A glossary of property tax terminology used in our state cornerstones and topic explainers. Terms are organized alphabetically. Where a term is state-specific, the relevant state is noted.
AAB (Assessment Appeals Board) — California's county-level appeal venue (3-member appointed board). Some counties (Santa Clara) also use Value Hearing Officers for lower-complexity cases. Decisions are not centrally published; written findings of fact cost $492+ per parcel/issue at LA County.
Added Assessment Roll (NJ) — Mid-year supplemental assessment for property improvements completed after the standard October 1 lien date. Governed by N.J.S.A. 54:4-63.2 et seq. Has its own 30-day appeal window separate from the regular April 1 deadline.
ARB (Appraisal Review Board) (TX) — 5-member appointed county-level panel that hears formal property tax protests. ARB orders can be appealed to binding arbitration, SOAH, or district court.
Article 7 Tax Certiorari (NY) — The judicial venue for property tax appeals on commercial, multi-unit, or non-SCAR-eligible properties. Filed in NY Supreme Court; attorney typically required.
Assessed value — The value the assessor lists on the tax roll, used to compute the tax bill. May be a fraction of market value (IL 33⅓%, NY locality-specific) or 100% of market value (TX, NJ).
Assessment ratio — The fraction of market value used as taxable value. Statewide rules: TX 100%, IL 33⅓% (Cook 10% via classification ordinance), CA acquisition-value (not a fraction), NJ 100% (with Director's Ratio for cross-jurisdictional comparison), NY locality-specific.
BAR (Board of Assessment Review) (NY) — Local town/city/village appeal venue (3-5 member appointed). Hears formal grievances on Grievance Day (4th Tuesday of May default; alternate days possible by local law).
Base year value (CA) — Under Prop 13, the property's value at the most recent change of ownership or new construction. Rises by no more than 2% annually thereafter (the "factored base year value"). Reset only at next change of ownership or new construction.
Binding arbitration (TX) — Tier 3 escalation after ARB. Administrative, fast (3-6 months), $450-$1,500 deposit (refunded if you win), residential ≤ $5M and commercial ≤ $5M. Decisions are confidential between parties.
BoR (Board of Review) (IL) — County-level appeal venue (typically 3 members). Hears formal appeals after township assessor informal review fails.
CAD (County Appraisal District) (TX) — The county-level appraising entity. Distinct from the County Tax Assessor-Collector (which collects taxes after the CAD assesses).
Carry-forward — When a successful appeal's reduction persists beyond the year of the appeal. Examples: IL §16-185 PTAB rollover (rest of general assessment period); NJ §54:3-26 (CBT judgment frozen 2 succeeding years); CA Prop 8 (annual until market recovers).
CBT (County Board of Taxation) (NJ) — County-level appeal venue. Three-member appointed panel. Hears formal appeals; deadline April 1 (Jan 15 in alternate-calendar counties).
Chapter 123 (NJ) — N.J.S.A. 54:3-22. Provides an automatic procedural reduction when the property's assessment-to-true-value ratio falls outside ±15% of the municipal Director's Ratio. Once true value is established, the ratio math determines the result.
Circuit Breaker Limitation (TX) — HB 1956 / §23.231. 20% cap on year-over-year appraised value increases for non-homestead real property under ~$5.16M (CPI-indexed). Currently authorized only for tax years 2024-2026; expires Dec 31, 2026 absent legislative extension.
Common Level Range (NJ) — The ±15% band around the municipal Director's Ratio. Properties with ratios outside this range qualify for Chapter 123 adjustment.
Comparable sales (comps) — Recent sales of similar properties used to support a market-value claim. Standard rule: 3-5 comps, within ~12 months of the assessment date, similar in size/age/style/condition, in the same neighborhood.
Decline-in-value (Prop 8) (CA) — When current market value falls below factored base year value. The assessor applies a temporary reduction; reviewed annually until market recovers. Can be requested informally through the county assessor's office without a formal AAB application.
Director's Ratio (NJ) — Annually-certified ratio published by the NJ Director of Taxation showing average assessed-to-true-value ratio for each municipality. Updated each October, amended by Tax Court in late January. Used for Chapter 123 appeals and inter-municipal equalization.
EAV (Equalized Assessed Value) (IL) — Assessed value × township equalization factor × state equalization multiplier. The value used to compute the tax bill (after exemptions are deducted).
Equalization rate (NY) — Annually-published ratio of total assessed value to total market value for a NY municipality. Used for inter-municipal allocations and certain state-aid calculations. Published by ORPTS.
Escape assessment — A back-tax billing for prior years' assessments that were missed or understated. CA: §531.1. TX: §25.21 (5-year lookback). NJ: omitted assessments under N.J.S.A. 54:4-63.12.
Equal & Uniform (TX) — A protest theory under Tax Code §41.43(b)(3): the appraised value is high relative to the median appraised value of comparable properties, appropriately adjusted. Statistically more successful than market-value protests in TX residential cases.
Factored base year value (CA) — Base year value × cumulative ≤2%/year inflation factors since acquisition. Compare to market value to determine whether Prop 8 decline-in-value applies.
General assessment period (IL) — The 4-year cycle (in non-Cook counties) during which a successful PTAB appeal's reduced assessment can be carried forward under §16-185 (subject to township equalization).
Grievance Day (NY) — The day local Boards of Assessment Review hear formal complaints. Default is the 4th Tuesday of May (RPTL §512); some localities adopt alternate days (Suffolk uses 3rd Tuesday).
Homestead Cap (TX) — Texas Constitution Article VIII §1-b(d). Limits year-over-year increases in appraised value used for the tax bill on owner-occupied homesteads to 10% maximum, regardless of market value.
Homestead Exemption — A reduction in taxable value for owner-occupied primary residences. State-specific amounts: TX $140K (school district), IL $6K-$10K depending on county tier, NJ none (uses Chapter 123 + ANCHOR), NY varies (STAR provides $30K-$70.7K reduction in school assessed value), CA $7K (Homeowners' Exemption).
Level of assessment (NY) — The locality-specific percentage of market value used for assessment. Some NY localities use 100%; others fractional. Each locality publishes its own.
Lien date — The date as of which a property's value is assessed for that tax year. Generally January 1 in TX/CA/IL; October 1 in NJ; varies by jurisdiction (typically March 1) in NY.
Mass appraisal — The CAD/assessor's annual or periodic process of revaluing all properties in the jurisdiction simultaneously. Distinct from individual reassessments triggered by ownership changes or new construction.
Millage — Tax rate expressed as dollars per $1,000 of assessed value. 1 mill = $1 per $1,000 = 0.1%.
Prop 8 (CA) — Proposition 8 (1978). Codified at Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code §51(a)(2). Allows temporary reductions in assessed value when current market value falls below factored base year value. Reviewed annually at the lien date.
Prop 13 (CA) — Proposition 13 (1978). California Constitution Article XIII A. Caps tax rate at 1% + voter-approved local debt; caps year-over-year assessed value increases at 2%; resets base year value only at change of ownership or new construction.
Prop 19 (CA) — Proposition 19 (Nov 2020). Modified parent-child / grandparent-grandchild transfer rules and broadened age-55+ portability. Effective February 16, 2021.
PTAB (Property Tax Appeal Board) (IL) — State-level administrative appeal venue. Hears appeals from County Boards of Review. Decisions are publicly published as PDFs at ptab.illinois.gov.
Reassessment — The process of resetting a property's value to current market value. State-specific cycles: TX annual; CA acquisition-only (Prop 13); IL 4-year quadrennial (Cook triennial-by-district); NJ municipality-by-municipality; NY locality-specific.
SCAR (Small Claims Assessment Review) (NY) — Informal post-BAR appeal venue for owner-occupied 1-3 family residences (plus owner-occupied Class One condos in NYC). $30 filing fee, no attorney required, decisions in NY Supreme Court.
Section 16-185 (IL) — 35 ILCS 200/16-185. Carries forward a PTAB-reduced assessment on owner-occupied residences for the rest of the general assessment period (subject to township equalization). Two narrow termination exceptions: arms-length sale at a different price, or PTAB decision reversed/modified on review.
Section 25.25(c) (TX) — Texas Tax Code §25.25(c). Allows correction of clerical or factual errors with a 5-year lookback — reaches back to recover refunds (with interest) for prior tax years already paid. Eligible error categories are narrow but valuable.
Section 51 / §51(a)(1) / §51(a)(2) (CA) — Cal. Rev. & Tax. Code §51 establishes the "lesser of" rule: taxable value = lesser of factored base year value or current market value. Subsection (a)(2) is the Prop 8 decline-in-value provision.
Senior Freeze (IL) — Senior Citizens Assessment Freeze Homestead Exemption. Freezes Equalized Assessed Value at base year value for qualifying seniors (age 65+, household income ≤ $75,000 for assessment year 2026). Annual income recertification required.
SOAH (State Office of Administrative Hearings) (TX) — Tier 3 escalation after ARB for higher-value commercial cases. Administrative law judge proceedings; $1,500 deposit; >$1M property value threshold.
STAR (School Tax Relief) (NY) — RPTL §425. Basic STAR provides $30,000 reduction in school assessed value (income ≤ $250K). Enhanced STAR is $70,700 (2026) for owners 65+ with income ≤ $110,750.
Supplemental assessment — A mid-year reassessment triggered by change of ownership or new construction. CA: 60-day appeal window. TX: separate from regular annual reappraisal.
Tax Court (NJ) — The judicial venue for property tax appeals after CBT denial (or direct filing for properties >$1M). Decisions are publicly published.
Taxable status date (NY) — The date as of which a property's status (occupied, vacant, exempt, etc.) is determined for that tax year. Typically March 1 in most NY localities.
True market value — What a property would sell for in an arms-length transaction. The benchmark for most property tax appeal arguments. Established via recent purchase price, comparable sales, or USPAP-compliant appraisal.
Unequal assessment (NY) — A property tax appeal theory: the assessment-to-true-value ratio exceeds the locality's level of assessment. Burden is to prove over-assessment relative to comparable properties at the same level.
Uniformity appeal (IL) — A property tax appeal theory: the assessed value is high relative to comparable assessed values in the same neighborhood. Higher burden of proof than market-value appeal ("clear and convincing" vs. preponderance of evidence).
USPAP (Uniform Standards of Professional Appraisal Practice) — The professional standards for licensed appraisers. USPAP-compliant appraisals carry weight at all 5 launch states' appeal venues. Typical residential cost: $400-$800.
The Property Tax Desk Editorial Team