Comparable Sales for Your Florida VAB Petition: How to Find and Present Them

Comparable sales — the only evidence that consistently wins

In Florida VAB hearings, the petitioner who shows up with 3-5 strong comparable sales (and walks the magistrate through them clearly) wins more often than not. The petitioner who shows up empty-handed almost never wins.

Here's how to find good comps, evaluate them, and present them.

What makes a property "comparable"

A good comp has all of these:

• Same use code (DOR_UC). Single-family homes compare to single-family homes. Condos to condos. Mobile homes to mobile homes. The Property Appraiser will reject cross-class comps.
• Same ZIP code (or very close). Florida is hyper-local — beachfront vs. inland in the same zip can be 50% different. Same neighborhood is ideal.
• Within 15% of your square footage. A 2,000 sqft home compares to 1,700-2,300 sqft homes. Not 1,200 or 3,000.
• Within 10 years of your year built. A 1985 home compares to 1975-1995 builds. New construction (2020+) is a separate market.
• Sold within the last 12 months. Older sales are less probative. Florida's "qualifying" sales windows are documented in the FL DOR Sales Data File.
• Arm's-length transaction. Non-arm's-length sales (between relatives, foreclosures, distressed sales) are excluded by Florida law. The FL DOR sales file marks these with "Q" (qualified) vs. "U" (unqualified).

Where to find them — 5 free sources

### 1. FL DOR Sales Data File (SDF) The Florida Department of Revenue publishes a statewide sales file annually. Available at the DOR Data Portal. Filter by your county, ZIP code, use code, and year. Mark "Q" qualified sales only.

### 2. Your County Property Appraiser website Every Florida county PA publishes a parcel search with sales history. Examples:

• Miami-Dade: miamidade.gov/pa
• Broward: bcpa.net
• Hillsborough: hcpafl.org
• Pinellas: pcpao.gov

Most have sales-search tools with filters for ZIP code, sqft range, and year.

### 3. Zillow / Realtor.com These show recent listings and sold properties. They're not authoritative for FL VAB purposes (the Property Appraiser uses the DOR sales file), but they're useful for finding addresses to look up in the official sales data.

### 4. Public records Some counties post deed transfer records directly. Useful for confirming sale dates and prices.

### 5. AppealMyTax calculator Free at /calculator. Pulls comps from FL DOR data automatically using your parcel ID. The optional $49 packet formats the evidence sheet for direct VAB submission.

How to evaluate a comp

For each candidate comparable, check:

• Sale price per sqft. Compare to your TRIM-noticed just value per sqft. If comps average $250/sqft and your assessment is $310/sqft on similar homes, you have a strong case.
• Days on market. Fast sales (under 30 days) often reflect motivated buyers and pricing slightly above market. Long DOM (90+) often reflects below-market pricing. Both are useful, but understand the bias.
• Sale condition flag. FL DOR codes mark "qualifying" sales. Reject non-Q sales unless you have documentation explaining why.
• Distance from your property. Closer is better. Same subdivision is ideal. Same ZIP and similar neighborhood is acceptable. Cross-zip almost never wins.

How to present them in your DR-486 packet

The Property Appraiser will challenge weak comps. To preempt this, your evidence sheet should include:

1. A summary table showing your property and 3-5 comps side by side: address, just value, year built, sqft, sale price, sale date, $/sqft.
2. A short paragraph explaining why these comps are valid — same DOR_UC, same ZIP, similar size and age.
3. A computed comparable average with the corrected value you propose.
4. The actual MLS or DOR record for each comp, if available.

Don't include comps that hurt your case. The VAB doesn't expect a balanced selection — they expect you to present your best 3-5.

The adjustment trap

The Property Appraiser may argue that your comps need "adjustment" for differences (newer roof, granite countertops, pool, etc.). They are not wrong — every comp differs slightly from the subject property. But:

• The burden is on the Property Appraiser to *quantify* adjustments with evidence.
• If they say "your home is worth 5% more because of the pool," they need a market study showing pool premium.
• Most adjustments cancel out across 3-5 comps — some have features yours doesn't, some don't.

The strongest petitioner posture: "Here are 3-5 comparable sales of similar properties at $X average. The Property Appraiser has not shown evidence of comparable adjustments. The market data speaks for itself."

Final check before filing

• All comps from the last 12 months? ✓
• All same DOR use code? ✓
• All within 15% sqft and 10 years year built? ✓
• All in the same ZIP or immediate neighborhood? ✓
• Comp average is at least 5% lower than your assessed value? ✓

If yes on all, you have a strong petition.

Pull comps in 30 seconds →

Check Your Houston Address

Free calculator pulls HCAD comps in 30 seconds. Optional $49 packet pre-fills your iFile protest.