How to appeal your property tax assessment in Tennessee

Find your Tennessee county

Where you file depends on your county. Pick yours for the office contacts, local tax figures and a step-by-step guide.

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.

How to appeal in Tennessee, step by step

1. Understand your assessment

   An elected county assessor of property values every home in each of Tennessee's 95 counties (in Nashville, the Assessor of Property of Metropolitan Nashville and Davidson County). The county board of equalization hears appeals; the State Board of Equalization, part of the Comptroller of the Treasury, hears the next level. Homes are appraised at market value as of January 1. Your taxable (assessed) value is 25% of that appraised value for residential and farm property. Your tax is the assessed value divided by 100, times the local tax rate. Example from the Comptroller: a $400,000 home is assessed at $100,000. Each county reappraises all real property on a fixed cycle, then values generally stay the same until the next county-wide reappraisal (about 18 counties also apply a mid-cycle index adjustment in some years). Most counties reappraise every 5 years; others every 4 or 6 years, and a few every 2 or 3 years (for example Knox and Blount reappraised in 2026 and will again in 2028; Davidson and Williamson are next in 2028; Shelby and Hamilton in 2029). You can still appeal every year, even in years your value did not change.

2. Check the record and talk to the assessor

   Many assessors offer an informal review before the county board meets, and calling the assessor of property can clear up record errors quickly. It is optional and is not an appeal: to keep your rights you must still appeal to the county board of equalization by its deadline. Examples: Davidson County's 2026 informal review requests closed April 17; Hamilton County asks for informal review requests before May 20; Knox County ran informal appeals through May in its 2026 reappraisal year. Factual errors (wrong square footage, ownership, location) can also be corrected by the assessor under the correction-of-errors law, if requested before March 1 of the second year after the tax year.

3. Gather your evidence

   What works in Tennessee:

   • Sales of comparable homes near the January 1 assessment date
   • A recent appraisal
   • Your purchase price and closing statement if you bought recently
   • Photos and repair estimates showing damage or needed repairs
   • Corrections to your property record

   More detail

   • Sales of comparable homes near the January 1 assessment date, with adjustments for size, age, condition, location and features
   • A recent appraisal (if you use one at the State Board, the appraiser may need to testify)
   • Your purchase price and closing statement if you bought recently
   • Photos and repair estimates showing damage or needed repairs (not routine upkeep)
   • Corrections to your property record (square footage, room count, condition, classification)

4. File your appeal County form

   First level: County Board of Equalization appeal. Contact your county assessor of property to file or schedule an appeal with the county board of equalization; the assessor's office handles scheduling for the board. There is no single state form: each county uses its own appeal form or has you fill one out at the hearing (Davidson has you complete it when you arrive). Say what value you think is right and bring evidence. You can appear yourself, send a family member, an attorney, or an agent you authorize in writing. Hearings are informal, the assessor attends, and the board can lower, raise or keep the value. The board mails its decision with instructions for appealing to the State Board. If you do not appear before the board adjourns, the assessor's value is final. Cost: No fee was found on official county or state pages for county board appeals.

5. Prove your case at 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

   You, as the one appealing, carry the burden of proof at both levels. At the State Board you must show by the more convincing evidence (“a preponderance of the evidence”: more likely true than not) what the correct value should be. Saying the value is too high, or that it went up in a reappraisal, is not enough without evidence of a more correct value.

6. If you lose: State Board of Equalization (hearing before an Administrative Judge)

   By August 1 of the tax year or within 45 days after the county board's decision notice was sent, whichever is later. If your value or classification changed and the change notice was mailed less than 10 days before the county board adjourned, you may appeal directly to the State Board within 45 days after the notice was sent; if no change notice was sent at all, within 45 days after the tax bill date. With reasonable cause, a late appeal can be accepted up to March 1 of the next year. File online through the State Board of Equalization's filing system. The filing fee is set by rule and may not exceed $10 per filing. Your case goes to an Administrative Judge (Administrative Procedures Division, Secretary of State); you get a Notice of Hearing at least 60 days before the hearing, usually held virtually. The judge rules within 90 days; the order becomes final about 30 days later unless someone asks the State Board (or Assessment Appeals Commission) to review it. Evidence you gave the county board is not carried over automatically. You must pay at least the undisputed part of your taxes before the March 1 delinquency date, or the appeal can be dismissed. After that, you can go to chancery court within 60 days of the final order.

7. After you win

   The new value applies to that tax year. Because Tennessee keeps values until the next county-wide reappraisal, a reduced value generally carries into later years unless the property or market changes, but each year is separately appealable. After a State Board appeal closes, refunds are due within 60 days; extra tax owed is due within 30 days, with interest at the prime rate minus 2 points.

Official forms

Is your home assessed higher than similar homes?

Tennessee law lets you complain that other property is assessed below market value, and boards equalize assessments, but the State Board equalizes by finding your home's market value and applying the county's appraisal ratio. Pointing to lower assessments on neighbors' homes, without market evidence of your home's value, is unlikely to win. This works only in limited cases. Run the numbers with our unequal assessment calculator.

Exemptions that lower your bill without an appeal

An 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.

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 Tennessee has passed. We set this letter to the 2027 tax year: send it after your 2027 notice arrives. Late appeal: with reasonable cause, a late appeal can be accepted up to March 1, 2027.

RobinClaim is a free information site, not a law firm or appraiser. The letter is a template, not legal advice.

Tennessee property tax appeal FAQ