Ohio · Do-it-yourself · $29

Appeal your Ohio property taxes yourself.

Everything you need to appeal your Ohio valuation yourself — the January-to-March filing window, the one-complaint-per-cycle rule that punishes a rushed filing, the $50,000 line that wakes up your school board, and a ready-to-edit complaint. Ohio's window opens January 1; this is how you arrive ready.

Straight talk: we don’t have per-home comparable-sales data for Ohio — Ohio's parcel records are published by 88 separate county auditors rather than as one statewide roll, and most do not release the building detail needed to size-adjust a comparable set. So this is a guide and templates, not a comp report, and you pull your own comps— the kit shows you exactly how. That’s the honest reason it’s $29 instead of the $49 done-for-you kit we sell in states we cover.
The Ohio DIY Appeal Kit
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How an Ohio appeal works

The short version, free. The kit is the long version with the forms, the filing steps, and the letter.

  1. Ohio taxes 35% of your home's market value, so divide the taxable value on your bill by 0.35 to see what the auditor thinks your home is worth. That market figure is what you appeal — never the bill.
  2. File DTE Form 1 with your COUNTY AUDITOR between January 1 and March 31, for the PRIOR tax year. The next Ohio window opens January 1, 2027 for tax year 2026, so right now the move is preparation, not filing.
  3. It goes to a three-member county Board of Revision. You get a short hearing, you go first, and you carry the burden — evidence of what the home was worth ON JANUARY 1 is what wins.
  4. You generally get ONE complaint per parcel per reappraisal cycle, so do not spend it on an evidence-free filing. If you lose, you have 30 days from the date the decision is MAILED to appeal.

What to check on your assessment notice

  • Find the total taxable/assessed value and DIVIDE BY 0.35. That is the auditor's opinion of market value. If you would not list your house at that price on January 1, you have a case.
  • Would your reduction exceed $50,000 in market value? That is the $17,500-taxable-value line that lets your school board counter-complain. Below it, they generally are not notified.
  • Have you already filed on this parcel since your county's last reappraisal or update? If so you are barred unless you have had a sale, casualty, substantial improvement, or a 15%+ occupancy change since then.
  • Check your property record card for factual errors — square footage, bed and bath count, a garage or finished basement you do not have. These are the cheapest wins and are often fixable informally.

Official lookup: Ohio Dept. of Taxation: DTE Form 1 and the real property FAQ→

What’s inside

✓The January-to-March filing window explained against the right tax year, so you file for the year you actually mean.
✓The one-complaint-per-interim-period rule, its exceptions, and why a rushed filing can cost you the whole cycle.
✓The 35% conversion that turns your tax bill into the auditor's market-value opinion, and the Column A error that sinks complaints.
✓The $50,000 market-value line that triggers school-board notice, so you can steer your ask around it deliberately.
✓The county-by-county notarization trap — including the county that waives it only on its website while the state form still prints a notary block.
✓Why the arm's-length sale you disclose can RAISE your value, and how to run that arithmetic before you file.
✓The Board of Tax Appeals small claims election: free and fast, but permanently final. When to take it and when not to.
✓A ready-to-edit complaint citing the right Ohio Revised Code sections.

How it works

  1. Buy the kit — the PDF lands in your inbox instantly.
  2. Mark January 1. Ohio's window runs January 1 through March 31 and it is for the PRIOR tax year, so there is no way to file outside it — the whole game is arriving on January 2 with your evidence already built.
  3. Gather the evidence on the checklist and edit the appeal-letter template.
  4. File DTE Form 1 with your County Auditor, who is required to present it to the county Board of Revision before your deadline.

Different process where you live?

Ohio is not one system. These jurisdictions use a different agency, a different form, and an earlier deadline than the rest of the state. The kit covers each one in its own section.

Franklin County (Columbus)
All real property in Franklin County. Cycle: 2023 sexennial reappraisal (median residential up roughly 41%), 2026 triennial update, next reappraisal 2030.
Deadline
January 1 through March 31 (or the next business day). Confirm the current cycle's dates with the Auditor before relying on them.
Filed with
The Franklin County Board of Revision, filed through the County Auditor at 373 S. High St., 20th Floor, Columbus.
Form
DTE Form 1, with e-filing available through the county's Board of Revision portal.
Cuyahoga County (Cleveland)
All real property in Cuyahoga County. Cycle: 2024 sexennial reappraisal, 2027 triennial update.
Deadline
January 1 through March 31 annually.
Filed with
The Cuyahoga County Board of Revision, 2079 East 9th St., 2nd Floor, Cleveland.
Form
DTE Form 1 (the county recommends the state form; a Spanish version is available), with an e-complaint portal.
Hamilton County (Cincinnati)
All real property in Hamilton County. Cycle: 2023 sexennial reappraisal, 2026 triennial update.
Deadline
January 1 through March 31, USPS-postmarked no later than March 31.
Filed with
The Hamilton County Board of Revision — the Auditor, the Treasurer, and the President of the County Commission. 138 E. Court St., Room 304, Cincinnati.
Form
DTE Form 1 (or DTE 1M for manufactured homes).
Montgomery County (Dayton)
All real property in Montgomery County. Cycle: 2023 triennial update, 2026 sexennial reappraisal — so a NEW interim period starts with tax year 2026 and prior filings do not bar a fresh complaint in the January-to-March 2027 window.
Deadline
First Monday in January through March 31. Complaints not received by March 31 are dismissed.
Filed with
The Montgomery County Board of Revision, 451 W. Third St., 3rd Floor, Dayton.
Form
DTE Form 1.
Deadline: Under ORC 5715.19(A)(1) a complaint against the valuation for the current tax year must be filed with the county auditor on or before the thirty-first day of March of the ENSUING tax year, or the date of closing of the collection for the first half of real and public utility property taxes for the current tax year, whichever is LATER. Two consequences homeowners get wrong. First, the year is offset: Ohio real property is taxed a year in arrears, so the complaint you file between January 1 and March 31, 2027 is a TAX YEAR 2026 complaint. Second, March 31 is a floor, not always the operative date — if your county's first-half collection closes later, that later date controls, so check with your auditor. On mailing, the USPS postmark is the filing date and a private meter postmark (UPS, FedEx, DHL, Pitney Bowes) is expressly NOT valid. Separately, the interim-period limit in ORC 5715.19(A)(2) bars you from filing against the same parcel if you filed against it for any prior tax year in the same interim period — which is the ORC 5715.24 sexennial-reappraisal or third-year-update year plus each following year until it recurs, usually three years but keyed to your county's cycle rather than a fixed calendar triennium. There is no late filing and no good-cause extension. Miss it and you wait for the next January 1.

What Ohio charges to file

These are your county or state’s fees, not ours. Listed so there are no surprises.

  • County Board of Revision — no filing fee. No provision of ORC Chapter 5715 authorizes one and none of the large counties publishes one. (This rests on statutory silence and county practice rather than an affirmative published "free" rate, so confirm with your auditor if it matters.)
  • Ohio Board of Tax Appeals — no filing fee. ORC 5717.01 imposes none and the Board's own procedural rules contain no fee provision.
  • Court of Common Pleas — yes, and it varies. An ORC 5717.05 appeal goes through your county clerk of courts and carries that county's civil filing fee, set locally. Expect a clerk's fee in the low hundreds and call your county clerk of courts for the current amount.
  • Your real cost is evidence, not filing. The dominant out-of-pocket for a homeowner is an independent appraisal with a January 1 effective date, which is optional and market-priced.

Questions

Why is this $29 and not $49?
The $49 kit includes a comparable-sales analysis pulled from county records. We don't have that data for Ohio yet, so this kit is the guide, the deadline rules, the exact form, an evidence checklist, and an appeal-letter template — you gather the comps yourself, and we show you how. Honest work, honest price.
When is the Ohio property tax appeal deadline?
Under ORC 5715.19(A)(1) a complaint against the valuation for the current tax year must be filed with the county auditor on or before the thirty-first day of March of the ENSUING tax year, or the date of closing of the collection for the first half of real and public utility property taxes for the current tax year, whichever is LATER. Two consequences homeowners get wrong. First, the year is offset: Ohio real property is taxed a year in arrears, so the complaint you file between January 1 and March 31, 2027 is a TAX YEAR 2026 complaint. Second, March 31 is a floor, not always the operative date — if your county's first-half collection closes later, that later date controls, so check with your auditor. On mailing, the USPS postmark is the filing date and a private meter postmark (UPS, FedEx, DHL, Pitney Bowes) is expressly NOT valid. Separately, the interim-period limit in ORC 5715.19(A)(2) bars you from filing against the same parcel if you filed against it for any prior tax year in the same interim period — which is the ORC 5715.24 sexennial-reappraisal or third-year-update year plus each following year until it recurs, usually three years but keyed to your county's cycle rather than a fixed calendar triennium. There is no late filing and no good-cause extension. Miss it and you wait for the next January 1.
What form do I file to appeal my Ohio property assessment?
DTE Form 1 (Complaint Against the Valuation of Real Property), filed with your County Auditor, who is required to present it to the county Board of Revision. The kit walks you through completing it line by line and includes a ready-to-edit appeal letter to attach.
Do you file the appeal for me?
No — this is a do-it-yourself kit. You file DTE Form 1 yourself with your County Auditor, who is required to present it to the county Board of Revision. The kit makes that straightforward with step-by-step instructions and a ready-to-edit letter.
What if it doesn't help?
30-day money-back guarantee, no questions asked. If the kit isn't useful, reply to your delivery email and we'll refund you.
Is this legal or tax advice?
No. It's general information to help you file your own appeal. Always rely on the date and instructions printed on your own assessment notice and confirm current requirements with your county.
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