assessor: Carroll A Bonner
Official county listing · call the county courthouse and ask for the county revenue commissioner or tax assessor
The assessing office keeps your property record and sets your value; it can fix factual errors, explain your valuation notice, and give you the Board of Equalization protest form and deadline.
How to appeal in Dallas County, step by step
Read your notice
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.
Check your property record
Look up your home on the Dallas County Tax Assessor website and check square footage, bathrooms, condition and features. Mistakes are the easiest wins. Use our record card checklist.
File by the deadline
Send a signed written protest to the Dallas County Board of Equalization within 30 days of the date printed on your valuation notice, not the day it arrived. Ask the Dallas County Tax Assessor for the county's protest form and the board's address, and include your parcel number, your reasons and your evidence.
Gather evidence
What works in Alabama:
- Sales of similar nearby homes from the valuation period
- A private appraisal dated within the same valuation period
- 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
More detail
- 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
Go to the hearing
Bring copies of your evidence for each board member. Keep to the value of your home, not the size of the bill.
More detail
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.
If you disagree with the decision
Next step: 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.
How much could you save?
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.
Free property tax appeal letter
Fill in your details and download a written appeal statement as a PDF. Most boards also require their own appeal form: file the form and attach this letter and your evidence to it.
The 2026 deadline in Alabama has passed. We set this letter to the 2027 tax year: send it after your 2027 notice arrives. No notice? If you never got a notice that your value went up, you can ask the county Board of Equalization to reopen your assessment. Ask the county for the last date.
RobinClaim is a free information site, not a law firm or appraiser. The letter is a template, not legal advice.
Dallas County property tax appeal FAQ
What is the deadline to appeal property taxes in Dallas 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.
Where do I file a property tax appeal in Dallas County?
File a written protest with the Dallas County Board of Equalization within 30 days of the date on your valuation notice; the Dallas County Tax Assessor can give you the form and the board's mailing address.
How do I contact the Dallas County Tax Assessor?
Phone 334-874-2520.
Does it cost anything to appeal?
No fee.
Sources
Contact details change; call or check the office website before you visit.