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Tax Assessment Appeals in Palm Beach & Broward County

Straightforward tax assessment appeals from Slater Appraisals, Inc.. Independent, well-supported valuations with clear, upfront fees.

Get a free estimate (215) 687-2406

Property tax assessments in Palm Beach County and Broward County don't always track the market accurately. In rapidly appreciating neighborhoods, assessments sometimes overshoot actual sale prices; in areas that have softened, the assessed value may not reflect what a buyer would realistically pay today. Homeowners often sense that something is off when their tax bill arrives, but without an independent value opinion as of the assessment date, that feeling doesn't translate into a successful appeal. The Value Adjustment Board process requires evidence, not just a disagreement — and the appeal window in Florida is short enough that waiting too long removes the option entirely.

A tax assessment appeal appraisal from Slater Appraisals, Inc. is prepared as of the January 1 assessment date, using comparable sales and market conditions from that specific period. The report is written to address the questions that property appraiser staff and VAB hearing officers typically raise, including how the comparable sales were selected, how adjustments were made, and why the concluded value differs from the assessment. This isn't a summary letter — it's a formal appraisal report structured to function as primary evidence in a formal appeal proceeding. Robin works with property owners directly and can coordinate with attorneys who specialize in tax appeal matters when the situation warrants it.

Homeowners across Palm Beach and Broward County who have successfully appealed their assessments often credit the outcome to having a well-prepared appraisal rather than a generic protest. A report from Slater Appraisals, Inc. gives the VAB or the property appraiser's office something specific to respond to — a supported value conclusion with a clear methodology. When the appeal succeeds, the result is a lower assessed value that carries forward into future tax years, making the cost of the appraisal a practical investment rather than an administrative expense. Scheduling early in the appeal window leaves time to work through the process without rushing.

What's Included

Every tax assessment appeals visit includes

  • Value as of the assessment date
  • Supports VAB petitions in Palm Beach and Broward
  • Written to answer assessor questions
  • Best scheduled early in the appeal window

Fee quoted per assignment

Service Area

Serving Palm Beach & Broward County

West Palm BeachBoca RatonDelray BeachBoynton BeachWellingtonJupiterFort LauderdalePompano BeachCoral SpringsHollywood
The Process

How a tax appeal appraisal works

1

Review the assessment

Start with your TRIM notice and the Property Appraiser's record for your home. Robin looks at whether the assessed value is actually out of line with market evidence before you spend money appealing.

2

Inspect and document

Condition issues the county's mass-appraisal model can't see — deferred maintenance, functional problems, dated interiors — are documented in detail.

3

Build the market case

The report values your property as of the assessment date using verified sales, the same evidence standard the Value Adjustment Board responds to.

4

Support the petition

You or your representative file the appeal; the appraisal is the evidence at the heart of it.

Florida Specifics

How assessment appeals work in Palm Beach & Broward

Property tax appeals in Florida run on a clock, and the counties follow the same basic sequence:

  • TRIM notices arrive in August showing the proposed assessed value and taxes
  • The window to petition the county's Value Adjustment Board closes shortly after — typically mid-September
  • Homesteaded owners: the Save Our Homes cap limits annual assessed increases, so the biggest appeal opportunities are often non-homestead properties, recent purchases, and homes with condition issues
  • Mass appraisal values whole neighborhoods by formula — it cannot see your specific house's condition
  • An independent appraisal is the strongest evidence a petitioner can bring
Frequently Asked Questions

Questions about this service

The appeal process reviews the evidence you bring against the assessment on record. Before you file anything, Robin can tell you honestly whether the market data supports a reduction — if it doesn't, you'll know before spending the filing fee, not after.

That depends on the gap between your assessed value and demonstrable market value, and on your millage rate. A meaningful over-assessment compounds every year it goes uncorrected, so the math often favors acting — and Robin keeps fees low so the analysis doesn't eat the benefit.

The petition deadline is printed on your TRIM notice and typically falls about 25 days after notices go out in August. If you're reading this near the deadline, call promptly — a retrospective appraisal can still be prepared, but the petition itself must be filed on time.

Not by itself — assessments vary for legitimate reasons, including Save Our Homes caps that travel with long-term ownership. The argument that wins is market evidence: verified sales showing what your property was actually worth on the assessment date.

Also Available

Other services we handle

Full list on our services page.

Residential Real Estate Appraisals

Complete appraisal reports for single-family homes and residential properties throughout Palm Beach and Broward County, prepared with more than four decades of local market knowledge. Includes a full interior and exterior inspection, photographs, sketch, market analysis, and comparable sales research specific to the subject's neighborhood. Reports are written to be defensible for lenders, attorneys, or private use. Typical turnaround is a few business days after inspection, depending on complexity. Every report is prepared personally by Robin Slater.

Learn more

Estate & Date-of-Death Appraisals

Retrospective valuations for estate settlement and probate, giving attorneys, executors, and families a defensible value as of the date required. Reports are prepared to IRS-friendly standards with historical comparable sales pulled from the effective date, not today's market. Used for step-up in basis calculations, estate tax filings, and distribution among heirs. Delivered in a format that won't slow down a probate filing or trigger follow-up questions from an accountant or auditor.

Learn more

Divorce & Family Law Appraisals

Independent, unbiased valuations for equitable distribution. Clear, well-supported reports that stand up in negotiation and in court. Robin works with attorneys on both sides and with mediators, and can serve as a neutral joint appraiser when both parties agree. Reports include full supporting documentation and can be accompanied by testimony if the case requires it. Confidential handling, professional communication with counsel, and turnaround that respects court and mediation deadlines.

Learn more

Pre-Listing Appraisals

Know what your home is really worth before you list. An objective valuation that helps sellers price with confidence and avoid leaving money on the table, or chasing the market down with price cuts. Unlike a broker's opinion, a pre-listing appraisal is prepared by a disinterested third party with no commission at stake. Useful for owners considering a sale, negotiating with a buyer directly, or evaluating an offer that came in below expectations.

Learn more

PMI Removal Appraisals

Current-value appraisals homeowners can use to petition their lender to remove private mortgage insurance once equity supports it. Many South Florida owners have gained enough value to drop PMI but don't realize the lender will accept an independent appraisal as evidence. The report is prepared to standard lender format so it can be submitted directly to your servicer. In most cases the appraisal fee is recovered within a couple of months of PMI savings.

Learn more

Condominium Appraisals

Valuations for condos and townhomes across South Florida's condo-dense coastal markets, with attention to association factors that affect value. That means looking at HOA financials, reserves, special assessments, milestone inspection status, insurance, and rental rules, all of which move the number in Boca Raton, Fort Lauderdale, Hollywood, and points between. Comparables are drawn from within the building or complex where possible, and adjusted carefully for view, floor, and exposure.

Learn more
Free Estimate

Get a free tax assessment appeals estimate

Tell us about the job and we'll come out and measure it. Written estimate before any work starts, no obligation.

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Tax Assessment Appeals Near You — Palm Beach & Broward County

When your assessed value doesn't match the market, Slater Appraisals prepares a formal, VAB-ready appraisal report as of the January 1 assessment date — giving you the specific evidence Palm Beach and Broward County hearing officers actually respond to.

Why Location and Local Market Knowledge Matter for Your Appeal

South Florida's property tax landscape has its own dynamics that a generic appraisal doesn't address. Palm Beach County and Broward County both conduct mass appraisals across tens of thousands of parcels — a formula-driven process that applies neighborhood-wide adjustments rather than looking at any individual home. That methodology struggles in markets like West Palm Beach's El Cid or Flamingo Park neighborhoods, where lot size variations, older construction, and proximity to the Intracoastal create value differences that a county model routinely flattens out.

Coastal and near-coastal properties throughout Palm Beach and Broward counties carry insurance and condition factors — wind mitigation status, roof age under Florida's heightened carrier scrutiny, and storm-related deferred maintenance — that suppress buyer willingness to pay but rarely show up in the county's assessed value. Non-homestead properties, recently purchased homes where the assessed value has already been reset to sale price, and condominiums in associations with pending special assessments or litigation are among the most common appeal opportunities in this market.

With over 40 years of appraisal work concentrated in Palm Beach and Broward counties, Robin Slater understands which comparable sales VAB hearing officers find persuasive and which ones get challenged. That local depth is the difference between an appraisal that moves the needle and one that gets set aside.

What Makes a Tax Appeal Appraisal Different From a Standard Report

Not every appraisal is built for a contested proceeding. A report prepared for a mortgage lender follows one set of standards; a report intended as primary evidence before a Value Adjustment Board needs to anticipate a different set of questions. Hearing officers and property appraiser staff are trained reviewers — they will ask how comparables were selected, why specific adjustments were made, and how the appraiser arrived at a value that differs from the county's conclusion.

The appraisals Robin prepares for tax appeal purposes are formal reports, not summary letters or restricted-use documents. The effective date is the January 1 assessment date, not the current date, which means the comparable sales and market conditions analyzed must reflect that specific point in time. That retrospective discipline is not optional — an appraisal dated today cannot speak accurately to what the market supported on the date that determines your tax bill.

Before any work begins, Robin reviews your TRIM notice and the county's property record to assess whether the market data actually supports a lower value. If the evidence doesn't favor an appeal, you'll hear that plainly — before you've paid a filing fee or committed to the process. That kind of straightforward assessment up front is what makes the appraisal a practical tool rather than an administrative exercise.

Common questions

How do I know if my assessment is actually worth appealing?
The gap between your assessed value and what comparable homes were actually selling for on January 1 is the core question. Robin reviews your TRIM notice and the county's property record before you commit to anything — if the market data from that period doesn't support a meaningful reduction, you'll know before spending money on a filing fee or appraisal report. Homes with condition issues, recent purchases reset to sale price, and non-homestead properties are the most common strong candidates in Palm Beach and Broward counties.
Can I use the same appraisal for both Palm Beach County and Broward County proceedings?
Each county has its own Value Adjustment Board and its own property appraiser's office, so appeals are filed separately with the relevant county. If you own properties in both counties, Robin can prepare reports for each — the effective date and the comparable sales analysis will be specific to each property's location and the assessment that controls it. The process and evidence standards are consistent across both counties.
What happens after the appraisal is complete — do I need an attorney?
Many property owners handle VAB petitions themselves using the appraisal as their primary exhibit. For more complex situations — larger commercial-residential properties, appeals where the county is likely to push back aggressively, or cases that may proceed beyond the VAB — Robin can coordinate with attorneys who specialize in Florida property tax matters. The appraisal functions as the evidentiary foundation either way; whether you need legal representation depends on the specifics of your situation.

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