Rob Hartley

Founder, AppealDesk · February 17, 2026

How to Appeal Property Taxes Without an Appraisal: Use Comps Instead

Updated February 2026 · 9 min read

One of the biggest misconceptions about property tax appeals is that you need a professional appraisal before filing. That belief stops thousands of homeowners every year from challenging assessments that are clearly too high. The reality: review boards across almost every state accept comparable sales evidence as the primary basis for a reduction, and in most cases, comps are actually more persuasive than an appraisal.

This guide explains why comps work, how to use them effectively, and when (rarely) a full appraisal might be worth the cost. If you're also wondering whether you need a lawyer, see our companion guide on appealing property taxes without a lawyer.

Why Review Boards Prefer Comps Over Appraisals

Assessment boards evaluate your home's market value based on what similar properties are actually selling for. That is the core of their job: mass appraisal using recent sales data. When you submit comparable sales that show your home is overvalued relative to the market, you are speaking the board's language.

A professional appraisal, by contrast, is one appraiser's opinion of value on a single date. Boards respect appraisals, but they know that the appraiser's methodology is subjective. Comps are objective: real transactions, real prices, recorded in public records. That objectivity is why boards in Texas, Florida, California, and nearly every other state list comparable sales as the number one form of accepted evidence.

For a deeper look at all the evidence types that win appeals, see our guide on what evidence you need for a property tax appeal.

How Comparable Sales Analysis Works

A comparable sales analysis identifies 3 to 6 recently sold homes that closely match your property in key characteristics. The goal is to demonstrate that homes like yours are selling for less than your assessed value, which proves overassessment.

What Makes a Good Comp

• Location: Within 0.5 to 1 mile of your home, ideally in the same neighborhood or school district
• Size: Within 10 to 20% of your home's square footage
• Age and condition: Built within 10 to 15 years of your home, similar overall condition
• Sale date: Sold within the last 6 to 12 months (the more recent, the better)
• Property type: Same category (single-family to single-family, condo to condo)
• Features: Similar bedroom and bathroom count, lot size, and amenities

The critical requirement: these comparable homes must have sold for less than your assessed value (or less than the implied market value derived from your assessment, depending on your state's assessment ratio). If your home is assessed at $420,000 but five similar homes nearby sold for $370,000 to $390,000, that gap is your case. For step-by-step instructions on finding comps yourself, read our guide to finding comparable sales.

Appraisal vs. Comps vs. Zillow: Which Evidence Wins?

Not all evidence carries the same weight with review boards. Here is how the three most common approaches compare.

Using Zillow or Redfin Data for Your Appeal

Many homeowners start their research on Zillow or Redfin, and that is perfectly reasonable. These platforms show recently sold properties with sale prices, photos, square footage, and lot size. For informal appeal processes (which most first-level residential appeals are), this data is often sufficient.

There are a few important distinctions to keep in mind:

• Sold prices are useful, Zestimates are not. A Zestimate is an automated valuation model (AVM), not real market data. Review boards will disregard it. Focus on actual closed sale prices only.
• Verify against county records. Zillow data occasionally has errors in square footage or sale date. Cross-reference key details with your county assessor's public records.
• Print or screenshot your evidence. Boards want documentation you can hand over or upload. A printed Zillow listing page showing the sold price, address, and property details works in most informal hearings.
• Some formal hearings require "official" data. If your appeal escalates to a formal board hearing or state-level review, you may need MLS-sourced data or a professional comp report rather than consumer website printouts.

How AppealDesk Builds Your Comp-Based Evidence Packet

AppealDesk pulls real comparable sales from professional property databases (not Zillow) and packages them in the format that review boards expect. For $49 flat, you get:

• 3 to 6 verified comparable sales with addresses, sale prices, sale dates, square footage, and property details
• Price-per-square-foot analysis showing how your assessment compares to recent market activity
• Assessment ratio verification for states that assess below 100% of market value
• A professional cover letter summarizing your overassessment argument
• County-specific filing instructions with your deadline, required forms, and submission method

The packet is designed for self-filing. You download it, follow the filing guide, and submit it to your county. Most homeowners complete the filing in 10 to 15 minutes. No appraisal needed, no lawyer needed, no hearing required in most cases. For more on handling the process without a hearing, see our guide on appealing property taxes without attending a hearing.

When an Appraisal IS Worth the Money

There are legitimate situations where spending $300 to $600 on a professional appraisal makes sense. These are the exceptions, not the rule:

• Unique or custom properties: If your home is architecturally unusual, a historic property, or a custom build with features that make it genuinely unlike anything else in the neighborhood, finding good comps is difficult. An appraiser can make adjustments that raw comp data cannot.
• Rural areas with very few sales: If fewer than three comparable homes have sold within a reasonable radius in the past year, you may not have enough comps to build a strong case. An appraisal fills that gap.
• Formal hearings or court appeals: If your appeal escalates beyond the informal first level to a state board hearing or tax court, an appraisal from a licensed appraiser carries significant legal weight. Some courts treat appraiser testimony as expert evidence.
• Very high-value properties: For homes assessed above $1 million, the potential savings from a successful appeal often justify the appraisal cost many times over.
• Major property condition issues: If your home has serious structural damage, environmental problems, or functional obsolescence that comps alone cannot capture, an appraiser can quantify the value impact of those issues.

For the vast majority of residential appeals (standard single-family homes in suburban or urban areas), comparable sales data is all you need. Use the savings calculator to check whether your potential savings justify the filing effort.

The Cost Math: Appraisal vs. Comps

Let's put the numbers side by side. Say your home is overassessed by $40,000 and your local tax rate is 1.5%. That's $600 per year in excess taxes.

• Appraisal route: $400 appraisal cost. If you win, you save $600 per year. Net first-year savings: $200. Break-even in under a year.
• Comp-based packet (AppealDesk): $49 cost. If you win, you save $600 per year. Net first-year savings: $551. Pays for itself more than 12 times over.
• DIY with free Zillow data: $0 cost but 8 to 15 hours of research time. If your time is worth $25/hour, the implicit cost is $200 to $375.

In most scenarios, a comp-based approach delivers the best return. The evidence is equally strong, the cost is a fraction of an appraisal, and the process is faster. For a complete breakdown of appeal costs across different approaches, read our comprehensive guide to appealing property taxes.

Step-by-Step: Filing a Comp-Based Appeal

Here is the general process for filing without an appraisal. For state-specific details, visit your assessment notice guide to understand your timeline and options.

• Step 1: Review your assessment notice and confirm the assessed value and property details are accurate.
• Step 2: Gather 3 to 6 comparable sales showing lower values than your assessment. Use MLS data, county records, or a service like AppealDesk.
• Step 3: Calculate the overassessment. Subtract the average comp sale price from your assessed value (adjusting for your state's assessment ratio if applicable).
• Step 4: Write a brief cover letter stating your case: your assessed value, the comp evidence, and the specific reduction you are requesting.
• Step 5: File by your county's deadline. Most counties accept online submissions, mail, or in-person filing.

Frequently Asked Questions